LOCAL PRESS

Due to Pristina’s unilateral moves, situation in Kosovo and Metohija has never been more difficult (Tanjug/RTS)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic pointed out on Sunday at a press conference that the situation for our people in Kosovo and Metohija is very complicated and complex and appealed to both Serbs and Albanians in the province to preserve peace. Following the unilateral decision of the temporary institutions in Pristina to introduce “new reciprocity measures” as of 1 August, according to which identity cards and car plates issued by Serbia are practically prohibited, Vucic said that we have never been in a more difficult situation. The President said that, when it comes to ID cards, Pristina calls for the agreement on freedom of movement, item 3 from 2011, which states that each side can implement a system whereby ID cards will be accompanied by written, entry-exit documents for residents of the other country who wish to transit to a third country, while the footnote states that they will use status-neutral language. He pointed out that what is defined for the residents of the other country who are transiting to a third country cannot apply to the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija, clearly and unambiguously. You cannot stop the Serbs from Zubin Potok, Zvecan, Kosovska Mitrovica and say that they cannot cross with a Serbian ID card, because they do not represent the other side, nor are they transiting to a third country, the President noted. When it comes to plates, he said that in the agreement from 2011, item 6 states that as a temporary measure, the authorities in Kosovo will extend the validity of KS plates, for an initial period of 5 years, after which the two parties will reconsider it, with the EU, if necessary, while item 7 states that all car owners in Kosovo and Metohija will have RKS or KS markings, and all parties will make an effort to ensure this. Also, as he added, it is planned that the temporary measure of the authorities in Belgrade will be to allow cars with KS plates to pass through our territory. In 2016, in the agreement signed by Marko Djuric, the validity of KS plates was defined and extended until 2021, he said. However, in 2020, Pristina arbitrarily cancelled KS plates, the President emphasized, adding that today he wants to say that there are no more KS plates, that they are a sovereign state, because the Quint tells them so. According to him, contrary to all norms, to everything that was signed, Pristina wants to implement something by force in the north, that’s why they are campaigning. We have held talks with the representatives of the Serb people from Kosovo and Metohija, we will try to preserve the peace at all costs, to ask the Albanians to come to their senses and that the Serbs do not fall for provocations, Vucic said. He asked the representatives of powerful countries to pay little attention to international law and the reality on the ground and that their wards do not cause conflict. I had many conversations with representatives of the international community, Lajcak the most, but if anyone thinks it is possible to repeat 17 March 2004 or something that happened to our people in other parts of Yugoslavia, it will not happen, the President said. According to him, the number of incidents since Kurti came to power has increased by 50 percent, with the list of attacks on Serbs on 12 pages.

Pristina postpones decision; Crossing points closed (Novosti/B92)

A tense day in the northern part of Kosovo started with the movements of the Kosovo police, followed by barricades… In the end, it seems things calmed down. It all started because the application of reciprocity measures was supposed to start on 1 August, more precisely, as the Kosovo government announced, that from midnight everyone who comes to the crossing points with an identity card of the Republic of Serbia will be handed an entry-exit documents. Moreover, Pristina will start replacing Serbian license plates of vehicles with Kosovo license plates. During the day, citizens began to gather in the center of North Mitrovica, dissatisfied with the introduction of reciprocity measures. After that, alarm sirens were heard in the northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica. KFOR announced that it is monitoring the situation and is ready to intervene. During the night the situation became increasingly tense. Around midnight, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic also addressed the public, and the US Ambassador in Pristina “pressured” the authorities there to reconsider their decision. And then, around midnight, news arrived from Pristina that the implementation of these two decisions had been postponed for a month. The government of Kosovo announced “that the implementation of the two decisions is postponed until 1 September 2022″.”In cooperation with our international allies, we pledge to postpone implementation of decisions on car plates & entry-exit documents at border crossing points with Serbia for 30 days, on the condition that all barricades are removed & complete freedom of movement is restored,” press release says.

Lajcak: I welcome Kosovo’s decision

The EU’s special envoy for dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina Miroslav Lajcak welcomed Kosovo’s decision to accept Borrell’s proposal to postpone the decision on plates and entry/exit documents for a month. Lajcak wrote on Twitter that “the EU expects all roadblocks to be removed immediately”. “Borrell invited Kosovo and Serbia to engage in dialogue on way forward. I am grateful to the US Embassy to Kosovo for its strong support,” Lajcak wrote.

Vucic: I believe situation will be de-escalated (TV Pink/Tanjug)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with top military officials in the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff building late on Sunday. In a statement to TV Pink after the meeting, Vucic said Belgrade had asked representatives of the international community to do everything in their power to ensure Pristina withdrew its decisions on personal documents and vehicle re-registration, and added that he hoped the situation in Kosovo and Metohija would be de-escalated as early as Monday. He said Chief of General Staff General Milan Mojsilovic had spoken with the KFOR commander before the meeting. He said the atmosphere during their conversation had been fair and professional and that the two sides had agreed to exchange information as there had been “many untruths and disinformation”. Vucic noted that it was extremely important for Belgrade to continue the dialogue with Pristina and try to solve problems in a peaceful manner. “I believe we will have good news over the short term,” he said. He said Pristina’s moves had been under preparation for a long time but that Belgrade was doing everything it could to ensure the situation calmed down. “I hope the situation will be de-escalated tomorrow (on Monday) and what will remain to be done is to prepare for dialogue and try, through compromise solutions, to reach a situation where peace can be maintained,” Vucic added. He thanked the Kosovo Serbs for their restraint and courage. “The toughest political fight is ahead of us in the coming weeks, and I thank them for keeping their Serbian names and family names alive in Kosovo and Metohija and for being fearless,” he said.

Brnabic: Serbia not responsible for crisis in Kosovo and Metohija (Tanjug/Politika)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic stated that Serbia did not do anything to start the crisis in Kosovo and Metohija and added that everything that is happening now in the province is the result of unilateral moves by Albin Kurti. In a statement to Tanjug, Brnabic explained that the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija did absolutely nothing to cause what we are seeing today, but rather the opposite – this is the epilogue of years of mistreatment of Serbs in the province and non-compliance with international agreements. The Prime Minister emphasized that President Aleksandar Vucic and Serbia call for peace, stability, connection and cooperation, while, on the other hand, Kurti is a man whose only policy is constant violence and constant provocations.

Kurti brought things to this point – by cancelling the right to vote for Serbs, banning the holding of elections in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, disrespecting the Brussels agreement, openly admitting that Pristina will never implement the Brussels agreement, as well as deliberately wrong and selective interpretation of old agreements, she concluded.

Serbian Army denies that it entered Kosovo (Politika)

The Serbian Defense Ministry denied allegations from social networks that units of the Serbian Army (VS) entered Kosovo during the evening and caused incidents there. “Due to a large amount of disinformation, which is spreading through fake accounts on social networks and certain websites, that there was a conflict between the VS and the Kosovo Police, the Ministry of Defense announces that VS did not cross the administrative line and did not enter the territory of Kosovo for the time being.”

Petkovic: Kurti unilaterally decided to set fire to powder keg (RTS)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Petar Petkovic says that the night in the north of Kosovo was peaceful, but in an atmosphere of tension. Pristina wanted to provoke conflicts, to deal with the Serb people, who are only defending their right to survive, said Petkovic. Petkovic says that Albin Kurti unilaterally decided to set fire to the powder keg in the north of Kosovo and Metohija and in the entire Western Balkans. He points out that Pristina brought hundreds of armored vehicles and armed ROSU members to the Belvedere base, which is right next to the north of Kosovo. “The goal was to invade the north of Kosovo and Metohija and deal with the Serb people who are defending freedom of movement and their right to survive in Kosovo and Metohija,” said Petkovic. “If President Vucic uttered the word peace more than 50 times, how can his address or mine or any of us from Belgrade be interpreted as a provocation,” asked Petkovic. He announced a determined diplomatic struggle. “In the past 24 hours, we have almost overturned heaven and earth to reach all interlocutors who can exert pressure, in order to preserve peace and stability,” said Petkovic. He pointed out that this work bore fruit because the Quint and the US put pressure on Kurti, but also that the next period should be used to reach a compromise solution in Brussels. “We wanted that a month ago, we always insist on dialogue,” said Petkovic.

Petkovic with Kosovo Serbs: Unacceptable abolishment of IDs, aim expulsion of Serbs (Tanjug/RTV)

Issuing entry-exit documents, i.e. canceling Serbian identity cards for the region of ​​Kosovo and Metohija, as well as re-registration of license plates, is unacceptable for Belgrade, said the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Petar Petkovic and assessed that the Prime Minister of Pristina’s provisional institutions Albin Kurti is trying to cause a crisis of huge scale. “What Albin Kurti is doing is directly against the Serb people in Kosovo and Metohija and aims to expel the Serb people and Serbian institutions from Kosovo and Metohija,” said Petkovic after a meeting with representatives of Serbs from the province and said that Belgrade will continue to issue all documents for Serbs in Kosovo Metohijna as before. Petkovic said that the conversation with Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija was long and difficult, but completely open, stating that all aspects of the political and security situation in Kosovo and Metohija were discussed. “Our people are absolutely encouraged because once again they could unequivocally hear the full support of the state of Serbia and that from the mouth of President Vucic, who clearly said that the state of Serbia will win,” said Petkovic. “In Pristina, they are twisting everything that is said in Belgrade about Kosovo and Metohija, so that today’s address by President Vucic has been turned into a kind of threat, that Vucic is threatening someone,” said Petkovic and added that the President’s address this morning was actually a big request, rather above all to the countries of the Quint, to preserve the peace and stability that we desperately need in Kosovo and Metohija and in general in the area of ​​the Western Balkans. “How can there be a threat when you are begging for peace and stability? When you are begging the Quint to reason with Kurti, when you are addressing your people in Kosovo and Metohija and telling them to remain calm, not to fall for provocations,” asked Petkovic. Petkovic also conveyed that he heard unequivocally from all the representatives of the Serbs at the meeting their request for the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO). He pointed out that this crisis and everything that is happening, as well as the institutional violence against Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, would not exist if today we had the ZSO, which should be the framework for the realization of the collective rights of Serbs in Kosovo and Kosovo. “The ZSO is the backbone, the very heart of the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina,” underlined Petkovic.

Sanchez said that Spain supports Serbia when it comes to issue of Kosovo (Tanjug/Politika)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday evening, after a meeting with Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Spain Pedro Sanchez, that trade cooperation with Spain will, for the first time in history, exceed the value of €1 billion. In the Palace of Serbia, at a joint press conference with Sanchez, Vucic said that bilateral trade has recently increased significantly, which last year was worth €811 million, and this year, in the first five months, it has increased by 64.1 percent.

Given that Spanish companies have shown interest in doing business in Serbia, we will open our doors wide for them, he said and announced the holding of a business forum in October in Belgrade, where business people from the two countries will meet. Also, as he added, the first pioneering cooperation in the field of military industry was established between Serbia and Spain, noting that Serbia bought two CASA C-295 transport planes and will continue to purchase equipment from Spain. We will open and complete the creation of all key agreements important for infrastructure works and investment in energy, in order to achieve the best possible results, the President said. At the same time, he emphasized that he is proud of the fact that for the first time in Serbian history the head of the Spanish government is staying in Serbia, and pointed out that our country perceives Spain as a sincere friend and one of the greatest in the world. Sanchez said that Spain supports Serbia when it comes to the issue of Kosovo and that it will always defend the principles of international law and territorial integrity and sovereignty, which both countries advocate. He added that Spain advocates that the problems between the two sides should be resolved through dialogue, but that territorial integrity must be respected. Sanchez also added that Serbia should become a full member of the EU and that Spain will always be with Serbia on the road to European integration. The political relations of the two countries are fantastic and I am convinced that both economic and trade relations can reach that level, the Spanish Prime Minister assessed and pointed out that bilateral trade has improved in the last five years, but that it should continue to grow. We have Spanish companies working here, and a large number of new ones are yet to come to Serbia, he announced and repeated that for this reason, a Serbian-Spanish business forum will be organized in Belgrade in October, when the signing of a bilateral agreement in areas of economy between the two countries. We will continue to cooperate, especially during Spain’s presidency of the EU in the second semester of next year, as well as to work intensively for the welfare of our two countries, for peace and the big European family of which we are all a part, said Sanchez.

Dacic with Sanchez: Spain always with Serbia (RTS)

Serbian parliament speaker Ivica Dacic met on Saturday with the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Spain Pedro Sanchez. Dacic expressed his satisfaction with the historically important visit, considering that Sanchez is the first Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Spain to come in that capacity to our country. Dacic pointed out that the bilateral relations between Serbia and Spain are excellent, friendly, privileged and record a constant rise, with no open issues. He also said that they are characterized by mutual support on issues of vital national interest for both countries and expressed confidence that the visit and talks with our country’s highest officials would give a new impetus to cooperation at all levels. In the course of the meeting, Dacic reiterated that EU membership is the country’s strategic commitment and that he expected an acceleration in negotiation dynamics, given that Serbia is implementing important reforms and achieving significant results. Speaking of parliamentary cooperation, Dacic said that Serbia pays special attention to its further intensification, mentioning his visit to Madrid in October last year and talks with the speaker of the Congress Meritxell Batet and the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Congress of the Kingdom of Spain P. Mari Klose, which were very important for our parliamentary and overall cooperation. Sanchez opined that the relations between the two countries are at a high level, very friendly and open. “I am convinced that both economic and trade relations can reach that level,” Sanchez added. He said that Spain supports Serbia on the Kosovo and Metohija issue and that it will always stand by it in defense of the principles of international law and territorial integrity and sovereignty, which both countries advocate. Sanchez also added that Serbia should become a full member of the EU and that Spain would always be with it on the path of European integration. Dacic thanked Spain for its principled position on the Kosovo and Metohija issue, as well as for its continued support of Serbia’s European path.

Selakovic: Serbia proud of outstanding relations with China (Politika)

Serbian Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic said on Saturday that Serbia was proud of its outstanding relations, comprehensive strategic partnership and friendship with China. During a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Chen Bo, Selakovic said that Serbia was committed to advancing and strengthening political relations through top-level meetings and fortifying all forms of cooperation with China. Minister Selakovic expressed his satisfaction with the establishment of a direct airlink between Belgrade and Beijing by China’s Hainan Airlines. He added that he expected Air Serbia to establish a direct airlink between the two countries too, as soon as possible. The Foreign Minister once again voiced gratitude for China’s support for Serbia’s positions concerning Kosovo. He confirmed Serbia’s support for the “One China” policy and the “one country, two systems” principle in Hong Kong, as well as to China’s fight against separatism.

Serbia gets new parliament (RTS/Tanjug)

Serbia’s new parliament was constituted on Monday after the mandates of MPs were approved at a constitutive session. The MPs then took the oath of office. The Aleksandar Vucic – Together We Can Do It All electoral list has 120 seats in the 250-seat parliament and is followed by the Marinika Tepic – United For Victory of Serbia (38 seats) and the Ivica Dacic for PM of Serbia (31 seats) lists. The Milos Jovanovic – Hope for Serbia list has 15 seats, while the We Must coalition has 13, and the Bosko Obradovic – Serbian Dveri Movement – Movement for the Renewal of the Kingdom of Serbia – Milos Parandilovic -Patriotic Bloc for the Renewal of the Kingdom of Serbia list and Milica Djurdjevic-Stamenkovski’s Serbian Oathkeepers’ Party follow with 10 seats each. The Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians has five seats in the new parliament, the Mufti’s Legacy – Justice and Reconciliation Party – Usame Zukorlic list has three, while the Together for Vojvodina – Vojvodinans – Democratic Alliance of Croats in Vojvodina – Together for Vojvodina and the Party of Democratic Action of Sandzak – Dr Sulejman Ugljanin lists each have two seats. The Coalition of the Albanians of the Valley has one seat. The session was chaired by the oldest MP Vladeta Jankovic of the United for Victory of Serbia list. The parliament will meet again on Tuesday to elect its speaker and deputy speaker and name the secretary-general, as well as to elect the members of working bodies and permanent parliamentary delegations to international institutions and organizations.

Dacic: SPS will be part of the parliamentary majority (RTS)

The leader of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) Ivica Dacic said today that this party will be part of the parliamentary majority in the new convocation of the Serbian parliament. Dacic told journalists at the Serbian parliament that the Socialists will support Vladimir Orlic, the SNS candidate for president of the parliament. Dacic said that the SPS will nominate Snezana Paunovic for deputy president of the parliament, while Djordje Milicevic will be the deputy president of the parliamentary group whose head will be the leader of the Socialists. “We did not discuss personnel solutions, we will talk about that in ten days,” said Dacic.

EU Ambassador: Serbia should oppose Russia’s aggression (Blic)

The EU Ambassador to Serbia Emanuele Giaufret stated that opposing the unilateral Russian aggression is the task of the entire global community and that the EU is counting on Serbia to stand by it and also oppose it. “Historically, Russia has made a great contribution to European culture, and I understand that many people in Serbia have strong feelings towards Russia. But these emotions should not be confused with sympathy for the aggressive policy of the Russian government,” Giaufret told Blic. He said that he was looking forward to the formation of the new convocation of the Assembly of Serbia and the new government. “The President reaffirmed that EU accession remains Serbia’s strategic goal, and I look forward to working with a government that is fully committed to this common goal and capable of effectively responding to all the key issues on our agenda: strengthening the rule of law, fostering media freedom, combating climate change and harmonization in the field of foreign policy,” stated Giaufret.

On why Bosniaks are intimidated by rights of Croats in B&H (Politika) 

Politika reminded that even speculations that High Representative Christian Schmidt might accept requests of Croats related to changes to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) encouraged Director of Potocari Memorial Center Emir Suljagic to say “we will be left with two choices – Anatolia or some new war”. The daily went on to say that Suljagic’s statement was “deepened” by SDA leader Bakir Izetbegovic who said: “We counted ourselves – how many hunters we have, how many young people we have, how many drone instructors”.

The US Embassy to B&H reacted by saying it was ‘appalled’ with Izetbegovic’s statements but they, just like German diplomats in Sarajevo, also mentioned “the irresponsible reaction of (SNSD leader and Serb member of the Presidency of B&H Milorad) Dodik”, although Dodik maintained a reserved stance during the entire crisis. The daily noted that media from Banja Luka described foreigners’ reactions to Izetbegovic’s statements as “shy”, while media in Sarajevo defended Izetbegovic by saying that it was HDZ B&H which threatened with dissolution of B&H first. Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said that Izetbegovic’s statement cannot be described as anything else but “a preparation for a war”. (Bosniak member of the Presidency of B&H) Sefik Dzaferovic defended his party boss by saying that nobody can prohibit them to say that they will defend themselves in case they are attacked and he claimed that HDZ B&H, with support of Zagreb, has been threatening territorial integrity of B&H for a while now. Politika noted that most of public fails to understand why Bosniaks are so much bothered with enabling of Croats to elect their own representatives and noted that those who are familiar with the crisis in B&H can understand that B&H can turn into a civic country only when the most numerous people outvote the other two peoples. “Those who have been carefully monitoring political manoeuvres of Sarajevo remembered that ‘Komsic’ case and ambitions of Bosniaks to take more of B&H than what belongs to them, through civic organization, are not of a recent date because a case that reminds of the current development of events has been seen at the first elections at the beginning of 1990s when Ejup Ganic was elected ‘by a trick’ to then Presidency of seven members together with two members of each of the peoples”, the daily noted and explained that Ganic declared himself as a ‘Yugoslav’ back at the time “although it was well known whom he represents and this was confirmed in years to come when it turned out that Muslims tricked Serbs and Croats and got their three members”. However, representative “of so called” American-European initiative (US-Europe Alliance) Reuf Bajrovic told Radio Sarajevo that Schmidt is completing “the work of Karadzic and Boban” and said that he is afraid that “Muslims might turn into a superior demographic Muslim majority legally governed by Christian minority”, while other analysts from the region argued that Schmidt’s ambition is to have “Christian’s rule in Bosnia”. However, the daily reminded that Bosniak officials presented statements over the past several days that Bosniaks “got their own state” so such analyses reminded of parts from the Islamic Declaration of Alija Izetbegovic “who wrote about the need to have a Sharia state, but only when Muslims turn into demographic majority”.

REGIONAL PRESS

Izetbegovic: Bosniaks have the right to be careful, but also the right to defend themselves (ATV) 

ATV reports on a new statement of SDA leader Bakir Izetbegovic on “the counting of Bosniaks for a God forbid scenario”. This time, the SDA leader spoke at a rally in Gradacac. His first statement was condemned by many, but that did not seem to stop Izetbegovic in making more dangerous statements. Izetbegovic incites the crowd and calls for readiness to defend themselves. It is not clear to anyone who is attacking them, and from whom they have to defend themselves. “When they attacked us 30 years ago, those who were counted remained alive. Bosniaks have the right to be careful, but also the right to defend themselves. They must not impose silence on us”, Izetbegovic was quoted as saying. As far as Republika Srpska (RS) is concerned, Izetbegovic can sleep peacefully. In the RS, no one thinks about conflicts. The incendiary rhetoric of the SDA leader is nothing new, but it is a stumbling block to Dayton B&H, experts say. “Such ideas certainly do not lead to any good future. In B&H, we need to sit down and talk, talk about the Constitution, about many topics, and look for the best solutions for some kind of future. The statements of a leader like Izetbegovic can only cause panic and confusion among people, all three peoples and all citizens of B&H”, assessed advisor to the Serb member of the B&H Presidency for security policy Dragan Vukovic. Members of the RS Veterans’ Association (BORS) responded to Izetbegovic, saying he should stop spreading hatred amongst the peoples in B&H. “Since that man has been on the political scene of B&H, I have never heard anything smart from him. Most of the statements he made were not related to calming down the situation, to some kind of coexistence, but on the contrary, all the statements were in such a sense that they represented war-mongering statements. I believe that this does not contribute to coexistence, it does not contribute to the progress of B&H”, emphasized President of the BORS Presidency Radan Ostojic. Harsh condemnations of the war-mongering statements of the Bosniak political leader continue in the RS. Izetbegovic, they say, is well on his way to destroying B&H. “Bakir Izetbegovic only proved and showed his powerlessness all these years. A man who has no qualms about talking to representatives of Serbs and Croats with the aim of the future of Dayton B&H. Bakir is a man filled with hatred and bewildered by the Islamic declaration, incapable of creating the future. By humiliating and belittling and widening the gap between nations, he is personally hammering the last nail into the chest of his beloved B&H. The country that he personally destroys”, member of the Joint Commission on Defense and Security of B&H Parliament Sanja Vulic (SNSD) was quoted as saying.

Izetbegovic’s statements receive more criticism, comments by Milanovic, Plenkovic, Vucic (ATV) 

Following strong criticism of his statements at recent party (SDA) rally in Hadzici, SDA leader Bakir Izetbegovic posted on his Twitter account that a torrent of reactions came after his statement about counting of Bosniaks and arms in order to be prepared for the worst-case scenario but most were overreaction as his statement was not warmongering whatsoever. According to the reporter, Izetbegovic’s statement caused reaction outside of B&H as Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic expressed concern. Vucic deems that the situation in B&H is getting more complicated but his only goal is to preserve peace and Serbs and Bosniaks must urgently engage in talks. Vucic said “we must hold talks urgently”, saying he plans to hold talks with Bosniak leaders after the elections in B&H. A long-term solution must be found for our issues with Bosniaks, Vucic stated. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic claims that threats coming from Izetbegovic prove the seriousness of the situation. Milanovic stressed that Izetbegovic and SDA have been saying the same for two years although Izetbegovic’s father was decorated by Croatia and Croatia’s actions at the end of the war practically saved him. Milanovic stated that “Mujahedin hostess” (B&H Presidency Chairman) Sefik Dzaferovic and SDA leader Izetbegovic are “threatening with war in B&H”. Milanovic said that this should be the biggest topic discussed at this moment. Milanovic said that they are trying in B&H to “silence the Croat people”. “Dzaferovic was in the welcoming committee for Mujahedin at the Zenica Security Unit. Now, he and his boss are threatening with war and drones. That is, for me, the biggest topic of all”, Milanovic was quoted as saying. Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic stated that he believes that Milanovic’s statements are causing damage to Croats in B&H. In his comment on Milanovic’s statement, Plenkovic said Milanovic often accuses others of being something that he himself represents. Plenkovic said that Milanovic did not do much to help the Croats in B&H. “That is a man that does damage, not only to Croatia but to Croats in B&H as well”, Plenkovic assessed. Milanovic said: “That man (Dzaferovic) is simply systemically harnessed in that, to slander as and present us as evildoers in B&H, as a country that has had criminal and evil intentions towards B&H since the beginning. He does that day and night. And then he is invited to Vukovar to parade there. I did not allow him to come near me, because I knew he did not come there with pure heart, instead he came to provoke Serbs, he came there with that motive only, to provoke Serbs, to say – see how Serbs are genocidal. I cannot stand such narratives. It is being rubbed in to Croats as well – Croats are genocidal, Serbs are genocidal, and now Serbs also see what it looks like when someone is waiving it in your face, when they are not capable to say humanly, politically say – now it is enough, let us try to live normally. That is it, that is the group in B&H. Bosniak member of the B&H Presidency Sefik Dzaferovic accused the Croatian authorities of threatening the territorial integrity of B&H. “I call on the authorities of Croatia to stop, in synergy with HDZ B&H, in public and behind closed doors, threatening the territorial integrity of B&H. The right to self-defence is a right prescribed by the UN Charter and no one can forbid us to say that we will defend ourselves if we someone strikes again,” said Dzaferovic.

HNS Presidency convenes, calls for OHR’s urgent relocation from Sarajevo to Brussels to protect OHR’s safety and independence (FTV) 

After extended session of the Croat People’s Assembly (HNS) Presidency, held in Mostar on Friday, HNS President and HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic stated that High Representative (HR) Christian Schmidt should annul all decisions issued by his predecessors “because they undermined functioning of the Dayton B&H”. Covic also said the HNS expressed concern whether the OHR may operate in B&H any longer, when it reacts to protests in such manner. HNS called for urgent consideration of relocating the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in B&H from Sarajevo to Brussels “to protect the HR’s safety and independence and free him from political influence”. Addressing a press conference after the session, Covic said: “Everyone is responsible for their office. The OHR has a very clear task here, to respect the Dayton (Peace Accords), to implement the Dayton (Peace Accords), not to change its key provisions, especially not to change decisions of the B&H Constitutional Court (CC) related to constituent status in ‘Alija Izetbegovic’ case and legitimate representation in ‘Bozo Ljubic’ case.” HNS also condemned hate speech and calls for violence and conflicts. Covic stated that he is of view “the street cannot resolve issues in the country’’ and that Croat people will not react nor will seek justice in such a manner. Referring to deadline given to local political leaders, Covic said he does not believe it is possible to reach agreement on political amendments to the B&H Election Law within six months, but the HNS is open to negotiations based on the Mostar Agreement principles. “I think it is impossible to implement it, however we are at disposal in that regard. The question is what would such agreement mean if we are entering August, when there will probably be no more sessions of the House of Representatives and the House of Peoples, that means any agreement would not be possible to implement”, said Covic. Covic also claimed there is no possibility to jeopardize what Croat people has in B&H. The HNS will continue its activities aimed at, among others, preventing stripping Croats of their constituent status, in line with the conclusions adopted at the HNS’ extraordinary session held on February 19, including initiating legal and political procedures for institutional and territorial reorganization of B&H based on the principles of federalism “to ensure functionality of state and equality of the three constituent peoples”. In its conclusions, the HNS expressed discontent with imposed changes (to Election Law) because they are not in line with the judgment in the ‘Ljubic’ case and because expanded competences will allow the Central Election Commission of B&H (B&H CEC) to commit political misuses. One of adopted conclusions reads that the HNS and its representatives will continue to take action to strengthen political, economic, cultural and demographic position of the Croat people, as well as to halt the process of their deconstruction in B&H in line with the conclusions adopted at the extraordinary session held in February. The conclusion further reads that this includes initiating of legal and political procedures for institutional and territorial reorganization of B&H based on the principles of federalism but in order to ensure functionality of the state and constitutional equality of constituent peoples, especially after recent threats coming from Bosniaks and palpable intolerance towards coexistence with Croats. Following the session, Covic held a press conference and said that the HNS will protect constitutional equality and legitimate representation in line with HDZ B&H-SDA agreement (Mostar Agreement). Covic added that it would be pointless to comment the latest decision of the HR or any other decision of the HR for that matter, and the only decision the HR should adopt is to annul all decisions of the (former) HRs because they have severely undermined B&H’s functionality. In their conclusions, the HNS also accused Bosniak political parties of boycotting the negotiations and again mentioned institutional and territorial reorganization of B&H. Addressing the press conference after the session, Covic said: “We expressed our regret over the manner of communication in public recently, especially by Bosniak policy. Of course, we expressed our concern whether the OHR may operate in B&H any longer, when it acts and reacts in such manner to protests, and of course, we underscored there is no possibility to jeopardize what Croat people has in B&H, as equal and constitutional people in B&H, who built themselves in BiH as a whole through all those historical elements”. The HNS also condemned the increase in hate speech, calls to violence and conflicts that they say are being spread by “certain Bosniak political leaders, groups on social networks and certain media”.

Ljubic speaks about technical changes to B&H Election Law (HRT1) 

President of the Main Council of the Croat People’s Assembly (HNS) of B&H Bozo Ljubic, spoke about the technical changes to the B&H Election Law imposed by High Representative (HR) Christian Schmidt. He said that the High Representative’s decision was controversial for several reasons. “Under pressure from Sarajevo streets, the High Representative gave up on changes that meant the return of the constitutional rights taken away from Croats by his predecessors, and because he indirectly legitimized that political goals can be achieved through threats and pressure. For this reason, the HNS proposed that the seat of the OHR- and move to Brussels so that he can make independent decisions,” said Ljubic. He also referred to the six-week deadline that the HR gave to the parties in B&H for consultations and said that the HNS had called for talks and that, knowing that for the last six years they have been trying to implement the decision of the Constitutional Court, the HNS proposed about 10 different modalities and the Bosniak parties rejected everything, without offering a single counter-proposal. “I am not too optimistic that we can reach a political agreement, but even if we do, there is no time to make these changes through the parliamentary procedure until the start of the election campaign,” Ljubic pointed out. Asked to comment on SDA leader Bakir Izetbegovic‘s statement about “counting Bosniaks”, Ljubic said that this war-threatening rhetoric causes unrest among all reasonable and peace-loving people. “We Croats in B&H understand this as a threat to Croats in B&H.”

Izetbegovic: It is unrealistic to believe leaders will reach agreement on B&H Election Law (FTV) 

President of SDA Bakir Izetbegovic said on Sunday that he doubts an agreement among B&H leaders regarding changes to the B&H Election Law will be reached during the deadline given by High Representative Christian Schmidt. Namely, Schmidt gave the Federation of B&H (FB&H) leaders a deadline of six weeks to agree on changes to the B&H Election Law which would solve certain political issues, after he imposed technical changes to the law. Izetbegovic said that it is clear what can be done and this would mean the discussion of limits, because it is likely that Schmidt will impose something. He said that they will define what is not going to be allowed and he can impose what can be accepted.

Dodik: There was no Bosnia before me, there will not be after too; Schmidt proved his actions are managed by politicians from Sarajevo (Glas Srpske) 

Glas Srpske carried an interview with Serb member of Presidency of B&H Milorad Dodik who said, among other issues, that Christian Schmidt is obviously fulfilling wishes of the Sarajevo-based parties and the opposition in RS, arguing that “what has been imposed, you cannot see anywhere else in the world”. According to Dodik, by giving up on intention to change the Election Law that would enable legitimate representation in the FB&H House of Peoples (HoP), Schmidt proved his actions are managed by politicians from Sarajevo, which would lead to an even bigger sidelining of Croats in the FB&H. As for the so-called technical changes to the Election Law that should prevent hate speech and abuse of public resources, Dodik stresses that the Central Election Commission of B&H has now got “the role of the inquisition”. Dodik stressed once again that Schmidt has no legitimacy and that he has not been appointed. “It is often stated that the RS does not recognize him. No, he is not recognized by the Security Council, that is the prime place of non-recognition”, said Dodik, who went on to say that even if he had been appointed, “he would not have the right to do this”. According to Dodik, Schmidt says he has come to defend the citizens, which triggered Dodik to say: “It is not true, he must protect the Dayton agreement, not the citizens. And he violates the Constitution, all this anti-Dayton, the story about democracy has collapsed”. Dodik further stated that the foreigners are here to carry out an occupation. “They used to come with tanks, now they come by passenger planes. Today in B&H we have civilian administration of Germans, we have Schmidt who falsely represent himself. We have Johann Sattler, an Austrian, we have judge of the B&H Constitutional Court from Germany and one more who is a German from Switzerland. And the third foreigner is from Albania. It must be said. What Schmidt would not stand at any court. If I were to lodge a complaint, and maybe I will, to prove that all that is pointless, the very same B&H Constitutional Court would support Schmidt”, said Dodik, adding that “Muslims run actions of the false high representative and turn B&H into a place of total sidelining of Croats”.

Asked if he will respect the imposed provisions (of the Election Law), Dodik replied by saying if there were consensus of all factors in the RS, according to which nobody would take part in the elections because of any imposition, and to organize elections for the RS only, he (Dodik) would accept it. “But if we were to withdraw, then those who want would take part in the elections, namely the opposition, and the foreigners would verify them”, said Dodik. Asked to comment on end of his term in Sarajevo and whether there is more or less B&H than four years ago, Dodik said: “There was no Bosnia before me, there will not be after too. Bandits from the international factor are on the scene, who impose us the narrative how we should behave”. He also commented on his recent trip to Brussels (when representatives of parliamentary parties met European Council President Charles Michel): “And then we kind of reached verbal agreement, not in writing. I asked is this for this time only, they said it is. And then Ukraine gets the status of candidate, and B&H does not. Wait, what is still valid?”. This prompted reporter to ask if the agreement from Brussels is not valid any more, to which Dodik replied: “It should not be”.

Asked to comment on his meeting with world leaders, especially on interesting meetings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and how he sees Erdogan’s role in B&H having in mind the perception that Turkey traditionally favours Bosniaks, Dodik said that he (Erdogan) will always, at the end of the day, be on the Bosniaks’ side. Dodik further said it is not nice to talk about these meetings (with Erdogan), “but I saw in him one of the most objective people”. Each meeting was a call that we reach agreement. He once even specifically said not to rely on foreigners because they will be the death of B&H”, added Dodik. Asked to comment on the daily’s remark that he is the only European leader who met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia and whether he thought the meeting could cause negative consequences. “I thought about it. Prior to going on the plane, I had calls from Europe and Sarajevo. They told me I do not need that. But I think the war in Ukraine is not our thing. I do not have any role in it, but I have a role to represent this people and I think one should talk to Russia. Now even the Americans want some meetings”, said Dodik. Asked on the journalist’s remark that each meeting with the US representatives causes controversies and on his (Dodik’s) claims that the US representatives make wrong interpretations, and whether they do it on purpose, Dodik said: “They did it on purpose. I told Gabriel Escobar that what he is proposing is not constitutional and he replied by saying he is not interested in that and that they have a package of sanctions, to which I said what I said, how it is rude; I showed the transcript. After that I got even stronger sanctions.”

Cubrilovic reacts to Schmidt’s decision: Only binding documents for RS parliament are the ones adopted by RS parliament (FTV) 

High Representative (HR) Christian Schmidt’s decision on technical amendments to the B&H Election Law has been delivered to the Office of speaker of the RS parliament Nedeljko Cubrilovic. FTV reports that, reacting to this, Cubrilovic reminded that the only binding documents for the RS parliament are the ones adopted by the RS, that the RS does not recognize the HR or any decisions imposed by foreigners. “It is unacceptable that someone who aspires to be an international representative, succumbs to pressures from Sarajevo streets and Bosniak politicians, whilst not acknowledging the position of legitimate and legal democratic body like the RS parliament is,” Cubrilovic was quoted as saying. Cubrilovic wrote an open letter to the Office of High Representative (OHR) and it reads how laws in B&H should be adopted solely by legally and legitimately elected representatives of peoples in B&H. Cubrilovic further argued that the implementation of civilian aspect of the Dayton Peace Accords (DPA) is finished and presence of the OHR has been a serious impediment to B&H’s progress for years. Imposing changes to the Election Law of B&H is unacceptable, stated Cubrilovic in his letter to the OHR. In his letter, Cubrilovic reminded that the RS parliament decisions are binding for the RS and its officials, adding that the RS parliament adopted a conclusion that said the OHR’s activities in B&H have gone outside the framework of the B&H Constitution a long time ago. Cubrilovic said the OHR’s presence is an “unnecessary burden”. Cubrilovic believes that responsibility for making changes in the country should be assumed by local leaders. He stresses that it is unacceptable for a foreigner to impose decisions in B&H, calling such moves undemocratic and uncivilized.

NS calls on Prosecutor’s Office of B&H to investigate information about ‘possible unrests in south of the country’ (Dnevni list) 

Daily reads that after the Croat People’s Assembly (HNS) adopted a set of conclusions in light of decision of the High Representative (HR) about amendments to the Election Law of B&H, Our Party (NS) stated that the HNS’ conclusions are a political pamphlet and attack against constitutional order of B&H. NS stated, among other issues, that there is no problem between the Bosniak and the Croat people, as claimed by the HNS, instead there is only problem between coalition partners SDA and HDZ. NS further stated that citizens of B&H and political options who truly advocate European B&H still need the OHR and the HR as allies in the fight against forces who keep returning the country into state of insecurity, conflicts and violence by constantly heighten ethnic tensions. In addition, NS called on the Prosecutor’s Office of B&H to investigate information about “possible unrests in south of the country” and open announcements about launching procedures aimed at institutional and territorial reorganization of B&H.

US Embassy: It is hypocritical for Covic and HNS to criticize inflammatory rhetoric of other political leaders (Dnevni list) 

The US Embassy to B&H assessed it is hypocritical for HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic and Croat People’s Assembly (HNS) to criticize the inflammatory rhetoric of other political leaders while threatening institutional and territorial reorganization of B&H in the same breath. The US Embassy wrote on Twitter: “High Representative Christian Schmidt provided parties with six weeks to engage in dialogue to address urgent functionality and power-sharing issues. The parties’ time would be best spent doing just that rather than making anti-Dayton threats and trading inflammatory accusations”. It also stated that the position of the United States regarding B&H’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and multi-ethnic character is well known and remains unchanged: “We reject new geographical divisions within and to the sovereign state of B&H, including creation of a third entity, and reiterate our commitment to B&H as one country with two entities, three constituent peoples, and Others.”

Dodik: SNSD is forced to participate in general elections (Hayat) 

Serb member of the B&H Presidency and SNSD leader Milorad Dodik stated on Sunday that he would accept that political factors in RS boycott the October general elections in B&H and that the elections are organized for the RS only, in case that other political parties accept that. However, he stressed in case that SNSD boycotts the elections, the RS opposition would not do that and foreigners would then verify them, adding that this is why SNSD-led coalition is forced to participate in this story. Dodik also stated that it is just a matter of time when the implementation of decisions adopted by the RS parliament that were annulled by the Constitutional Court (CC) of B&H will start. Dodik also commented the rumors that during his mandate he would retire from the Presidency of B&H and leave that position to someone from the parliament of B&H. Dodik said that this was discussed within the party and that the views of colleagues who said that it is not good time for it must be respected. Whilst talking about the return of competences, Dodik said it is a capital political document that was adopted in December, when the RS parliament adopted a decision on rejecting unconstitutional laws and on the return of competences. He also stated that “the most serious moment when we talked about my withdrawal was in March this year, but we gave up on that after the talks in the party”.

Sanchez meets with B&H Presidency members within his official visit to B&H (Hayat) 

Within his Western Balkans tour, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arrived in official visit to B&H on Saturday. Sanchez was welcomed by B&H Foreign Minister Bisera Turkovic at the Sarajevo International Airport, after which he met with Chairperson of the B&H Presidency Sefik Dzaferovic and B&H Presidency members Zeljko Komsic and Milorad Dodik. Hayat reports that Sanchez, who has been advocating the EU enlargement process to the Western Balkans countries, reiterated on Saturday that B&H deserves the EU candidate status. Focus of Sanchez meeting with the B&H Presidency members was on bilateral relations between B&H and Spain, necessary reforms in B&H and the country’s European path. Hayat reminds that at the most recent session of the European Council held in June, Sanchez strongly advocated granting EU candidate status to B&H as soon as possible, for which Dzaferovic thanked him once again on Saturday. Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Dzaferovic said: “The Kingdom of Spain will assume Presidency over the EU in the second half of next year. I hope that B&H will until then, bearing in mind the statement given by political party leaders 12 June this year in the presence of European Council President, Mr. (Charles) Michel, fulfil the requirements and become the candidate for the EU membership until then. That will be, with the Kingdom of Spain assuming the Presidency, a new impulse in relation to membership negotiations between B&H and the EU.” The reporter notes that Sanchez confirmed that B&H’s chance to make progress on its European path is real, and said all political powers in the EU want political processes to be unblocked and B&H to be stabilized, and that moment, or this fall concretely, should be used as an opportunity. Addressing the press conference after the meeting, Sanchez said: “I asked three things from political leaders, and I want to share them with you – first to lower tensions and stop with disturbing rhetoric, to prevent divisive rhetoric. Secondly it is necessary to go back to the institutions, to find a way to conduct dialogues and offer solutions. And finally, to put citizens and their interests first, to make reforms that will help citizens to have better life.” Sanchez also said that the reform laws must be adopted and democratic elections must be implemented, as he expressed a strong support to state institutions. Referring to this, Dzaferovic said that without the state institutions, positive processes are not possible. “State of B&H cannot and will not go back. We can only improve, further develop and, in line with the European standards, build the institutions of B&H. Everything done so far, in the past 27 years, it has been done in accordance with the Dayton Peace Accords,” said Dzaferovic. Hayat reports that, at the meeting, interlocutors also said that excellent bilateral relations between the two countries, without any open issues, should be advanced through better economic cooperation, including increased investments and scope of foreign trade. Sanchez stressed that his visit means wholehearted support of the Spanish Government to the region, especially to B&H. In the following two days, Sanchez will visit Skopje, Podgorica and Tirana.

Medved: Croat people in B&H need to be represented in authorities adequately (HRT1) 

Addressing the media at a Croatian veterans’ memorial football match on Saturday, Croatian Minister for Veterans Tomo Medved used the opportunity to comment on the issue of the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). Medved said that Croat people in B&H needs to be represented in authorities in an adequate manner, adding that this is Croatia’s firm stance. “Croatia has been and will continue supporting Croat people and their status in B&H,” Medved concluded.

Abazovic: I don’t know when the Agreement with the SPC is going to be signed (CdM) 

Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic stated yesterday that it’s not true that the Agreement with the Serbian Orthodox Church, SPC, will be signed on 3 August, as he himself doesn’t know when it’s going to be signed. The Prime Minister also adds that legal analysis of the Agreements text will be completed today. The statement came after the meeting with his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sanchez. Recall, yesterday rumors suggested that the Fundamental Agreement with the SPC would be signed on 3 August in Villa Gorica. Commenting on the announcement of the DPS that they would launch an initiative for a vote of no confidence in case the Agreement is signed, PM Abazovic said he had no problems with it and that he was ready for new elections.

Djukanovic։ If this kind of Agreement with SPC is signed, government will fall (N1) 

President of Montenegro Milo Djukanovic has stated in an interview for N1 that the Government will fall if the Agreement with the Serbian Orthodox Church is signed. He also commented on the arrests of people from the judiciary whom he calls his friends as well as Montenegro’s relations with Serbia. He has also explained how the photo in which he is in the company of Aleksandar Vucic and former Palestinian intelligence officer Mohammad Dahlan was created. He has explained that it was taken in the house of President Vucic. President Djukanovic says that he could not remember exactly what year it was. When asked if he goes to Belgrade in private arrangements, President Djukanovic adds that no matter how hard some centers try to turn him into an anti-Serb, they don’t succeed. “I am neither anti-Serb nor anti-Croat, I am a Montenegrin, a man who has the best feelings towards everyone who lives in Montenegro, towards everyone from our environment, towards all people in general. Therefore, why should I avoid Serbia, why should I avoid Belgrade? It doesn’t cross my mind,” President Djukanovic points out. Djukanovic, said that he had been one of the most important political actors in Montenegro for at least 30 years. He reminded that over that period of time, he made decision to leave politics three times. “Always after the referendum or election win, but certain circumstances made me return because of some need to perhaps better protect something that was the legacy of that previous policy, and, unfortunately, I’m still in politics,” said Mr Djukanovic after the journalist began the interview stating that a taxi driver told her that almost 80% of Montenegrin citizens can’t remember Montenegro without Milo Djukanovic. Asked whether he regrets still being in the political life of Montenegro, the President said YES. In addition, he said that it didn’t mean he was going to leave politics, adding that he was unsure about his candidacy for the 2023 presidential election. Commenting on the rumors that someone advised him to leave politics, Djukanovic again denied the allegations, saying: “No one has ever told me that. It’s not how people talk to me. I despise that inferiority from the bottom of my heart. No one has ever talked with Montenegro like that, nor is someone doing it now.” On PM Abazovic’s announcement that the Fundamental Agreement with the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) will be signed next week, the President said that Abazovic abruptly decided to re-define the priorities of the government’s agenda, i.e. he focused on signing of the Agreement rather that meeting the requirements from negotiation chapters 23 and 24. “Therefore, he chose not to accept the suggestion to have more serious and inclusive consultations before the government made a decision. After the government made a decision, he accepted my suggestion to halt with signing of the agreement and have consultations after the government adopted it.”

According to the President, the Agreement doesn’t protect the state interests of Montenegro enough. Asked whether he would back the government if the Agreement is signed, the President said – No.

Initiative to overthrow government after signing Agreement with SPC (Pobjeda) 

“If the Fundamental Agreement is signed, which contradicts the Constitution, laws and interests of the state of Montenegro, the Government will lose our support. We will wait for the potential signing of the document in order to formally submit the initiative, which is almost certain”, Milos Nikolic, DPS spokesman and MP, has said in an interview for Pobjeda. “The Agreement was adopted in an unprecedented procedure – without public discussion, consultation and without any inclusivity of segments of society that could have contributed to the quality of the process itself but also of the text, which in its current content severely threatens the state interests of Montenegro and unconstitutionally favors one religious community. So, these are all reasons why the Government has lost our support”, he explains. “It is difficult to comment on PM Abazovic’s statements. You can see that he himself, as well as the representatives of his party, have more and more problems interpreting what he communicated or what he intended to communicate. In essence, every statement by the Prime Minister consists of four or five same platitudes, which are almost without exception always communicated in a manipulative context. The unpredictability of Abazovic’s moves, as well as his tendency to change his opinion from day to day, speaks of the essential immaturity of Mr. Abazovic to be at such an important state position”, Nikolic adds. “From the position of prime minister, he threatens to shut down the media, calls citizens who have different political views extremists who sow hatred and defend organized crime and corruption, threatens with arrests and institutional persecution. Therefore, Abazovic has lost control over the situation”, Nikolic points out.

Abazovic discussed investments in energy and tourism with Saudi Crown Prince (Pobjeda) 

Montenegrin Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic met on Wednesday in Athens with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and discussed possibilities for investments of Saudi Arabia in energy and tourism in the Western Balkans, it was confirmed for Pobjeda daily. The meeting was attended by the Greek and Albanian prime ministers, Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Edi Rama.

Sanchez: Montenegro is part of Europe; Djukanovic: The only good choice for the Western Balkans is the European perspective (CdM) 

The only good choice for the Western Balkans (WB) is the European perspective, said the President of Montenegro Milo Djukanovic. The President of Montenegro received at the Residence in Cetinje the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Spain Pedro Sanchez, who is visiting Montenegro. Djukanovic said that the first visit of the Prime Minister of Spain to Montenegro was a historic event. “We are grateful to Sanchez. 110 years ago, the first Military Delegation of Royal Spain in Montenegro was opened in Cetinje. Today we have an announcement that the Spanish embassy in Belgrade will open its office in Podgorica, at the level of chargé d’affaires. We believe that this is the first step towards raising that representation to the ambassadorial level”, said Djukanovic. He pointed out that he had two rounds of talks with Sanchez. “We have carefully analysed the situation in the WB. We agreed that the only good choice for the Western Balkans is the European perspective. That this is not only in the interest of our region, but also of Europe as a whole”, said the president of the country. The admission of the countries of the Western Balkans is, Djukanovic pointed out, the best possible geopolitical investment of the EU in peace and stability on the European continent. “We agreed that Montenegro is in the best position to additionally take advantage of the additional open doors of the EU after Europe’s tragic experience with Russia’s aggression against Ukraine” Djukanovic emphasized. “We don’t expect shortcuts to the EU, we are ready to work seriously on eliminating the deficit” Djukanovic said that the Ukrainian experience reminded Europe. “Not only on the European continent, but also through the active foreign policy of the EU, there is no lack of attention in our immediate neighborhood, but that we must have a proactive policy if we want to preserve our security, the performance of dynamic further development and European geopolitical competitiveness,” said the president of the country. Djukanovic emphasizes, we do not expect shortcuts to EU membership. “We are very ready to work seriously on eliminating the deficits that represent an obstacle to membership for each of the countries of the WB today. We are ready to work on the rule of law, creating the assumption that we will soon achieve our most important geopolitical goal. We have a lot of challenges in the south of Europe and the Mediterranean region. It will be good if we continue to cooperate more intensively in order to overcome these challenges”, said Djukanovic. Djukanovic said that he also discussed with Sanchez the areas in which cooperation can be improved from the economy, tourism, culture… “I am looking forward to the fact that the WB will reach its European perspective”, said Djukanovic.

Sanchez: The government of Spain recognizes and sees the successes you have achieved on the European road 

The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, thanked Djukanovic and his, as he says, efforts on the European path. “We see the consequences that Montenegro is suffering because of Putin‘s invasion of Ukraine, as is happening to the rest of the European continent. It seems like the war is far away, geographically it is, but still we all feel the consequences of that war every day, in our daily lives – increased prices, energy road…”, said Sanchez. He emphasized the importance of harmonizing Montenegro with the European Union. “And that was unparalleled, President. We share the same principles. Here you also received Ukrainians who were fleeing from the horror that is happening in their country and showed great solidarity as a country with a country that is currently at war,” the Prime Minister of Spain pointed out. He said that his visit to Montenegro fulfils two goals. “The first is that I want to bring closer and show everyone the commitment of Spain and the partnership between our countries,” added Sanchez. He recalled that he had several meetings with President Djukanovic in Europe. “We want to show our citizens and companies our cooperation and commitment to that cooperation,” said Sanchez. He pointed out that Spain advocates for Montenegro’s accession to the EU. “I already insisted at the last Council of Europe in June that Bosnia and Herzegovina should soon receive candidate status. These weeks we had positive news about Albania and North Macedonia”, said the Spanish Prime Minister. He emphasized that Montenegro and Spain are close “regardless of the geographical distance”. “You are Europe. Montenegro and the Western Balkans are part of Europe, and that’s why the borders can never be those kilometres between our countries. The attitude of our two countries and all the values we share are important. In Spain you will always find a friend and, above all, support for your European perspective”, said Sanchez. You have made, he adds, great progress on the way to joining the EU. “The Spaniards and the Government of Spain recognize and see the successes you have achieved,” said Sanchez. He said that the situation on the European continent, as a result of the war, is “very complex and complicated”. “There is a lot of uncertainty for all countries and it is very important to progress on the road to the EU if it ends well with the reforms. I think you are an excellent example of EU rapprochement, because you have done a great job. This is a great historical moment and we want to repeat our support for Montenegro,” the Prime Minister of Spain pointed out.

National anthem cut short again: The Spanish Prime Minister didn’t hear about the Krusevo Republic, Goce Delcev and Pitu Guli (Republika) 

The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was welcomed with the highest honors on the plateau in front of the government building. The host Dimitar Kovacevski welcomed the guest as the national anthems of the two countries were performed. First the Spanish one and then the Macedonian one. But our national anthem was cut again and the Macedonian army orchestra performed only the first part of the anthem referring to the “Macedonians fighting for their justice”. But the part referring to the Krusevo republic, Goce Delcev and the rest of the Ilinden revolutionaries was not performed. The same thing happened during the visit of the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Kiril Petkov.

Kovacevski-Sanchez: Macedonia and Spain are strong allies, decades-long cooperation is deepening (Republika) 

Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski and his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez held a meeting during which the strong friendship between the Kingdom of Spain and Macedonia was affirmed, the government press service informed. At the meeting, it was emphasized that Spain is a proven supporter of Macedonia in its European integration processes, which is extremely important for our path towards the European family. In a cordial and friendly atmosphere, it was assessed that the two countries, which are also NATO allies, have been building excellent bilateral relations for three decades and that such commitments will continue in the future. As part of the first official visit of Prime Minister Sanchez, the delegations from the two countries held a bilateral meeting attended by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Political System and Community Relations Artan Grubi, the Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs Bojan Maricic, the Minister of Defense Slavjanka Petrovska and the Minister for culture Bisera Kostadinovska-Stojcevska.

The integration process towards the EU, the Prime Minister of Spain visits Tirana (Radio Tirana) 

The Prime Minister of Spain Pedro Sanchez will pay an official visit to our country 1 August. The purpose of this official visit is to strengthen bilateral and economic relations with Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Albania and, above all, to show support for their process of joining the European Union. The visit of the Spanish Prime Minister comes in the framework of a tour that he has developed in several countries of the Western Balkans, which includes Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Albania. In a statement to the media, it was stated that they support the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, but Spain supports Serbia in everything that has to do with Kosovo. Spain is one of the five EU countries that have not recognized Kosovo as an independent state. But, weeks ago, this country gave positive signs in support of visa liberalization for Kosovo. On 26 June, during a meeting of European Union leaders in Brussels, Sanchez chose to “reactivate, revive and revitalize the enlargement process” for the countries of the Western Balkans. He has emphasized the importance of Spain’s relations with the countries of the Western Balkans and has held meetings with most of its leaders to further address their expectations for membership in the European Union. EU and Western Balkan heads of state and government met last month in Brussels ahead of the latest European summit and discussed, among other things, EU membership aspirations. Speed with which Ukraine and Moldova gained the status of candidate countries is in contrast to the blocking of the integration of the Balkan countries, a situation that has lasted for years. This led some Balkan leaders to express their disappointment and warn the EU that it will lose credibility in the region, while Sanchez expressed his support for the EU path of the Balkan countries. “When it finally becomes possible, Spain will be in favor of starting this debate,” he said at a press conference after the summit between the EU and the Western Balkans.