Albanian Language Media:

• Von der Leyen: EU cannot be complete without the Western Balkans (RFE)
• Lajcak in Strasbourg talks about the European future of the Western Balkans (RTK)
• Kurti: Healthcare situation is so serious that ministry alone cannot deal with it (Koha)
• Osmani discusses visa liberalization with the Latvian president (media)
• Kosovo government adopts draft law on war crimes institute (Telegrafi)
• Kosovo establishes Cyber Security Agency (media)
• The government sets rules for public gatherings and events (Express)
• Serbian MP: Radoicic is threatening and mistreating Kosovo Serbs (Kosovapress)
• Molliqaj calls on war veterans to join PSD protest the day Trendafilova visits Kosovo (Klan)

Serbian Language Media:

• Vucic receives Sarrazin (Tanjug)
• Vucic: I will ask Russian, Chinese presidents to veto Kosovo UN membership (N1)
• Selakovic receives ambassadors of Quint states, Norway to NATO (Tanjug)
• Brnabic to Sarazzin: EU-mediated dialogue only way to normalise relations (N1)
• Serbian MIA formally bans Pride parade, ‘anti-globalists’’ march (N1, media)
• “Freedom of Movement in Transition” report presented in Mitrovica North (Kontakt plus radio, Radio Gorazdevac)

Opinion:

• Tadic: Vucic expressed contradictions, the opposition did not notice (Beta, NMagazin, Nova S)

International:

• Maja Sever, First Woman Head of EFJ: ‘Don’t give up on Journalism’ (BIRN)

Albanian Language Media  

Von der Leyen: EU cannot be complete without the Western Balkans (RFE)

President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said today that countries of the Western Balkans, and also Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, must become part of the European family, because as she argued without these countries “our union will not be complete”.

Speaking at her annual state-of-the-union speech in Strasbourg, France, she said that the fastest way to expand the rule of democracy is to strengthen ties with democratic countries in the European continent. “This starts with those countries that are already on the path toward our union. We need to be by their side every step of the way, because the path toward a strong democracy and the path toward the European Union is the same. Therefore, I want people in the Western Balkans, in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, to know: you are part of our family, your future is in the union and our union is not complete without you,” von der Leyen said.

Lajcak in Strasbourg talks about the European future of the Western Balkans (RTK)

The special representative of the European Union for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue Miroslav Lajcak, met today in Strasbourg with the Secretary of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejcinovic Buric.

“In Strasbourg today, at the Committee of Ministers, I spoke about making the European future of the Western Balkans a reality, the challenges we are facing and how our organizations can work together in addressing them. I also discussed the latest developments with Secretary General,” he wrote on Twitter.

Kurti: Healthcare situation is so serious that ministry alone cannot deal with it (Koha)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti said today at a press conference after the government meeting that the healthcare situation in Kosovo is so serious that the Ministry of Health cannot deal alone with it.

Asked about the formation of the executive commission for healthcare and its direction by the Prime Minister himself, Kurti said:

“I will not be the minister of health, the minister is Rifat Latifi, but the health situation is so serious that the ministry alone will not be able to deal with it”, said Kurti, adding that he is also the leader of several committees of other similar ones.

He also said that several main problems in healthcare have been identified. Kurti especially mentioned ‘defective communication’   between the Ministry of Health and the Clinical University Hospital Service of Kosovo and the five chambers of health workers.

During the press conference, Kurti also said that he has asked each minister to present by next week the five main achievements for a year and a half, as on October 22, it will be a year and a half since the “Kurti II” Government was elected.”

He also spoke about Elektrosever, and about the reporting that there was an attempt to intervene in the two agreements by removing the term Republic of Kosovo and put a footnote.

“The agreements are made within the framework of the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Kosovo. They are acceptable to us. I do not know what changes anyone is trying to make. The agreement for the implementation of the guide is a fixed text, which has already been distributed and cannot be changed. We will not make other agreements,” Kurti said.

Osmani discusses visa liberalization with the Latvian president (media)

The President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani spoke today on the phone with the President of Latvia Egils Levits. Osmani wrote on ‘Twitter’ that she talked with her counterpart about visas and developments in Ukraine.

“Spoke to the President of Latvia Egils Levits as part of my regular consultations with counterparts. Discussed bilateral affairs, urgency to deliver visa liberalization for Kosovo and importance of continuing support for Ukraine. Grateful for Latvia’s steadfast support for our Euro-Atlantic integration,” Osmani tweeted. 

Kosovo government adopts draft law on war crimes institute (Telegrafi)

The Kosovo government adopted today the draft law on the institute for crimes committed during the war. Prime Minister Kurti said in today’s meeting of the government that history shows that long-term solutions cannot be achieved when they are not based on the principles of justice, reparations and guarantees of non-repetition.

“It is the duty of the government to build mechanisms and institutions to deal with the past and to create a collective memory that will serve not only us but also the generations to come,” he said.

Kurti also said that documenting and investigating crimes committed during the war in Kosovo are at the core of the draft law. “Crimes that were committed and the damages inflicted must be addressed because they are a precondition for sustainable peace, long-term stability and further social development,” he said.

Kosovo establishes Cyber Security Agency (media)

The government of Kosovo approved today the draft law on cyber security. During the meeting, Prime Minister Albin Kurti spoke about the establishment of the Agency for Cyber Security.

“Through this draft law, the Agency for Cyber Security is established. This agency will contribute to the increase of capacities in the field of cyber security,” Kurti said.

The draft law was approved in the days when Kosovo’s institutions reported cyber-attacks. 

The government sets rules for public gatherings and events (Express)

The government of Kosovo approved today the draft law on public gatherings and events.

The Minister of Interior Xhelal Svecla said that “this draft-law aims to ensure the exercise of the constitutional right to public gatherings as well as the right to organize and participate in public events.”

He indicated that this draft law will also define issues such as the time and manner of announcing public gatherings and events, as well as the duties and responsibilities of the organizers and the Kosovo Police for its implementation.

Serbian MP: Radoicic is threatening and mistreating Kosovo Serbs (Kosovapress)

Miroslav Aleksic, member of the Serbian Parliament and head of the NS parliamentary group, said in his address to parliament that Milan Radoicic is mistreating the Kosovo Serbs by pressuring and by blackmailing them.

“We are talking about the problems of Serbs caused by those who are now sitting on the lodge (pointing his finger to the lodge where representatives of the Serbian List stay). Today you said that they are the representatives of Serbs, no they are representatives of the Serbian List,” he said.

“Milan Radoicic is on the blacklist of the United States and there is an arrest warrant for him. This is the same man that threatens Serbs in Kosovo by pressuring them and mistreating them and deciding who will have a job and who will not, who will have wood for winter and who will not, whether they will get social welfare, whether they will have clothes and so on,” Aleksic is quoted as saying.

Molliqaj calls on war veterans to join PSD protest the day Trendafilova visits Kosovo (Klan)

The chairman of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) Dardan Molliqaj held a press conference regarding the visit of the chairman of the Special Court, Ekaterina Trendafilova.

Molliqaj announced that they will organize a protest on September 21 at 10:00 a.m., when Trendafilova will be visiting Gjilan.

He requested from the war veterans to also join the protest.

He further said that the protest will be massive in order to show her that the citizens do not agree with the actions of this court.

Serbian Language Media 

Vucic receives Sarrazin (Tanjug)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic received the German government’s special envoy for the Western Balkans Manuel Sarrazin on Wednesday to discuss the current situation in the region and possibilities for further advancement of mutual connectivity and comprehensive cooperation among Western Balkan countries, above all, in the economy, reported Tanjug agency.

Vucic reiterated Serbia’s stance on all issues in the Western Balkans – consistent advocacy of respect of international law and the territorial integrity of all countries and continued engagement in all fields to preserve peace, which he said was necessary for further strengthening of trust and more versatile regional cooperation.

Vucic noted that Serbia had demonstrated that regional connectivity was quite possible as the Open Balkan initiative was an example of extremely good cooperation, as demonstrated by a recent summit of leaders of the initiative, as well as by the first Wine Vision by Open Balkan international wine fair in Belgrade, which brought together many businesspeople from countries in the region, strengthening existing partnerships and forging new ones.

Vucic noted that Serbia continued a policy of a serious and responsible approach to all regional issues and was committed to political dialogue as the primary way of resolving all challenges as well as the best way of preserving stability in order to expedite the development and progress of all countries in the region as much as possible, the presidential press office said in a statement.

“For that reason, Serbia appreciates and supports the Berlin Process as a format supporting European integration of the Western Balkans in a concrete way and through concrete projects,” Vucic said, adding that Serbia was proactively involved in all forums that recognised the efforts of Serbia and other countries in the region on the European path.

Vucic: I will ask Russian, Chinese presidents to veto Kosovo UN membership (N1)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told the Serbian Parliament that he will send a letter to the presidents of Russia and China asking them to veto Kosovo membership in the United Nations (UN), N1 reports.

During a parliamentary debate Vucic said that he has sent “a thousand letters” so far and that he will send one more, out of respect for the People’s Party (NS).

The President said he accepted this party’s proposal to send the letter and that he will also send it to Western leaders.

The People’s Party proposed to the Serbian Parliament a resolution envisaging twenty concrete steps for resolving the Kosovo problem, however, the resolution was not included in the agenda of the Parliament’s special session on Kosovo.

Selakovic receives ambassadors of Quint states, Norway to NATO (Tanjug)

Serbian FM Nikola Selakovic received the US, UK, French, German, Italian and Norwegian ambassadors to NATO on Tuesday, reported agency Tanjug.

Selakovic noted that, as a militarily neutral country, Serbia wanted to continue to advance its partnership with NATO since maintaining peace and stability in the region was a common interest.

He briefed the ambassadors on the political and the security situation in the region, noting that Serbia remained a firm and dependable pillar of peace and stability in the Western Balkans.

Serbia’s firm commitment to stability in the region and peaceful resolution of all open issues is also confirmed through the Open Balkan initiative, which is helping to overcome political disagreements through economic cooperation among countries in the region, Selakovic said.

Devoting particular attention to the situation in Kosovo-Metohija, Selakovic reiterated Belgrade’s commitment to the EU-facilitated dialogue and to reaching sustainable and compromise solutions.

Selakovic warned of the pattern of actions undertaken by Pristina, which he said was making unilateral moves to the detriment of Kosovo-Metohija Serbs and thereby destabilizing the situation while refusing to meet its commitments under the Brussels Agreement.

The minister informed the ambassadors of the position of the Kosovo-Metohija Serbs, as well as of a series of ethnically motivated incidents targeting Serbs, including last night’s attack by ethnic Albanians in the Babin Most village that left two Serbs wounded.

Noting the significance of KFOR’s engagement within the mandate entrusted to it under UN SC Resolution 1244, Selakovic warned that any future provocation by Pristina could cause unforeseeable consequences.

The meeting also addressed the current situation in the Western Balkans as well as the geopolitical consequences of the war in Ukraine.

The meeting was also attended by the US, UK, French, German, Italian and Norwegian ambassadors to Belgrade, as well as by Norway’s special envoy for the Western Balkans.

Brnabic to Sarazzin: EU-mediated dialogue only way to normalise relations (N1)

Regarding the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, Serbia is in favour of continuing talks under the auspices of the European Union, which is the only possible way to achieve a sustainable agreement and normalisation of relations, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic told Tuesday Manuel Sarazzin, the German Government’s Special Envoy for the Western Balkans, N1 reports.

Brnabic said cooperation in the region and that with all the partners who contribute to this cooperation, is Serbia’s strategic commitment the aim of which is not only the region’s economic development but also the idea of connecting and unifying the Western Balkans and bringing it closer to the EU, said a press release issued by the Serbian Government.

Our country supports the Berlin Process, Brnabic said, recalling that Serbia strongly supported the idea of the Common Regional Market within the Process, which facilitates the free movement of people, goods, services and capital.

Sarazzin said the establishment of a common market is currently the most important project and expressed hope that similar initiatives will pave the way for the creation of a more prosperous environment and produce concrete results and benefits for the people in the region.

The German envoy stressed that his country is committed to the progress of the Western Balkans and to supporting the region’s European integration, and added that he believes the political dialogue and overall relations with Germany will continue to develop.

Serbian MIA formally bans Pride parade, ‘anti-globalists’’ march (N1, media)

The Serbian Interior Ministry has adopted a decision on formally banning the 2022 EuroPride march as well as the “anti-globalists’” family march, both scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 17 in Belgrade.

Following a security assessment, it was established that there is a high risk that the safety of the participants of both events on the announced routes, as well as that of other citizens, will be endangered, said a Ministry press release.

As the two marches are planned to be held close to each other, “one as part of the 2022 EuroPride event and the other by people with views opposite to those of the members of the LGBT population, and who are openly against the 2022 EuroPride event, it has been assessed that there is a risk of attacks and conflicts, danger of violence, destruction of property and other forms of disruption of public order on a larger scale,” said the Ministry.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3DotpOF

“Freedom of Movement in Transition” report presented in Mitrovica North (Kontakt plus radio, Radio Gorazdevac)

A report on “Freedom of Movement in Transition” was presented yesterday at the Civic Energy Center in North Mitrovica. The report was created based on research conducted by the NGO Aktiv from Mitrovica and the NGO Forum for Development and Inter-Ethnic Cooperation from Gracanica within the “Open” platform run by the Kosovo Foundation for an Open Society.

The research covered ten municipalities with a majority Serbian population, and the key findings were presented by Milos Timotijevic, project manager of the NGO Aktiv.

The survey showed that 39.8% of citizens are not familiar with the provisions of the agreement on freedom of movement, while 38.8% are partially familiar with it.

On the other hand, 15.4% do not have any information about this agreement.

An enormous difference is noticeable in the matter of owning cars with “RKS” license plates, in the south 58.6%, while in the north 0.6%.

Six percent of those questioned in the survey stated that at some point they had problems when crossing administrative crossings, while 12% were not sure, or did not remember.

The editor-in-chief of RTV Kim, Goran Avramovic, says that recent history has taught us that deadlines mean nothing.

He stated that he was sure that re-registration of the vehicle will not happen soon.

According to him, that deadline was insufficient in every sense, and he believes that no deadline would change anything in such a situation. 

”So, what would change the situation if, let us say, 60% of cars in that foreseeable period are re-registered, then it is clear where we are going, and what that means and to what it will lead to. However, I am certain that it will not happen, for various reasons. Recent history teaches us that that deadline will be extended, unfortunately probably indefinitely,” Avramovic believes. 

Stefan Veljkovic, vice president of the CI Srpski Opstanak (Serbian Survival), says that “paper suffers everything” and that it is not a guarantee of the implementation of the agreement on the ground.

”The fact that this or that agreement will be signed is no guarantee that it will be implemented on the ground and that the people, that is, Serbs, Albanians, and other communities, will accept it in an appropriate way. We have numerous agreements that have already been signed, however, none of them have been fully implemented. When we talk about a compromise, or an agreement, it means nothing if we cannot come to an agreement with our neighbours, the Albanians, Bosniaks, etc.,” says Veljkovic.

He added that at the core of the problem is non-transparency, followed by ultra-nationalism coming from Pristina and autocracy in Belgrade.

“Today in Kosovo we have an ethnic hysteria. I am primarily talking about the government in Pristina, and on the other hand, we have an autocratic government in Belgrade. So, if you have ultra-nationalists on one side and an autocrat on the other, there is not much room for genuine agreement and conversation between the communities. At the root, at the core of all our current, former, and future problems is this lack of transparency, because no one asks the people what they want and whether it is feasible on the ground. None of the representatives of the Serbian List made an effort to open to any extent a public space for dialogue, to ask the citizens what they want, because they communicate only in the form of blackmail, open or hidden threats, to the extent that people today know that they are not allowed to say anything against this or that agreement, against these or those events,” added Veljkovic.

Goran Avramovic believes that the negotiations on freedom of movement are a political dialogue.

“Everything in our lives in recent decades has been politics, and this is the most difficult politics. In 2012, the then Minister for Kosovo and Metohija, Goran Bogdanovic, claimed that the status of the north of Kosovo should be determined. We are in the same situation today. This whole story is related to the north of Kosovo. We south of the Ibar are silent observers,” concluded Avramovic.

The research report “Freedom of Movement in Transition”, which was conducted in mid-2022, contains recommendations for representatives of institutions in Kosovo, civil society organizations and the media.

The report available at:https://bit.ly/3U9oyXB

Opinion 

Tadic: Vucic expressed contradictions, the opposition did not notice (Beta, NMagazin, Nova S)

Former President of Serbia Boris Tadic says that he regrets that the opposition did not notice that the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, expressed contradictions at the special session of the Serbian Parliament, especially regarding ”the question of Kosovo’s self-proclaimed independence, with which Serbia referred to the International Court of Justice”, reported portal NMagazin.

Tadic told TV Nova S that Vucic assessed at the session that “everyone who knows something about politics, it was clear that the International Court of Justice will vote according to the political interests of the countries that stand behind certain representatives in that court”, while Vucic, on the other hand, “for years, he has been campaigning against the so-called ill-posed question of the former government”.

“If judges vote not according to law and justice, but according to the political interests of their countries, then it is irrelevant what the issue was,” Tadic said.

Regarding the question “Is the unilateral declaration of independence by the temporary institutions of self-government in Kosovo in accordance with international law” sent to the International Court, Tadic says that it is a “play of words” that enabled the court to find a specific position and enable all UN member countries to have their own policy regarding Kosovo, reported the portal.

“Those countries that wanted to interpret that court decision, which in fact was avoiding the answer to our question, said – it is a confirmation that the independence of Kosovo. Now they grabbed their heads when Putin used their argument on the example of Crimea and Donbas and now, they do not know what to do,” Tadic pointed out.

According to him, Vucic is only right when he said that Western countries are now rushing Serbia to finish the case, so that Putin or someone else could not use that example again in the future.

“The West made a disastrous decision because it pushed for a unilateral declaration of independence, then with its influence it suggested to the International Court of Justice to avoid giving an answer to that question,” he emphasized.

He stated that the court’s answer was “that the group of people who declared independence in Kosovo was not a factor of international law and that in that sense they did not violate international law”, which, according to Tadic, is a “scandalous decision”.

Speaking about the session on Kosovo itself, Tadic points out that it is good to finally debate Kosovo and finally in the parliament, stating that “it is a rare debate in the time of the progressive government”.

“Was it constructive? Well, it is better than it was before, but by no means enough. Some things have been revealed, certain political masks have fallen, related to both the government and the opposition,” he said.

He pointed out that at the session only the president of the New Democratic Party of Serbia, Milos Jovanovic, noticed that Vucic, accusing the current opposition of ”establishing independence in Kosovo, confirmed that Kosovo is independent”, which, according to Tadic, is “unconstitutional behaviour and the president must not do that”, reported the portal.   

International 

Maja Sever, First Woman Head of EFJ: ‘Don’t give up on Journalism’ (BIRN)

The European Federation of Journalists’ new woman head, Maja Sever, tells BIRN that despite the multiple problems facing the industry in the Balkans and Europe, it is still ‘the best job in the world’.

The European Federation of Journalists, EFJ, has its first woman president, Maja Sever, 51, President of the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists, TUCJ, who was elected in June.

Sever started working on Croatia’s national broadcaster radio in 1990. When war erupted in ex-Yugoslavia in 1991, she moved to the news program. She became a journalist by accident, she says, telling BIRN: “It was in the youthful phase of indecision. However, I’m happy about that coincidence, and I love my job as a journalist.”

BIRN interviewed EFJ’s new president while she was on the road. Reporting, conferences, family obligations (she has children), and protecting workers’ rights will keep her very busy. “It’s going to be tense, but I have support from my family,” she told BIRN.

Sever believes being an active journalist during her tenure is important: “Every day, I’m in touch with the people whose rights we fight for; I know their needs and understand what pressure from owners, politicians, or advertisers means for an ordinary journalist because I am just a fellow journalist.”

One question facing her is about her gender. For the first time in the history of the EFJ, a woman is leading the organization – and a woman from the Balkans.

Many female and Balkan journalists may be placing their hopes for better treatment in the media world in her.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3QD0RUx