• NATO’s Stoltenberg repeats: Ready for intervention if stability is threatened (Klan)
• Joseph: Leaders in Kosovo and Serbia should refrain from tense rhetoric (Klan)
• EU: Energy agreement roadmap stalling due to “technical aspects” (Kallxo)
• Decision on increased energy tariffs in two weeks (Koha)
• PDK’s Tahiri: We will oppose any effort to increase energy tariffs (RTK)
• Kosovo’s Central Bank is a Sleeping Giant that Needs a Poke (Prishtina Insight)
• U.S. Ambassador Hovenier visits Shterpce (media)
• Albania and Kosovo Poorest Countries in Region (Exit)
• Face paint, folklore transform Chicago bride for traditional wedding in Kosovo (Reuters)

NATO’s Stoltenberg repeats: Ready for intervention if stability is threatened (Klan)

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has repeated the position of the last few days that they are ready to intervene if stability in Kosovo is threatened.

In an interview given to the Montenegrin medium, Vijesti, he called on all parties to keep calm. “Recently, I spoke with the political leadership in Pristina and Belgrade about the tensions in the north of Kosovo. All parties should remain calm, avoid unilateral actions and engage constructively in the dialogue mediated by the European Union,” he said.

“In accordance with the UN mandate, the KFOR mission is closely monitoring the situation and is ready to intervene if stability is threatened. My mission is dedicated to providing a safe environment and freedom of movement for all citizens in Kosovo.”

He called on the parties to continue with the dialogue, as ‘it is crucial for the peace and stability of the region.’

Joseph: Leaders in Kosovo and Serbia should refrain from tense rhetoric (Klan)

Edward Joseph, professor of foreign policy and lecturer at Johns Hopkins, commented on the statement of the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti, that Kosovo risks a new war with Serbia. He said that one should look back only one week ago at the statement of the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg.

“NATO, along with all other international factors in Kosovo, are always concerned when they hear rhetoric like that of President Vucic, who predicted a new ‘storm’, in the context of new measures, or predictions of war by Prime Minister Kurti, absolutely worry. One can say that they are political statements, but we are seeing the consequences, with those barricades,” he said.

Joseph added that self-restraint, is seen as the most appropriate action in this challenging period for security, by all the leaders of the region, not only the Kosovar and Serbian ones.

“I think the whole region needs not only more attention, but more serious attention. It has been six months since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. Serbia has not yet imposed sanctions on Russia, as all the other countries in the region, so, the Western Balkans, have done, both those that are candidate countries and others that are not yet. For this reason, serious, that is, more deep attention is needed,” he said.

EU: Energy agreement roadmap stalling due to “technical aspects” (Kallxo)

The roadmap for the implementation of the energy agreement, which should serve as a calendar for the implementation of the obligations of Kosovo and Serbia in relation to the energy agreement signed since 2013, is not being implemented according to the deadlines that the parties themselves have signed. The only fully implemented point is the first point of this roadmap signed in Brussels on June 21, for the Energy Regulatory Office to issue the supply license to “Elektrosever”.

Asked about the delays, the EU spokesperson, Peter Stano, has said that the EU is closely following the activities of both parties in the energy roadmap in its capacity as a facilitator and guarantor of dialogue agreements. “Delays in the implementation of the Roadmap are due to technical aspects, which the EU has asked the parties to address without delay. The EU is offering instructions on how to address open questions,” he said. Stano further added that KOSTT, KEDS and Elektrosever are in regular communication. “They also report regularly to the EU and the US.”

Asked what the sanctions are for the parties that do not follow the guidelines, Stano said that the EU is not an arbiter. “The final responsibility for the successful implementation of the Energy Agreements and the Roadmap belongs to the parties,” he said. According to him, the guide foresees every eventuality during its implementation.

According to the roadmap, in case of failure to act according to certain conditions after 100 days of issuing the license, ERO can decide to suspend or withdraw the license for “Elektrosever”, although there should be consultations with the parties, under the mediation of EU, before this decision, within a time limit of 15 days. The EU will then provide expert opinion if requested by at least one party.

Decision on increased energy tariffs in two weeks (Koha)

In two weeks, the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) is expected to decide on whether to increase the energy tariffs. The Kosovo Electricity Supply Company (KESCO) has submitted a request for the exceptional review of the fees. Citing sources in the ERO, the daily reports that if the request from KESCO is accepted, the energy fees could be increased by 20 percent. KESCO said in its request that the government has not yet disbursed the subsidies it had pledged and that fees on the international energy market are on the rise.

PDK’s Tahiri: We will oppose any effort to increase energy tariffs (RTK)

Head of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) parliamentary group, Abelard Tahiri, said on Tuesday that this party will oppose any effort to increase the energy tariffs after the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) informed that it had received a request for an exceptional review of the tariffs. Tahiri said in a Facebook post that “this is the first phase of the intentional and synchronized effort of Kurti’s government to allow another increase of energy tariffs”. He called on the government “to refrain from this because the citizens are on the brink of their possibilities to survive in the current circumstances. Any effort to increase the energy tariffs and to add to the existing burden of the citizens will be met with our full and uncompromised opposition.”

Kosovo’s Central Bank is a Sleeping Giant that Needs a Poke (Prishtina Insight)

It is high time we transformed this institution into a more agile and fit-for-purpose organization that will serve the needs of the people of Kosovo and its economy.

A man needs a heart transplant. Says the doctor: “I can give you the heart of a five-year-old boy”. “Too young,” says the man.

“How about that of a forty-year old investment banker?”

“They don’t have a heart,” he responds.

“A seventy-five-year-old central banker?”

“I’ll take it!” says the man.

“But why?” asks the doctor.

“It’s never been used!”

This is a joke that the former Governor of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, tells everyone he meets for the first time. It’s a good joke. Unfortunately, in some instances, it can be a reflection of a deeper and truer reality: that old adage of central bankers being in control of everything, providing assurances and guarantees for a world that is now in turmoil. It sounds so last decade and frankly so last century.

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

U.S. Ambassador Hovenier visits Shterpce (media)

United States Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Hovenier, visited on Tuesday the municipality of Shterpce where he met with mayor Dalibor Jevtic. “Great visit to beautiful Štrpce/Shtërpce today, a community that reflects Kosovo’s multi-ethnic diversity. Honored to meet with Mayor Jevtic and hear his concerns as well as to see Kosovan entrepreneurship in action at Sharr Berry,” Hovenier tweeted after the visit.

Albania and Kosovo Poorest Countries in Region (Exit)

Albania has ranked as the 90th poor country out of 192 in terms of GDP for 2022, according to data from the IMF Publication Economic World Outlook” and quantified by Global Finance magazine.

The data states that the Albanian GDP per capita is $17,383 dollars adjusted for relative purchasing power.

The world’s richest countries in terms of GDP-PPP are Luxembourg with $140,694 followed by Singapore with $131,580, and Ireland with $124,598. Qatar, Macao, Switzerland, UAE, Norway and the US were also in the top ten.

In terms of the poorest, Burundi had just $856, along with South Sudan with $928, the Central African Republic with $1,102 and DCR with $1,316.

Regionally, Kosovo was 105th with $13,964, along with Paraguay, Palau, Fiji and Mongolia. Serbia ranked at number 72 with $23,904, North Macedonia at 78 with $19,726, and Montenegro at 69 with $24,878.

Albania was ranked alongside Barbados, Suriname, Brazil and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Face paint, folklore transform Chicago bride for traditional Kosovo wedding (Reuters)

For Bosniaks in the Kosovan village of Donje Ljubinje, a wedding ceremony is an art form.

Maintaining a centuries-old tradition, the two-day event is a festival of music and dance to showcase a bride resplendent in traditional Bosniak costume.

American Melissa Guerrero was dazzled when she attended a traditional wedding on her first visit to Donje Ljubinje, near the city of Prizren, in 2013 to meet the family of her high school sweetheart. So much so she dreamt of having a similar wedding herself.

Last week Melissa, 30, realised that dream. Dressed head to toe in traditional costume, her face painted white with elaborate sprays and dots of red, blue, gold and silver, she married Melsid Redzepi, who is from a Bosnian family in Kosovo. He was seven when the war began in Kosovo and his family moved to the United States.

Read more here: https://reut.rs/3AdD1dj