• Kosovo will not delay Serb car plate rule despite calls by West (Reuters)
• Hovenier: Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia to end as soon as possible (Koha)
• Kurti: Now isn’t the time for neutrality but for solidarity (media)
• Bislimi: The United Kingdom is a powerful ally of Kosovo (RTK)
• Ministry invites Serbs to convert license plates through text-messages (Euronews)
• 18 Serbs converted their illegal number plates to “RKS” (RTK)
• Surroi: Association is not possible within our constitutional system (Klan Kosova)
• Swiss keep an eye on tensions in Kosovo (Swissinfo)
• December deadline for European Council’s vote on Kosovo visa (Euractiv)
• Four key takeaways from EU’s Kosovo report (Prishtina Insight)
• Who should the government help? (Kosovo 2.0)
• Presevo Valley Albanians want to be part of Kosovo-Serbia agreement (RTK)

Kosovo will not delay Serb car plate rule despite calls by West (Reuters)

Kosovo will defy calls by Western countries for a 10-month delay in the implementation a rule under which ethnic Serbs switch their car licence plates to local ones, Kosovo’s prime minister said on Tuesday, in a move that could aggravate ethnic tensions.

The attempt by Kosovo’s government to oblige its Serb minority to change their old car plates has been met with strong and sometimes violent resistance this year by local Serbs who live in the northern part of the country.

Kosovo’s main backers, the United States and the European Union, have publicly asked Prime Minister Albin Kurti to delay the rule for 10 months and avoid ethnic tensions. The government had given Serbs 60 days from September 1 — terminating at the end of October — to get the new plates.

Read more at: https://reut.rs/3TDh26y

Hovenier: Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia to end as soon as possible (Koha)

U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Hovenier, said on Tuesday that the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia should conclude as soon as possible. During the Western Balkans Summit organised by The Economist in Pristina, Hovenier said the U.S. strategic objective is for peace to prevail in the countries of the region. “We support Kosovo in getting its place in Euro-Atlantic structures and nations and this requires a great deal of work in the EU-facilitated dialogue. This is the best way to achieve that goal and also for the Kosovo Security Force to fulfil its mandate and to prove that it is an interoperable force with NATO, a defense territorial force. We also think that Kosovo should be in NATO and this is one of the ways to achieve this,” Hovenier said.

Kurti: Now isn’t the time for neutrality but for solidarity (media)

Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti said on Tuesday at the Western Balkans Summit organised by The Economist in Pristina that “now isn’t the time for neutrality but for solidarity. The prospects for sustainable peace not only in the Western Balkans but also in Europe and beyond depend on what we choose to do, together”. Watch Kurti’s address at: https://bit.ly/3TGVhDc

Bislimi: The United Kingdom is a powerful ally of Kosovo (RTK)

Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi received on Tuesday the United Kingdom’s special envoy for the Western Balkans, Sir Stuart Peach.

“Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi emphasized the continuous commitment and constructiveness, since the beginning of the mandate, in the normalization of relations with Serbia, with a focus on the final agreement, with mutual recognition at the center,” the statement of the government states.

Bislimi briefed Sir Stuart Peach on the energy situation in the north as well as the energy situation in Kosovo in general, for which Peach offered his availability to help where possible, given the general crisis gripping Europe.

“Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi emphasized that to Kosovo, the United Kingdom has been and continues to remain a powerful ally and their involvement in the important processes that the country is going through is positive for us as a country. Peach emphasized that the United Kingdom will support Kosovo from the position it is in, especially within the NATO alliance,” the announcement reads.

Ministry invites Serbs to convert license plates through text-messages (Euronews)

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced that it has launched an electronic communication (SMS text-messaging) campaign with Kosovo Serbs regarding the conversion of illegal license plates to ones bearing the acronym RKS to represent the Republic of Kosovo.

The news was confirmed by the spokesperson of the Ministry of Interior, Nora Fetoshi, who said that the interest of Serbian citizens has increased in recent days for the conversion of license plates.

“Through this, we are continuing our campaign with the aim of informing each citizen about the procedures and reliefs that come out of this process, thus facilitating their access to information through SMS communication in the Serbian language. While the information campaign continues, citizens’ interest in registering cars and returning license plates to RKS has increased in recent days, and the number of motor vehicle registrations has reached 18,” Fetoshi told Klankosova.tv.

In addition, she also said that for all those interested, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has also offered a toll-free number which is 0800-46757.

In this regard, the Serbian media have also reported on this, considering it a form of pressure being exercised on Kosovo Serbs to forcefully convert their license plates.

18 Serbs converted their illegal number plates to “RKS” (RTK)

There are only 6 days left until the end of the deadline given by the government of Kosovo for the conversion of illegal vehicle license plates to “RKS” ones.

Despite the great pressure of the criminal groups supported by the authorities of Serbia, some of the Serb citizens have decided to use the opportunity offered by the government of the Kosovo to convert license plates.

“To date, 18 vehicles have been registered by Serb citizens with ‘RKS’ license plates in all the centers,” said Ardita Ademi Istrefi, head of the Vehicle Registration Center.

She announced that of this number, 7 of the registered vehicles are from the region of Mitrovica.

Meanwhile, it is reported that around 3,000 cars with illegal license plates are circulating in the north of Kosovo.

Days ago, the United States of America and the European Union asked the Kosovo’s institutions to postpone the license plate conversion deadline for another 10 months, in order to avoid the tension of the situation in the north.

The first time this deadline was postponed for two months in August, at the request of the international community, with the justification of not informing the Serb citizens properly.

However, Prime Minister Kurti, asked today by journalists about the EU’s new request, stated that there will be no further postponement of this deadline.

Surroi: Association is not possible within our constitutional system (Klan Kosova)

Publicist and author Veton Surroi said in a debate on Klan Kosova on Tuesday that the idea of creating the Association of Serb-majority municipalities is not possible within Kosovo’s constitutional system.

“The Association of Serb municipalities, as it was signed in 2013, cannot be implemented in our constitutional and legal system … The idea to have an Association of Serb municipalities is not possible within our constitutional system,” he said.

Surroi argued that when two parties do not agree about the character of an agreement that agreement does not have legal capacity. According to him, there can be no agreement between Kosovo and Serbia when the sides try to deceive one another. “There cannot be an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia whereby the parties try to deceive one another or their respective public opinion,” he said.

Surroi recalled that in the case of the agreement on the Association, Kosovo’s negotiators said at the time that it would be only a non-governmental organisation.

Swiss keep an eye on tensions in Kosovo (Swissinfo)

Things are tense in northern Kosovo as a deadline approaches for Serbs to swap their Belgrade-issued number plates for local ones. A seemingly trivial request from Kosovo’s government has stoked discontent among ethnic Serbs. Swiss military personnel are among 3,600 NATO peacekeepers in the country, keeping watch.

Violent protests erupted in the north this summer after Kosovo’s prime minister, Albin Kurti, issued his first deadline for the number plate switch. Serbs, who number about 70,000 in the north, set up roadblocks and fired shots at border crossings. To ease tensions, the deadline for swapping number plates was pushed back to the end of October. Serbs have refused to recognise Kosovar institutions and want to keep their number plates from Belgrade, which they consider to be their capital.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3N4fLDk

December deadline for European Council’s vote on Kosovo visa (Euractiv)

Between the middle of November and the first week of December, there will be a vote in the European Council on the country’s visa liberalisation process, rapporteur for Kosovo in the European Parliament, Viola von Cramon, stated on Monday.

Viola von Cramon underlined that restrictions on the movement of Kosovo citizens should be removed as soon as possible since, according to her, all criteria and requirements of the EU have been met.

“The visa liberalisation process will be finalised. We hope we will have a date when visa liberalisation will occur. I saw that this was for the first time on the agenda of the working group of the Council of the European Union, last Thursday. A clear decision has not yet been made, there will be another vote from mid-November or early December,” she said.

“Behind the scenes, we are working hard to see a positive decision,” she added.

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

Four key takeaways from EU’s Kosovo report (Prishtina Insight)

The success of EU enlargement will take two to tango. Western Balkans countries must double down on their reforms and the EU must embrace the region – otherwise, the process risks becoming irrelevant.

Last week, the European Commission published its latest country reports for all six Western Balkans countries.

These reports are published annually and take stock of virtually everything, from the quality of democracy and rule of law to the administration of fish markets and procession of wild plant species in the region.

Reports are generally accepted as the most objective audit of the health of Western Balkans societies. Here are four key takeaways that need highlighting.

Novelties

We are used to Kosovo being a “sui generis” case. That was the case also with its annual EU report. If you look at the structure of all Western Balkans reports, you will notice that until this year Kosovo was the only country with a different report structure. While all other country reports were structured according to the formal 33 EU chapters of the acquis, Kosovo’s report continued to have its own “sui generis” structure.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3syccM0

Who should the government help? (Kosovo 2.0)

The Kosovo government’s economic support packages exclude those in need.

The end of 2021 and early 2022 saw an impasse in global supply chains due to the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. These developments resulted in higher utility bills and weakened purchasing power, especially affecting those with lower incomes, since basic goods have become more expensive.

The cost of living in Kosovo is increasing and the effects are making themselves felt in people’s budgets.

This inflation provoked calls for the Kosovo government to support its citizens and businesses that are endangered by the higher production costs. Kosovo has a free market and the government cannot directly influence prices, but it has introduced several support packages.

From November 2021 until now, the government’s support packages consisted mainly of one-off grants of 100 euros for certain groups, such as pensioners, beneficiaries of social schemes, workers and students, as well as subsidies for salary increases for private sector workers.

However, the government did not include every group in need. Existing schemes, such as social assistance, do not accurately assess which groups are most vulnerable and in need of government support in times of crisis.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3DaOCK9

Presevo Valley Albanians want to be part of Kosovo-Serbia agreement (RTK)

Albanian leaders from Presevo Valley were received at the U.S. State Department a few days ago. They requested that the Albanian issue of the Valley be part of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. The Albanian MP in the Parliament of Serbia, Shaip Kamberi, said on “RTK Prime” that they have received a promise from Gabriel Escobar that he will suggest to his European colleague Miroslav Lajcak a meeting with the Albanian representatives of the Valley.

He said that during the meeting with Escobar, they reiterated that the fact that the EU officials meet with the Serbian leaders of northern Kosovo who are on the American blacklist, while denying any meeting with Albanian representatives is unacceptable.

Kamberi further said that they requested inclusion of the issue of the Presevo Valley in the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue.

He warned further that the issue of the Albanians of Presevo Valley can produce tensions and that there is no solution or calm in Western Balkans if the principle of reciprocity in rights of minorities is not respected.

He added that there will be no normalization of the relations between the two countries, if Serbia continues with the same treatment of the Albanians of the Presevo Valley, with methods of perfidious discrimination, which, according to him, is going to extremes, emptying the Presevo Valley from the Albanian youth.