Albanian Language Media:

• Assembly adopts draft law on Pristina-Durres railway line study (media)
• Haradinaj and Kurti debate about energy during Assembly session (KP/Koha)
• Reka: Russia blocking Kosovo’s UN membership by using “power” argument (media)
• Luxembourg pledges 35 million euro support to Kosovo (RTK)
• Serbian List dissatisfied with media reports (Albanian Post)
• KFOR talks about the security in the Monastery of Decan (Express)
• Albania’s President arrives today for a three- day visit to Kosovo (media)
• KLI: Courts had a considerably low efficiency in trying cases of corruption in 2021 (Koha)
• Rizvanolli: We plan to produce 1,400 MGW of new renewable energy capacities (media)
• Kurti organises a reception for Manifesta’s international and local journalists (media)
• Number of hospitalised patients with COVID-19 increases (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Drecun: Lajcak to state clearly that the normalisation of relations does not imply mutual recognition (RTS)
• Dacic and Al Sisi: Egypt maintains stance of ‘frozen recognition’ of Kosovo (Radio KIM)
• Serbian Defence Ministry denies involvement in weapons flight (N1)
• Serbian List on Pristina media reports (Kosovo Online)
• Detention of Salih Mutafa extended (Radio KIM)

Opinion:

• Peach: Corrupt politicians and criminals in the Western Balkans will face consequences (Albanian Daily News)
• EU stores up trouble for its Balkan enlargement plans (Financial Times)

International:

• Brussels’ Emergency Plan To Reduce Gas Use To Test EU Solidarity Again (Balkan Insight)

Humanitarian/Development:

• In Montenegro, Ukrainian Refugees Struggle with Work and Rent (Balkan Insight)

Albanian Language Media  

Assembly adopts draft law on Pristina-Durres railway line study (media)

Kosovo MPs voted today in favour of the draft law for co-financing agreement for the feasibility study of the Pristina-Durres railway line.

Assembly Speaker Glauk Konjufca said 83 MPs voted in favour of the motion, namely all MPs present in the session both from the ruling and opposition parties. 

Minister of Infrastructure, Liburn Aliu, said the feasibility study would cost almost 2 million euros. He also said that the study would also include the project idea for the railway line. “The Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy of Albania will allocate the amount of 1 million while Kosovo’s Ministry of Infrastructure will allocate 980,000,” he explained. 

Haradinaj and Kurti debate about energy during Assembly session (KP/Koha)

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) Ramush Haradinaj and Prime Minister Albin Kurti debated about the energy situation in Kosovo. Haradinaj wanted to know what is the Government’s strategy in case Kosovo faces an energy collapse.

Kurti said Kosovo is not reliant on electricity production and will continue to implement the national energy strategy that foresees creation of new capacities. He said the Government will be focusing on supporting the vulnerable categories in case of an energy crisis this winter. “During the joint meeting with Albania it has been agreed to have joint investments in new generating capacities,” Kurti added. 

Haradinaj insisted on Kurti commenting on his position against the construction of the coal-fired Kosova e Re power plant, to which he said: “With regards to Contour Global, I still believe that it was an unfavourable contract with Kosovo.”

Reka: Russia blocking Kosovo’s UN membership by using “power” argument (media)

On the 12th anniversary of the International Court of Justice’s ruling on the legality of Kosovo’s independence, Kosovo’s former minister of European integration, Blerim Reka, said that Russia was violating international law by not adhering to the ruling which said that declaration of independence did not violate international law. 

“Even after the clear opinion of the ICJ, it continues to block the membership of the Republic of Kosovo in the UN: in the absence of the power of the argument, it uses the “argument” of power,” he wrote on Facebook. Reka added: “No UN member state, not even Russia, can be above international law. Kosovo’s independence is a closed issue, and its judicial-international legality is confirmed by the ICJ.”

Luxembourg pledges 35 million euro support to Kosovo (RTK)

Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi, and Minister of Economy of Luxembourg, Franz Fayot, signed two agreements today: the Development Cooperation Agreement and the Memorandum of Understanding for the Implementation of the Agreement.

Bislimi said on the occasion that the fields that will be supported by Luxembourg include education, health, sustainable economic growth, the field of innovation, civil society. “The amount for these three years is 35 million euros,” Bislimi said.

Luxembourg minister Fayot at the same time noted that for the first time they are looking beyond traditional cooperation. “The agreement that we signed covers the years 2023-2025 with a budget of 35 million euros which is a significant increase and this demonstrates the commitment that Luxembourg shows for Kosovo,” he said, adding that cooperation will be based on demands and needs, especially in the green market, in the growth of the ecosystem of new businesses. 

Serbian List dissatisfied with media reports (Albanian Post)

The news portal reports that the Serbian List has issued four communiques in four days, “all of them in defence of the criminal wanted by the authorities and sanctioned by the U.S. State Treasury, Milan Radojciq.” 

In today’s announcement, the Serbian List expressed its dissatisfaction with the reports of the Kosovar media, calling these reports “sad” and in the service of “undermining the political power that this List has”.

The media in Kosovo, according to the Serbian List, fabricate and write news in the name of non-existent sources, solely to discredit the party in question.

“The Serbian List has its bodies and representatives who have daily contact with international representatives, by name and surname, and not invented like those in the media in Kosovo. We are legitimate representatives of the Serbian people with more than 90 percent of support,” their reaction states.

Furthermore, Serbian List has reprimanded the media in Serbia, asking the latter to maintain the level of professionalism and not broadcast news, as they call it “fabricated” and full of “lies”.

KFOR talks about the security in the Monastery of Decan (Express)

Although it is a religious monument of the Middle Ages, Decani Monastery continues to be guarded by KFOR soldiers even in the 21st century. The KFOR mission in a response to Express say that there has been no direct threat to the Monastery of Deçan since 2016 when weapons and explosives were confiscated by the Kosovo police in its vicinity.

“KFOR remains fully focused on the day-to-day implementation of its UN mandate (derived from United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1244 of 1999) to ensure a secure environment and freedom of movement for all communities living in Kosovo. As part of this task, KFOR closely monitors the security situation in Kosovo, including the Monastery of Visoki Decan and its surroundings. The monastery of Visoki Decan in Decan is the only religious monument guarded by KFOR and the leading NATO mission in Kosovo continues to closely monitor everything that may affect the security situation and especially all issues related to with the Monastery of Decan”, reads a response to Express.

Further, the response adds that ‘any changes to the conduct of our force in KFOR remain condition-based and not calendar-driven. KFOR has a flexible and visible operation on the ground, which allows them to immediately address any development that may affect the security situation. As a third-level responder, KFOR operates in close coordination with the Kosovo Police and EULEX, in accordance with the three levels of security response to crises. The only exception is the Monastery of Deçan, where KFOR is the first responder to any security threat to the Monastery. KFOR examines the situation from time to time.’

Albania’s President arrives today for a three- day visit to Kosovo (media)

The President of Albania Ilir Meta begins today his three-day visit to Kosovo. The Kosovo Police, through an announcement, has made known its commitment to the escort and security of President Meta. On this occasion, the Kosovo Police has asked for full understanding for the road blocks during the escort. 

KLI: Courts had a considerably low efficiency in trying cases of corruption in 2021 (Koha)

Kosovo Law Institute said in a report it presented today that Kosovo courts have recorded a considerably low efficiency in resolving cases of corruption in 2021. 

In a press conference, KLI representatives said less rulings were issued in 2021 than in 2019. “Compared to previous years, in the seven basic courts less verdicts were made in the cases of corruption (165 persons) than in 2019 when decisions against 302 persons were taken. The number of decisions in 2021 is close to that in 2020 (161 persons), whereby the work of the judiciary was reduced due to the pandemic,” the report noted.

Of the outcome of the rulings, of 165 persons charged, 72 were convicted while with regards to high-level cases, the courts issued verdicts for 28 persons with the allegations of the prosecution having failed in all. “2021 is one of the years which had the most negative results in the failure of high-profile cases,” the report found. 

Rizvanolli: We plan to produce 1,400 MGW of new renewable energy capacities (media)

Solar energy strengthens energy security and creates new jobs, participants at the second Solar Forum in Kosovo organised by the Ministry of Economy in cooperation with USAID heard.

Minister of Economy, Artane Rizvanolli, stated that they are working on the creation of a new policy aimed at decarbonization and the provision of sustainable energy supply for all citizens. She also noted that plans are underway to ensure Kosovo produces 1,400 MGW of renewable energy within a ten-year period.

“To build a brighter and more sustainable energy future, we are working hard to set the foundations of a new policy and regulatory framework focusing on decarbonisation and provision of stable and affordable energy for all citizens,” Rizvanolli said.

Kurti organises a reception for Manifesta’s international and local journalists (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti has started the external public engagement with the “Manifesta” festival, with the reception he has organised for international and local journalists.

The “Fourteenth Manifesta” in Pristina is the best news we can have for this summer for so many different communities, Prime Minister Kurti said in his speech to journalists. The role of culture journalism, according to the prime minister, is to make the magical accessible, for art to be life-changing, for it to become part of our daily lives. Without criticism, culture is groundless; without the reporter, art dies, he added.

Currently, the main spaces in the media are filled with wars, global warming, inflation and so on. However, it is you, art journalists, who offer a great path for reflection through your coverage of cultural events, the ties that bind us together, the Prime Minister said.

The Ministry of Culture is working to create a museum of contemporary art, therefore, as the Prime Minister said, “Manifesta” comes at the right time because all the experience gained from “Manifesta” will be decisive in the establishment of this museum.

He expressed the hope that until the next “Manifesta” festival, it will be possible to share very good news about the progress of the contemporary art museum of Kosovo.

“The prime minister also greeted the six journalists from Ukraine, who were present at the organized reception, and expressed sympathy, empathy, admiration and solidarity for the liberation struggle of the people of Ukraine,” the Kosovo government’s communique says.

Number of hospitalised patients with COVID-19 increases (media)

The Clinical and University Hospital Service of Kosovo (SHSKUK) announced today that the number of hospitalised patients with COVID-19 has increased across Kosovo hospitals.

Based on today’s report, there is an increase in the number of patients in the Infectious Diseases Clinic, the Gynecology Clinic, the Pediatrics Clinic and the Neonatology Clinic, with the total number of patients hospitalised with coronavirus reaching 91. 

The Ministry of Health has meanwhile reported 1,440 new infections and two deaths in the last twenty four hours.

Serbian Language Media

Drecun: Lajcak to state clearly that the normalisation of relations does not imply mutual recognition (RTS)

President of the Committee for Kosovo and Metohija of the Serbian Parliament, Milovan Drecun, told RTS this morning that there will be no negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina by the end of the month. 

He said that no progress has been made which should be verified at the summit. On the other hand, the EU mediator in the dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak, stated that 99.5 percent of the text of the agreement was agreed, and that now only political will was needed. Drecun said that Lajcak must clearly say that the normalisation of relations does not imply mutual recognition, reported Radio Television of Serbia. 

He stated that there was a proposal to meet the delegations of Belgrade and Pristina in Brussels on July 14, and President Aleksandar Vucic and Albin Kurti on July 19.

“It was clear that this could not happen, no progress was made that should be verified at that summit meeting,” Drecun assessed.

He said that nothing should be expected before the end of August, beginning of September due to the summer break of the people working in the EU. 

The term “enforced missing persons” unacceptable

According to Drecun, Lajcak will have to make a lot of effort to get things going on the dialogue, if he talked about the fact that they were very close to reaching an agreement on three, four agreements, and that about 95 percent of the agreement on the missing has been reached.

“The term forcibly disappeared persons is unacceptable, which Pristina inserted into that agreement,  with the intention of drawing us into a trap that would mean that our country accepts responsibility for persons who have disappeared due to the illegal actions of the terrorist KLA, because only states under the UN Convention on the protection of the forcibly disappeared are responsible, not some other organization,” emphasized Drecun.

He said that the compromise “disappeared under force” was offered so that we would not have to accept responsibility. “It’s an essential obstacle, which is the problem,” he said. 

Is there any progress with other agreements?

He explained that on the agenda, in addition to the issue of the Community of Serbian Municipalities, which, as he said, Pristina would not discuss, there were issues of property, missing persons, issues of the expelled, their return, economic cooperation.

“If some agreements have been reached, then Miroslav Lajcak should present those details. I am not sure that there has been any particular progress to be able to say – here the agreement will be initiated, that is why it is necessary to have a meeting between President Vucic and Albin Kurti,” said Drecun.

Risk of destabilisation

Drecun warned of a risk of causing destabilisation in the north of Kosovo, especially considering the announcement that licence plates would be removed on October 1 from vehicles that were not re-registered. He added that there was a risk with the constant incursions of special police units in the north of Kosovo, and the evident intention to use these forces with political instructions to cause violence to intimidate Serbs.

“Simply preventing Serbs from living normally,” Drecun pointed out.

“The EU created the term normalisation of relations”

Commenting on Lajcak’s statement that Belgrade and Pristina should decide what the normalisation of relations was, Drecun emphasised that “it cannot be done that way”.

“Who created the term normalisation of relations, a legally-binding agreement on normalisation of relations? Whose request is it? Well, the EU set it, it is an integral part of Chapter 35, and it was left to be undefined, because the dialogue that takes place under the auspices of the EU is in a status-neutral form. This means that these are not talks between two countries and that the result of this agreement cannot be the so-called mutual recognition, which Pristina would like, and almost all these countries that recognized Kosovo, so that we recognize the fake state of Kosovo “, emphasised Drecun.

He specified that the moment the dialogue started in that direction, Serbia would automatically leave the process.

According to Drecun, it was defined what it means to normalise relations, to regulate the issues that were put on the agenda and Lajcak himself put on the agenda.

And the full implementation of the Brussels Agreement, as he pointed out, primarily referred to the Community of Serbian Municipalities, the issue of the missing, the return of the expelled, property, economic development, adding the situation around the “Open Balkans”, that is, everything that could improve people’s lives and prevent those impediments.

“If someone tries to tell us now that Belgrade and Pristina need to agree on what normalisation means, then there will be no agreement. You know why, because Pristina is trying to twist the whole situation about these issues, which are on the agenda in Brussels, instead of giving answers,” warned Drecun. 

Kurti was talking about “let’s first achieve mutual recognition, and then we can easily agree on, say, the Community of Serbian Municipalities”.

“That is not acceptable, Lajcak must say clearly and loudly that the normalisation of relations does not imply mutual recognition”, concluded Milovan Drecun, reported RTS.

Dacic and Al Sisi: Egypt maintains stance of ‘frozen recognition’ of Kosovo (Radio KIM)

Serbian Assembly Speaker Ivica Dacic and Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al Sisi concluded yesterday that Egypt continues its stance of ‘frozen recognition’ of Kosovo, Serbian Assembly said in a statement.

Dacic told Al Sisi, who was paying an official visit to Serbia, that Belgrade highly appreciates the stance of Egypt that also includes Cairo not supporting membership of Pristina in international organisations.

The interlocutors also agreed that Egypt and Serbia have a long tradition of good political relations and expressed the need to further foster comprehensive cooperation in the fields of education, tourism, culture and environment protection.  

Pristina claims that Egypt recognized Kosovo in June, 2013, in the last days of President Mohammad Morsi’s power, while Belgrade said the recognition was expressed verbally only, and didn’t become operational upon Al Sisi took the power.

Following his visit to Egypt, in December 2021, Dacic said Al Sisi told him that the stance of Cairo when it comes to Kosovo remains in a ‘status of frozen recognition’, and it means it will continue not supporting Pristina on the international arena. 

Serbian Defence Ministry denies involvement in weapons flight (N1)

The Serbian Defence Ministry denied any involvement in organising the flight carrying weapons which crashed in Greece over the weekend but confirmed that the shipment of munitions was owned by the Valir company, N1 reports.

“The organisation of the flight, which had taken off from Nis, and was due to make “technical stops” in Amman, Riyadh, Ahmedabad before reaching its final destination in Dhaka, and the choice of the airline were not within the competence of the Republic of Serbia. We also underline that Serbia is not responsible for issuing permits to fly over foreign territories, because it is a sovereign decision of each country, to which the carrier applies for an overflight permit in such cases. In this case, our country fully complied with international law and fulfilled all international obligations, and we are providing support to the Greek authorities in conducting a detailed investigation”, the statement said.

The statement was issued “regarding the manipulation and untruths that are still being spread with regard to the plane crash in Greece”. “Serbia did not use this plane to transport weapons to Ukraine,” it said.

“We underline that the plane that crashed in Greece had been transporting the products manufactured by our industry to a validated end user – the Ministry of Defence of Bangladesh”, the ministry statement said.

“The owner of the shipment, containing about 11.5 tonnes of instructional mines and illuminating mortar shells, was the Serbian private company Valir, and the plane which was transporting the shipment was owned by a Ukrainian private airline”, it said in a statement.

See at: https://bit.ly/3RO6yB0

Serbian List on Pristina media reports (Kosovo Online)

Serbian List (SL) in a statement today said that some Pristina-based media attempted to stain the reputation of this party, adding SL representatives were in daily contact “with real representatives of the international community”, and that they received no warning whatsoever, Kosovo Online portal reports.

The statement came in reaction to the reports by some Pristina media saying that an unnamed high US official reminded Serbian List that its vice president Milan Radoicic “was on the US blacklist over his involvement in corruption and transnational organised crime”.  This media report was then re-run by some Belgrade-based media as well.

“It is more than regrettable what some media in Pristina do and in an attempt to stain the reputation of the Serbian List, fabricate alleged, unnamed sources, or better to say inexistent sources who allegedly warned our party”, SL said in a statement.

It added that “no one sent any warnings to them nor were there reasons to do something like that given that they are the legal and legitimate representatives of the Serbian people with more than 90 percent support”. 

Detention of Salih Mutafa extended (Radio KIM)

Specialist Chambers in the Hague decided to extend detention of Salih Mustafa, former KLA member, Radio KIM reports. The Court will again deliberate on his detention in September, although proceedings against him are nearing the end. The closing remarks in his case will be held from September 13 to 15, this year.

The Court cited a number of reasons to extend detention, including the flee risk, influence on witnesses and disappearance of evidence.

Mustafa was arrested in September 2020 and remains in detention ever since.

He was a former commander of KLA unit, in the so-called Lab operational zone and is charged on both accounts of individual and commanding criminal responsibility for the crimes KLA committed against the individuals (Kosovo Albanians) it held as prisoners in Zlas village. The crimes include the unlawful arrests, cruel treatments, torture and murder. 

Opinion

Peach: Corrupt politicians and criminals in the Western Balkans will face consequences (Albanian Daily News)

Stuart Peach, the United Kingdom’s special envoy for the Western Balkans, through his editorial entitled “Why we must end the links between politics, organized crime and corruption” has elaborated the importance of fighting corruption in the region of Western Balkans, which according to him is undermining the efforts of young people in these countries to work and live a dignified life.

Peach, who calls himself a friend of the region, writes that the corruption entrenched in these countries can only be fought with honest prosecutors, courageous journalists, dedicated police and visionary leaders.

“We as the United Kingdom are intensifying our efforts to sever the links between politics, business and illegal activities both globally and in the Western Balkans,” he writes.

Peach, in his editorial, says that organized crime and corruption in the Western Balkans mean public funds, collected by taxpayers, are not reaching schools, hospitals and road infrastructure.

Read the full editorial here: https://bit.ly/3IRBUCN

EU stores up trouble for its Balkan enlargement plans (Financial Times)

European pressure on North Macedonia to accept Bulgaria’s demands will set a bad precedent for the region

In 1971, CIA staffers wrote a 12-page document entitled “The Macedonian Syndrome”. Made public 40 years later, it stands the test of time as a pellucid analysis of one of south-eastern Europe’s most intractable historical disputes. Its authors might not be surprised to learn that, despite the different geopolitical context of our times, the tensions over Macedonian identity discussed in the US intelligence agency’s document remain as unresolved today as half a century ago.

For these reasons, it is premature to celebrate the EU’s launch this week of the negotiating process by which North Macedonia — and Albania — can in principle join the bloc. For sure, any progress seems better than none. North Macedonia was named a candidate for EU membership back in 2005, under the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Albania has held candidate status since 2014. Just to move them an inch closer to EU membership is better than letting them languish indefinitely in the antechamber. 

Yet the unusual conditions attached to North Macedonia’s EU path give rise to concern. Bravely, European leaders responded to Russia’s attack on Ukraine by conferring candidate status last month on Ukraine and Moldova. They also accelerated the process for North Macedonia and Albania, lest they be seen to neglect western Balkan states that have been knocking at the door for much of this century. But in their haste to do the right thing, EU leaders have stored up trouble for the future.

Read more at:https://on.ft.com/3S2SvYz

International 

Brussels’ Emergency Plan To Reduce Gas Use To Test EU Solidarity Again (Balkan Insight)

The EU’s emergency plan to head off a gas crisis this winter depends on cooperation amongst member states.

The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled its plan to head off a winter energy crisis if Russia totally cuts off gas supplies to the continent by setting out emergency plans for countries to reduce their gas use by 15 per cent through March. Yet such a move involves the kind of solidarity amongst the 27 member states that in the past has been sorely lacking.

In its European Gas Demand Reduction Plan, the EU Commission proposes setting up a new Council Regulation on Coordinated Demand Reduction Measures for Gas, which would set a target for all member states to voluntarily reduce gas demand by 15 per cent between August 1 and March 31.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3PG9CgC

Humanitarian/Development

In Montenegro, Ukrainian Refugees Struggle with Work and Rent (Balkan Insight)

On paper, they are protected, but in reality, Ukrainian refugees in Montenegro face a struggle to find work and pay the rent

After finishing her shift in a small hotel on the Montenegrin coast, Julia Ivanovna usually gets in touch with Ukrainians like her who fled the war in their homeland.

Not long after Russia’s February 24 invasion, 35-year-old Ivanovna swapped Kyiv for Bar, a port town in Montenegro, and linked up with friends who had already made the move to the Adriatic coast.

“In the beginning I could afford to rent a small apartment, but when my budget ran down I had to find a job,” Ivanovna told BIRN. “Now I working as a maid in a small hotel near Bar, but when the summer tourist season ends I’ll have to find another source of income.”

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3PsVPKO