• Kurti: Vucic is violating his beloved 2013 agreement (media)
• Kurti meets Dendias, discuss deepening of relations (media)
• Dendias: Pristina-Belgrade reached agreements should be respected (euronews.al)
• Svecla: Rakic, criminal gangs have blocked citizens in north (euronews.al)
• EULEX: Situation in the north, disturbing and tense (media)
• “Agreement with no mutual recognition may lead to new status-quo” (VoA)
• An explosion is reported in the north (media)
• EULEX supplied police in Jarinje with food, clothing, hygiene products (media)
• Arrested K-Serb police officer’s lawyer still unaware of his location (BIRN)
• Kosovo planning to purchase Bayraktar drones from Turkey (media)
• To resolve Kosovo-Serbia dispute, we must follow framework of Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue (The Parliament Magazine)
• EU invests 91 million euros in Kosovo for railway lines (euronews.al)

Kurti: Vucic is violating his beloved 2013 agreement (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on Tuesday that Serbian President  Aleksandar Vucic, is violating the 2013 agreement by urging the member states of the European Union to oppose Kosovo’s membership in this organization. Kurti, through a post on Facebook on Tuesday night, said that Serbia will never be able to prevent Kosovo from becoming a member of the EU.

“The President and the government of Serbia remained alone in opposing the official application of the Republic of Kosovo for membership in the EU. By sending letters to EU member states urging them to oppose our application for EU membership, Vucic is openly and blatantly violating his beloved 2013 agreement (Thaci-Dacic Agreement, 19 April 2013) which in point 14 provided for the renunciation of opposition and obstruction of Kosovo’s membership in the EU. For me, the only point of value in that agreement is point 14, because it only ensures a democratic, liberal and peace-loving future for both countries in the EU. Precisely because of such content, Serbia is violating such an obligation so openly,” Kurti wrote.

Kurti also thanked the officials who helped in the preparation of the EU membership application process, as well as the international officials who supported the application.

Kurti meets Dendias, discuss deepening of relations (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti hosted on Tuesday the Foreign Minister of Greece Nikos Dendias at a working lunch. They talked about the possibilities of deepening the relations between Kosovo and Greece, while the existing excellent relations between the two countries were also emphasized.

Kurti emphasized the European perspective of Kosovo, as well as the aspirations of Kosovo for further integration into international organizations.

They also talked about current issues, regional developments, as well as the development and integration perspective of the Western Balkans.

Dendias: Pristina-Belgrade reached agreements should be respected (euronews.al)

Greek Foreign Minister, Nikos Dendias, said on Tuesday that Greece supports the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue mediated by the European Union, as he underlined that the agreements reached so far should be implemented.

He was received in a meeting by the Foreign Minister of Kosovo, Donika Gervalla, who said that the role of Greece is necessary for the efforts to reduce tensions with Serbia.

After the meeting, the Greek diplomat said that the European Union should be the final destination for everyone in the Western Balkans.

“We fully support the Pristina-Belgrade dialogue and the legally binding agreements according to international laws. According to the EU-backed agreement reached last November to avoid risks and tensions, what has been achieved so far is important to be implemented by both parties. Allow me to say that this was also my message to Belgrade yesterday”, he emphasized.

Svecla: Rakic, criminal gangs have blocked citizens in north (euronews.al)

Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Affairs The Minister of Internal Affairs of Kosovo, Xhelal Svecla, has accused Goran Rakic from the Serbian List that in cooperation with criminal and armed gangs are holding the barricades that have blocked the citizens and members of the Kosovo Police for 11 days.

In a post on Facebook, Svecla said that “the only language they know and trumpet is murder, while the only language we know is stability, order, and law, towards everyone and without distinction”.

“We are making maximum efforts with our partners to remove the barricades without any possible escalation in the meantime they are arming the gangs inside the barricades. They do not have support from Serb citizens for their criminal acts, therefore they try to scare them with made-up stories about murders and lists of murders,” Svecla wrote.

EULEX: Situation in the north, disturbing and tense (media)

In coordination with KFOR, EULEX’s Formed Police Unit and Reserve Police Unit continues its field patrols in northern Kosovo, including foot patrols in North Mitrovica and Zvecan.

The EULEX mission has informed KosovaPress that the security situation in the north of Kosovo is disturbing and tense.

“During our patrols in the field, we witness a disturbing presence of armed men, often by masked individuals and groups, in the north of Kosovo. This is unacceptable. We are witnessing the installation of additional barricades, which must be removed immediately. They are illegal and hinder freedom of movement. In addition to these concerns, criminality in the north of Kosovo is also worrying. The security vacuum created after the resignation of the Kosovo Serb policemen can be exploited by criminal groups. It is up to the law enforcement agencies to prevent this,” EULEX emphasized.

Within its mandate and capacities, EULEX is a supporter of such preventive measures, but says that they cannot replace the Kosovo Police, which is the first security responder.

“What is important now is to immediately de-escalate the situation, restore calm and refrain from the most provocative actions. This is first of all for the benefit of the local population, whose protection and security are at risk due to the current situation,” EULEX emphasized.

EUELX stressed that they have different tasks and mandates in relation to KFOR.

“Given the volatile security situation in northern Kosovo and the deployment of additional barricades, the Mission regularly adjusts its position to reflect the situation on the ground. If conditions allow the safe use of alternative routes, our patrols try to reach several locations in northern Kosovo, including police stations. Due to unfavorable weather and road conditions, this is not always possible,” EULEX announced.

“Agreement with no mutual recognition may lead to new status-quo” (VoA)

Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Memli Krasniqi, said in an interview with the Voice of America on Tuesday that the Association of Serb-majority municipalities should be part of the general agreement with Serbia which leads to mutual recognition.

He said that the European proposal supported by the United States for a non-recognition agreement cannot be accepted because it could create a new status-quo.

“This is not a final agreement, I have the fundamental concern here, if this agreement were to be justified as a basic agreement without a specific term or date for the final agreement, I fear that all that will happen is the creation of a new status-quo which may be more favorable in some elements for Kosovo, but it will not solve the problems we have with Serbia, which I consider must necessarily be solved in order not to leave this to the following generations.”

Krasniqi said that the current blockades in the north of Kosovo were established primarily to hinder the process of negotiations between Kosovo and Serbia for a final agreement.

“The situation in the northern part of Kosovo is extremely problematic, there is a worsening of the situation, especially after the installation of barricades by criminal groups, which are controlled and directly orchestrated by the highest circles in Serbia, including the president (Aleksandar) Vucic himself . There is a tension in the situation and from all the information we receive these days, it can be seen that there is no easy solution and it does not seem that there can be an improvement and a return to normalcy very quickly, this is very worrying,” Krasniqi said.

An explosion is reported in the north (media)

Another explosion was reported in the north of Kosovo on Tuesday evening. Residents of the Bosnjacka Mahala have said that the explosion was more powerful this time, unlike the previous times.

Unknown persons threw the explosive device from a moving car. The explosion happened very close to a Kosovo Police unit in this part of the city, reports Kallxo.com, publishing also the video of the explosion, recorded by TeVe1.

EULEX supplied police in Jarinje with food, clothing, hygiene products (media)

The head of the EULEX mission, Lars-Gunnar Wigemark, has announced that following the request from the Kosovo Police, on December 17, EULEX members provided the Kosovo police officers in Jarinje with essential supplies, including food, clothing and hygienic tools.

“Pleased to announce that following a request by the Kosovo Police, EULEX Kosovo on 17 December delivered essential supplies to the Kosovo Police officers at the Rudnica/Jarinje Common Crossing Point, including food supplies, clothing as well as hygiene items,” he tweeted.

Arrested K-Serb police officer’s lawyer still unaware of his location (BIRN)

A lawyer for the Kosovo Serb former policemen Dejan Pantic, whose arrest resulted in Serb barricades, told media he does not know where his client is, even after 11 days.

Nebojsa Vlajic, a lawyer for former Kosovo police officer Dejan Pantic, who is suspected of an alleged attack on municipal election commission offices in North Mitrovica, and whose arrest sparked road blockades by Kosovo Serbs, told media that he still does not know his client’s location.

Vlajic said he has “some unofficial news and assumptions about Pantic’s whereabouts”, and added: “Everyone believes that he is at the base of the Kosovo Police”, near the Jarinje border crossing. “But whether it is really there or not, I don’t have any official confirmation.”

Vlajic said that he had addressed the EULEX mission about Pantic’s whereabouts and the conditions under which he is staying, noting that EULEX’s mandate is to supervise the judiciary in Kosovo.

“More than two days ago, I asked for an answer to those questions, they still haven’t answered,” said Vlajic, adding that he expects to receive answers as soon as possible.

“To get medicine, to enable him to make phone calls and visit family members and defence attorneys. These are elementary human rights, which do not depend, or should not depend, on the government,” he said.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3BOkft6

Kosovo planning to purchase Bayraktar drones from Turkey (media)

Minister for Regional Development, Fikrim Damka, confirmed on Tuesday that Kosovo is working on purchasing Turkey-made Bayraktar drones. In an interview with Anadolu Agency, Damka was asked about Kosovo’s objectives in purchasing armament, and confirmed that buying the drones was on the agenda. “Surely the issue of drones is on our agenda. Our country is working on this. Visits have been made. Our President and the Minister of Defence have visited the ‘Bayraktar’ drones. This is a long-term process. Every country wants to have such drones in their military arsenal,” Damka was quoted as saying.

To resolve Kosovo-Serbia dispute, we must follow framework of Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue (The Parliament Magazine)

Both countries must address outstanding issues in order to advance on their respective European paths

In light of the persisting dispute between Kosovo and Serbia, especially recently when the feud has become all the more acute, diplomatic intervention from the European Union is undoubtedly required and justified. The normalisation of relations between these countries is a pressing issue and necessary to ensure stability in the EU’s immediate neighbourhood.

In November, the European Parliament voted on the new EU enlargement strategy by a vast majority. This means that internal blockages from the past few years and the standstill of the political will for the enlargement process are resolved for the most significant part.

Due to internal crises in the EU caused by global events, delays in the start of accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia as well as visa liberalisation for Kosovo (despite it having fulfilled the required benchmarks) have created a vacuum, thereby opening up even more space for authoritarian states such as Russia and China to play a growing political role.

Even a short period of oversight and inattentiveness can have perilous consequences. That is mainly why the EU recognised the need for a clearly defined and strategically, politically, and geopolitically focused approach to the enlargement process.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3I92Tvl

EU invests 91 million euros in Kosovo for railway lines (euronews.al)

The work co-financed by the European Union with an amount of 91 million euros has led to the agreement for the rehabilitation and improvement of 34 kilometers of railway between Fushe-Kosova and Mitrovica.

Such an agreement was signed in the city of Fushe-Kosova between the EU ambassador in Kosovo, Tomas Szunyog and the prime minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, reports SchengenVisaInfo.com.

According to a communique issued yesterday, on December 19, by the EU Office in Kosovo, in the next 15 months, works up to 68 million euros will be carried out.

“We are now starting to rehabilitate and improve the second section of the Regional Railway 10 in Kosovo, which is part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) and connects Kosovo with the region and the rest of Europe”, said Ambassador Szunyog.

He also added that the agreement reached is very important as it contributes to the transport connection of Kosovo, which consequently pushes economic growth and the creation of jobs in the country.

At the same time, it is expected to help the integration of Kosovo into the single regional and EU market. The length of railway line 10, which runs from North Macedonia, throughout Kosovo and Serbia, is 256 kilometers; Of these kilometers, 148 are in Kosovo.

Commenting on this agreement, Prime Minister Albin Kurti said that his country is grateful to the EU and in particular the European Commission for supporting the financing and rehabilitation of this railway line. According to Kurti, Kosovo will have a railway line that meets all the requirements of interoperability defined according to EU directives.