• Kosovo leaders pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II (media)
• Lajcak with two emissaries to visit Kosovo today (media)
• Amherd: It is important for Switzerland to have stable, sovereign states in Balkans (media)
• Vucic about Kosovo Police patrols in Ujman: Brussels agreement is being violated (Zeri)
• The U.S. to support 18 countries with military aid, including Kosovo (Reuters, media)
• Petkovic: Kurti should think twice before showing muscles to Kosovo Serbs (Kallxo)
• Konjevic for an official visit to Kosovo today (media)
• Russian meddling in the Balkans: “Over and Over, Putin Says Kosovo, Kosovo, Kosovo!” (Der Spiegel)

Kosovo leaders pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II (media)

The President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani wrote that “The people of the Republic of Kosovo, alongside millions across the world, are profoundly saddened by the news of the passing of Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II. Queen Elizabeth led the United Kingdom diligently, with grace and humility, and put service and duty to her country above all.  She was a true leader and an extraordinary woman.

Her majesty’s death marks the end of an era as the longest serving monarch in the UK’s history, but Elizabeth the Great’s legacy will continue to inspire generations to come.

The people of the United Kingdom came to our rescue in our darkest days, so today we mourn this loss alongside the Royal Family and you all with a heavy heart.

May her majesty rest in peace,” Osmani wrote.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti has consoled the royal family and the British people for the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Through a post on Twitter, Kurti said that her dedication, work and humility are an inspiration for all of us, especially in these difficult times.

“The people of Kosova and I offer our deepest condolences to the Royal Family and British people on the passing of Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth Il. Her dedication, hard work and humility are an inspiration to us all, especially in these trying times. Rest in Peace,” Kurti tweeted.

Lajcak with two emissaries to visit Kosovo today (media)

EU mediator Miroslav Lajcak with special advisors to French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, will visit Pristina and Belgrade today to explore possibilities for progress in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue.

Lajcak, Jens Ploetner, and Emmanuel Bonne, the leading foreign and security policy advisors to Scholz and Macron respectively, are slated to meet with Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti in Pristina, and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade.

Amherd: It is important for Switzerland to have stable, sovereign states in Balkans (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti hosted on Thursday the Minister of Defense of Switzerland, Viola Amherd. During the meeting, he emphasized Kosovo’s goals and plans for membership in the NATO Partnership for Peace, the Council of Europe, as well as the application for membership in the Union European.

Beyond the bilateral cooperation in the economy and the increase in trade volume, the prime minister emphasized the readiness of the government of Kosovo to expand cooperation in the field of defense as well.

Minister Amherd said that Switzerland and Kosovo share common values. She emphasized the importance of the large emigration from Kosovo, which contributes to Switzerland’s economy.

Reiterating Switzerland’s support for Kosovo and its democratic development, she said that it is very important for Switzerland to have stable and sovereign states in the Balkan region.

“Switzerland’s willingness to help and assist the Government of the Republic of Kosovo for further growth of positive economic indicators was stressed. During the meeting, they talked about the security situation in Kosovo, the role of KFOR, the political situation in the region, the importance of the Berlin Process, as well as the Brussels dialogue,” the communique says.

Vucic about Kosovo Police patrols in Ujman: Brussels agreement is being violated (Zeri)

“We are receiving additional bad news from Kosovo, the Albanians have a plan to quietly conquer the north,” Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday. He made these comments after Kosovo’s Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla announced that Kosovo Police started water patrolling in Ujman.

“The Albanians are trying to take over and occupy the north of Kosovo and Metohija in silence, their so-called interior minister announced today about controls in Lake Ujman, which would mean a new violation of the Brussels Agreement. If you ask people in Brussels, they tell you ‘yes, everything is fine’ and then it gets worse. I warn both parties not to do this again. The Serbian people will not tolerate violence or the violation of international law,” Vucic said.

The President of Serbia added that “the winter will not be easy because of the millions of problems that have hit the world”.

“The Albanians led by Kurti are acting wildly, with the support of those who handed them that independence on a plate,” Vucic said.

Referring to the meeting of the National Security Council, he said that “on Saturday we will have important announcements, important things for all people, for all citizens in Serbia, please help your country.”

The U.S. to support 18 countries with military aid, including Kosovo (Reuters, media)

The U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has announced that Washington will support Ukraine “as long as necessary” with a military financing package of 2.2 billion dollars, reports Reuters. An official told Reuters that this package will include 18 other countries, including Kosovo, which are considered at risk of future Russian aggression.

According to Reuters, approximately $1 billion will be allocated to Ukraine. The rest will be divided between Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Petkovic: Kurti should think twice before showing muscles to Kosovo Serbs (Kallxo)

Director of the office of the government of Serbia for Kosovo Petar Petkovic assessed on Thursday that Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti is strong only in violation of agreements, anti-Serb rhetoric, violation of human and political rights of Serbs, populism and demagoguery.

‘When Albin Kurti tries to show his muscles over the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija and official Belgrade, he should think twice, because it will not bring him anything good, nor will it solve his problems with electricity restrictions, strikes of educational workers, dissatisfied citizens who express social rebellion every day throughout Pristina,” reads his statement.

Petkovic asked what kind of democracy Kurti is talking about when it is possible for the rapist of a minor girl from Kosovo to receive the same prison sentence as the young man who wanted to celebrate Vidovdan.

“There is no doubt that for the last ten days, Kurti could only watch with envy how Belgrade was the center of the Open Balkans initiative, that thousands of Serbs in the north of Kosovo and Metohija proudly welcomed their Prime Minister Ana Brnabic and finally the details of the magnificent visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Belgrade, after which the delivery of the Bajraktar drones was promised,” he wrote.

Konjevic for an official visit to Kosovo today (media)

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of Montenegro Rashko Konjevic, will be on an official visit to Kosovo today at the invitation of his Kosovar counterpart, Armend Mehaj.

They will will discuss improvement of bilateral cooperation in the field of defense, as well as the current challenges of regional and international security,” announced the Ministry of Defense of Montenegro.

Konjevic will also meet with the Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of Kosovo and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Donika Gervalla, to exchange opinions on the improvement of general relations between the two countries, as well as strengthen relations and contribution to regional security.

Russian meddling in the Balkans: “Over and Over, Putin Says Kosovo, Kosovo, Kosovo!” (Der Spiegel)

The war in Ukraine threatens to upset the delicate peace in the Balkans. In a conversation with DER SPIEGEL, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama warns that Vladimir Putin is deliberately seeking to destabilize the region.

The prime minister welcomes his guests barefoot. Edi Rama is a tall man with a furrowed brow and deep-set eyes. He is wearing black shorts and a white T-shirt, just no shoes.

Together with his wife, Rama is lounging in the backyard of a beachfront house. Initially built in the 1960s for Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha, the villa is located near the idyllic coastal village of Dhërmi, surrounded by parasol pines. Police officers stand guard outside the door. The most powerful man in Albania is enjoying a bit of vacation.

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