Albanian Language Media:

• Kurti: EU plan for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue includes de facto recognition from Serbia (media)
• President Osmani receives Albania’s President Bajram Begaj (media)
• Kurti: Final agreement with Serbia depends on international pressure on Belgrade (media)
• Abazi claims there are videos that show “who vanished samples of Dehari case” (media)
• LVV dismisses Haki Abazi, replaces him with Arbereshe Kryeziu-Hyseni (media)
• Kurti meets with the former head of the legal team of Kosovo, at the ICJ (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• 22 years since the bomb attack on the bus in Livadice, memorial service today in Laplje Selo (KoSSev)
• Serbian List: Wall of silence when it comes to crimes against Serbs (Radio KIM, media)
• Leposavic residents at the public discussion on expropriation: There’s no life left here; we’ll defend our land (KoSSev)
• Nenezic to the Expropriation Department: You’re misapplying your own law, violating the Constitution and the CoE Convention (KoSSev)
• Civil society: Leposavic locals did not feel unsafe until they were overrun by bases; Central institutions violate the law (KoSSev)
• Vucic holds meeting with police and security chiefs (Tanjug, Insajder, N1)
• President Vucic awards Statehood Day honours (N1, media)
• Grenell thanks Vucic and Serbian people for receiving award (Kosovo Online, social media)
• RFE: US maintains stand on Serbia-Kosovo recognition (N1)

Humanitarian/Development:

• How Serbs live in Kosovo: “We dream of being in Serbia, but reality is different” (N1)

Albanian Language Media  

Kurti: EU plan for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue includes de facto recognition from Serbia (media)

Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on Thursday in Parliament that the European plan for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue includes de facto recognition from Serbia. According to him, there is not de jure recognition in the plan, but he said that it is a sequential part of the plan. “The mandatory recognition of Serbia is clear, it is not explicitly stated there, but it is de facto. But it is a sequential part of the plan,” Kurti said.

“The proposal envisages the normalisation of international relations where the Republic of Kosovo and Serbia recognize each other de facto. Such a thing seems clear in the text of the agreement, but such a thing has also been promised by the emissary states that have proposed the agreement, as well as the European Union itself,” he said.

Further, Prime Minister Kurti said that the issue of dialogue is in the right direction and that Serbia will not be able to oppose Kosovo’s membership in international organisations.

Kurti also accepted questions from the Kosovo Assembly MPs. MP Ariana Musliu Shoshi asked him “why there is a change of attitude of the USA, from the demand for recognition in the centre, to de facto recognition.”

Kurti said that they have Ambassador Jeff Hovenier who can talk about the positions they have.

“I can speak as the Prime Minister of Kosovo. The U.S. has an ambassador in Kosovo. There is the State Department that can reveal their positions. I can’t answer that because clearly someone else formulates and holds those positions. The agreement with Serbia depends on the discussions and it should have mutual recognition at the centre. Communicate more often with the leader of your party to whom I have shown the proposal,” he said.

President Osmani receives Albania’s President Bajram Begaj (media)

The President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani received today the President of Albania Bajram Begaj, who is staying in Kosovo to participate in the celebration of the 15th anniversary of Kosovo’s independence.

Begaj emphasised that Albania will always be by Kosovo’s side, contributing to the strengthening of its international position.

“Meanwhile, President Osmani has emphasised that Kosovo is celebrating the 15th anniversary of its citizenship in the face of challenges but determined to move forward in strengthening the state and committed to the Euro-Atlantic journey,” informs a communique release by the Office of the President.

Relations between Kosovo and Albania were assessed by both presidents as not only friendly, but fraternal, so they promised to commit to their intensification. Osmani pointed out the need for further coordination and harmonisation, especially in the field of foreign policy, in which case she emphasised the need for Albania to be a strong voice of Kosovo in the institutions where Kosovo currently has no representation.

The two presidents emphasised that Kosovo and Albania are jointly engaged and committed to the protection of democracy, peace and freedom and that the stability of the region is vital in order for both countries to continue their European journey.

Kurti: Final agreement with Serbia depends on international pressure on Belgrade (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti said that mutual recognition should be at the centre of the final agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, and that there can be no normalisation of relations without recognition.

In an interview with “Deutsche Welle”, Kurti said that the issue of minorities should also be addressed.

But as far as the Association is concerned, Kurti said that the April 2013 agreement was violated by the Serbian president when he sent letters last year to Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Romania and Slovakia to oppose the acceptance of Kosovo’s application for membership in the EU.

Kurti said that there cannot be an ethnic Association and that this request belongs to Serbia, and not to the Serbs here.

“There cannot be an ethnic association. The association can be based on a developmental point of view, without forgetting that Kosovo has an association of municipalities. The association is not a request of the Serbs, it is a request of Serbia”

As for whether there will be a final agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, and when it will happen, Prime Minister Kurti said that such a thing depends on international pressure on Belgrade.

“It depends a lot on the pressure of international factors on Belgrade, which is neither distancing itself from Milosevic in the past, nor from Putin in the present.”

Abazi claims there are videos that show “who vanished samples of Dehari case” (media)

The Vetevendosje Movement (LVV) MP Haki Abazi has said today at a press conference that he has done research on the case of the disappearance of Astri Dehari’s case samples. According to him, this thing has caused dissatisfaction, and resulted with Vetevendosje’s initiative and the idea of dismissing him from the Assembly Committee.

“The video recordings are what you need to look for to confirm who vanished the samples from the ‘Dehari’ case, he said, adding that according to his recent research, discussions he has had with people in charge, have led to the dismissals within the LVV. “How is it possible that these samples disappear, while LVV is in power and Prime Minister Kurti does not say anything,” he said, among other things.

He said that Prime Minister Albin Kurti and others should be interrogated by the Prosecutor’s Office about the disappearance of the samples in December of the last year.

He said that there are audio recordings that show “discussions between Saranda Bogujevci, Mimoza Kusari-Lila and Donika Mihajli about suppressing the voices of MPs inside the parliament.”

LVV dismisses Haki Abazi, replaces him with Arbereshe Kryeziu-Hyseni (media)

The MP from the Vetevendosje Movement (LVV) Haki Abazi, has left the position of Chairman of the Committee for Foreign Affairs and Diaspora. By decision of the Assembly of Kosovo, on Thursday he was replaced by his fellow party member, Arbereshe Kryeziu-Hyseni. 

This took place after the recommendation of the LVV Parliamentary Group. 62 MPs participated in the vote, 53 of whom voted for and nine abstained.

MP Haki Abazi had since yesterday warned about his dismissal, while accusing Kurti of having given the order. Today at the media conference, Abazi said that Kurti is looking for those who want to overthrow him from the government and thinks that his name is also on that list.

Kurti meets with the former head of the legal team of Kosovo, at the ICJ (media)

Prime Minister Albin Kurti received today in a meeting Michael Wood, from the United Kingdom, who led the legal team of Kosovo at the International Court of Justice in 2010.

Kurti thanked Wood for his contribution, especially in the legal protection of Kosovo’s international law, on the occasion of the declaration of independence. 

“The 2010 advisory opinion of the Court of Justice, which concludes that Kosovo’s independence did not violate international law, constitutes one of the fundamental dates in the history of the state of Kosovo, therefore, Prime Minister Kurti said that it is a pleasure to welcome and meet Mr.  Wood precisely on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the declaration of Independence”, it is stated in the government communiqué.

During the meeting, Kurti informed him about the achievements in Kosovo, about the current developments, and they also discussed the relations between Kosovo and Serbia and the dialogue process.

Serbian Language Media 

22 years since the bomb attack on the bus in Livadice, memorial service today in Laplje Selo (KoSSev)

Today marks the 22nd anniversary of the bomb attack on the Nis Express bus in Livadice near Podujevo, in which 12 people were killed and 43 people of Serbian nationality were injured. The youngest victim was two-year-old Danilo Cokic. As in previous years, the anniversary will be marked with a memorial service in the Church of Saint Petka in Laplje Selo, reported portal KoSSev.

The passengers of the Niš Express were travelling from central Serbia, where they were accommodated as displaced persons, exactly 22 years ago – on February 16, 2001, to Gracanica for the memorial service.

By activating a landmine on the main road Niš – Pristina, in the village of Livadice near Podujevo, the first of a convoy of seven buses, in which displaced Serbs were travelling accompanied by Swedish and British KFOR units, was blown up.

In the attack, ten people died on the spot, while two more succumbed to their injuries later.

Suncica Pejcic, Zivana Tokic, Slobodan Stojanovic, Nenad Stojanovic, Mirjana Dragovic, Veljko Stakic, Milinko Kragovic, Lazar Milkic and Dragan Vukotic died in the attack, in addition to the Cokic family – Njegos, Snezana and little Danilo.

A little more than a month after the attack, on March 19, 2001, four Albanians were arrested, suspected of the attack – three members of the then Kosovo Protection Corps, Colonel Cel Gashi, officers Avdi Behluli and Yusuf Veli, and later the main suspect, Florim Ejupi, who was not a member of the KPC, but he had a criminal record in Germany.

After the first-instance verdict of 40 years in prison, the Supreme Court of Kosovo acquitted Florim Ejupi of the charges in 2009 due to lack of evidence.

Ejupi was linked to this crime on the basis of material evidence found at the scene, among which was a cigarette butt, as well as parts of the packaging of the explosive used with traces of Ejupi’s DNA, later confirmed in Germany.

Over the years, reports KoSSev, the investigation was marked by affairs, instead of results. One of the affairs was the escape of Florim Ejupi from the American Bondsteel base in 2001, and then the court acquittal of the other three arrested, who were then welcomed as heroes in the then KPC and some of them continued their careers.

Over the years, the number of investigators decreased, and the investigation weakened. EULEX then launched a new investigation, which only established that what happened in Livadice could not have been done by one person.

Twenty-two years later, there are no results of the investigation.

Over the years, international representatives have reiterated that “it is very important that the perpetrators be brought to justice and that the families of the victims learn the truth”.

On the 12th anniversary of this crime, when the investigation had already been suspended, the EULEX spokeswoman at the time, Irina Gudeljevic, stated that EULEX was “ready” to renew the investigation, if “there is new evidence”.

Office for KiM: Investigation to be renewed

The Office for Kosovo and Metohija reminded that even after 22 years, no one has been adequately held accountable for this, one of the most serious crimes since the arrival of international forces in Kosovo.

“The fact that for twenty-two years international organisations and temporary institutions of self-government in Pristina have not been able to find and punish the instigators and perpetrators of this terrorist attack, nor the killers of Serbian children in Gorazdevac, fourteen reapers in Staro Gracko, the Stolic family in Obilic, the responsible for the almost daily burning and demolition of Serbian houses and the desecration of churches and monasteries – makes every story meaningless about the rule of law and justice in Kosovo and Metohija, but also represents a crystal clear testimony of the criminal foundations of the so-called Kosovo statehood”.

The Office for KiM says that they expect and demand from the international community and the competent authorities in Kosovo that the investigation into this and all other cases of attacks on Serbs be renewed as soon as possible:

“That all unexplained crimes are brought to light, and their immediate perpetrators and those who ordered it, are justly punished, which would finally bring peace to the victims, and a little comfort to the families”, reported KoSSev portal, citing the Office statement.

Serbian List: Wall of silence when it comes to crimes against Serbs (Radio KIM, media)

“We remind international community that families of the victims still wait replay as to who and why murdered their loved ones and why did it let those responsible go, as well as who and why closed the investigation into this case”, Serbian List said in a statement on the occasion of 22 anniversary of Livadice crime near Podujevo, in which 12 Serbs were killed, including two-year old Danilo Cokic, Radio KIM reports.

The Serbian List added that this crime “remains one of the largest stains on the face of the international community, as firstly it was not able to protect the lives of Serbs who only wanted to visit graveyards of their beloved ones, and the second time when it set free those for whom there were material evidences that they took part in carrying out this monstrous crime, and they even closed the further investigation into this case”.

Serbian List also said that this year, same as over the previous years there are no representatives of the international community or ambassadors from Pristina attending anniversaries on the Serbian people suffering, although “they are often present at places of suffering of other people”.

Serbian List once against called on those responsible to continue investigation, find and punish those responsible for this crime, but also for other crimes against the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, including Staro Gracko, Bistrica River crime in Gorazdevac village, and those who planned and carried out March pogrom 2004. 

Leposavic residents at the public discussion on expropriation: There’s no life left here; we’ll defend our land (KoSSev)

Portal KoSSev reported on an almost united message of the Leposavic residents from yesterday’s public discussion on the expropriation of land in this municipality, that is, the owners of the expropriated plots: “There is no life left for us here”. 

Leposavic residents assessed the decision on expropriation as illegal, demanding that representatives of the Kosovo government explain the presence of members of special units of the Kosovo Police near the expropriated hill, and convey their messages to the Pristina authorities and Prime Minister Albin Kurti.

The decision of the Kosovo authorities in mid-January to expropriate a hill covering over 83 ha of land in the Leposavic municipality greatly disturbed residents of the north. The land in question falls under two cadastral zones – the villages of Dren and Lesak, both private and socially-owned. This was actually one of many decisions on expropriation made by the Kosovo government, and in actuality, over 138 ha of land in the north of Kosovo has been expropriated by Pristina over the last few months. This is also the first decision over which a public discussion was held, although the Kosovo authorities have claimed otherwise.

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

Nenezic to the Expropriation Department: You’re misapplying your own law, violating the Constitution and the CoE Convention (KoSSev)

“This is not how the rule of law is enforced. You are misapplying your own law. That is not the way this can be done. If you want to apply your own law, do it properly. Suspend this process. Tell people what it’s about, explain your own decision in a way it should be clarified, and then come here for a public discussion,” legal expert Dragutin Nenezic told expropriation experts from Pristina yesterday at a public discussion on the expropriated land in Leposavic, reported KoSSev portal.

The decision of the Kosovo authorities in mid-January to expropriate a hill covering over 83 ha of land in the Leposavic municipality greatly disturbed residents of the north. The land in question falls under two cadastral zones – the villages of Dren and Lesak, both private and state-owned. This was actually one of many decisions on expropriation made by the Kosovo government, and in actuality, over 138 ha of land in the north of Kosovo has been expropriated by Pristina over the last few months. This is also the first decision over which a public discussion was held, although the Kosovo authorities have claimed otherwise.

After the EU reacted in early February, publicly pointing out the shortcomings of the process, the Kosovo government decided on the same day to hold public discussions on February 15th and February 21st in Leposavic and Zubin Potok, but only after the government confirmed that it had made the decisions.

Plots of land are being expropriated in the municipalities of Leposavic and Zubin Potok, where special police bases are under construction.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3SiQE2l

Civil society: Leposavic locals did not feel unsafe until they were overrun by bases. Central institutions violate the law (KoSSev)

“This discussion, which is at least a year late, is a reflection of the undemocratic, illegal, and violent approach that the Self-Determination (Vetvendosje)-led government has taken on in recent years toward the Kosovo Serb community,” the director of the New Social Initiative, Jovana Radosavljevic, said at a public discussion on the issue of the expropriated land held in Leposavic yesterday.

Radosavljevic joined yesterday’s discussion not only as a representative of the Kosovo Serb CSOs but also as a native of the municipality of Leposavic.

Representatives of the government in Pristina told civil society activists who attended the discussion that only plot owners and lawyers should participate, to which Radosavljevic replied that she is interested in this topic not only as a local, but also as an activist from an organisation that follows the issue of expropriation and deals with human rights.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/411MI9M

Vucic holds meeting with police and security chiefs (Tanjug, Insajder, N1)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with top officials of the Interior Ministry and security agencies on Wednesday evening. The extraordinary meeting was called following threats made at a Belgrade protest against the government policy on Kosovo and Metohija.

Speaking about the meeting, Vucic said they had analysed the state of public peace and order and that the relevant authorities had the situation under control.

Justice Minister Maja Popovic said in a press release that the extremist groups protesting in front of the presidency tried to destabilise the country by calling for a violent overthrow of state bodies and added that the state is capable of dealing with extremism and maintaining order.

Serbian media reported today that three persons have been arrested in Belgrade and Novi Sad cities for calling for violent changes of the constitutional order and one of them also for criminal acts of unlawful possession, carrying and distributing weapons and explosive material.

President Vucic awards Statehood Day honours (N1, media)

On the occasion of Serbian Statehood Day, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic awarded Wednesday decorations to meritorious institutions and individuals at a ceremony held in the Presidency building.

Some of those decorated by the Serbian President include Azerbaijani Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Population Sahil Babayev, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Belgrade Stanislav Hocevar, former US Special Envoy for Belgrade-Pristina dialogue Richard Grenell, late football player Sinisa Mihajlovic, actor Lazar Ristovski, fashion designer Verica Rakocevic.

Presenting the decorations, Vucic said they “testify to the fact that Serbia does not forget friends of the state, those who did something for it and its citizens”.

“By accepting it, you have joined the ranks of individuals and institutions without whom Serbia would not be what it is. You who merit this brilliant award on the occasion of the Serbian Statehood Day, on Candlemas, know that the eyes of our citizens are on you, as well as their unlimited trust in your love and good intentions”, Vucic said.

Grenell thanks Vucic and Serbian people for receiving award (Kosovo Online, social media)

Former US special envoy for Belgrade-Pristina talks, Richard Grenell thanked Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Serbian people for the award he received yesterday on the occasion of Serbian Statehood Day.

Grenell received The First Order of the National Flag award.

“Thank you to Serbian President @avucic, the entire Serbian government and people of Serbia for this great award – Today, I was given the highest honour of The First Order of The National Flag”, Grenell wrote in a post on Twitter.

RFE: US maintains stand on Serbia-Kosovo recognition (N1)

A State Department spokesperson told Radio Free Europe that Washington has not changed its views on the mutual recognition of Serbia and Kosovo.

RFE quoted a written reply which said that the United States fully supports the European Union-mediated Belgrade-Pristina dialogue with mutual recognition as the end result.

Radio Free Europe recalled that the mutual recognition issue became topical again following a message from US State Secretary Anthony Blinken to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic saying that the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo will have to make difficult compromises to normalise their relations.

Humanitarian/Development

How Serbs live in Kosovo: “We dream of being in Serbia, but reality is different” (N1)

“We dream that we are in Serbia, but the reality is different”, Serbian National Forum president Momcilo Trajkovic told N1 Reconstruction broadcast, filmed in Gracanica.

“As soon as you leave Gracanica and stop looking at the flags, you will see the bigger picture. Not even Kosovo, but Albania. The reciprocity that Kurti insists on, Vucic, here you are the Serbian flags in Gracanica, otherwise Kosovo will be overwhelmed by the “Greater Albania”, which is a clear message where we live”, Trajkovic said.

The editor-in-chief of Radio KiM, Zorica Vorgucic, answering the question if “we are in Serbia” said that we are, if we take into account the Constitution, but added – it is on paper.

Miodrag Marinkovic from the Centre for Affirmative Social Actions (NGO CASA) said that they feel that they are a part of the space like Serbia, however, he said, “it’s a fact that they live by different laws and that Kosovo government has the greatest influence on their lives”.

“In the north of Kosovo, there is social cohesion that is much stronger, since the majority are Serb municipalities that rely on Serbia. The community in the south lives surrounded by Albanian institutions and community, and their integration took a different course. The current government does not look at the Kosovo community in one way, but two realities and directs its policy towards the north and seems to completely forget the interests of the community in the south”, Marinkovic said.

Trajkovic added more Serbs live south of the Ibar River and that Serbs are slowly disappearing from Kosovo, primarily because there is no perspective.

“How we feel, like lambs before the slaughter, we don’t know what will happen tomorrow. People don’t think about staying here long-term. We are battling for the people here to open their eyes. The fact that N1 is recording a show here without protests from the Serbian List, means that the people are changing”, Trajkovic said.

“In order to survive in Kosovo, we have to act through institutions, there is no other way”, Marinkovic opined.

“In order to stay, we have to make peace with the Albanians. We have to change Belgrade’s policy towards the Serbs, it must be a responsible policy. Each new government had a party program for Kosovo, that defined who was a patriot and who was not. Serbs are leaving, there are no exact data, but if you do a little research, in 2012, according to the data, there were 25,000 students in primary and secondary schools in Kosovo, ten years later, the same school administration comes out with the data that 10,000 students attend schools, which means that we lost 10 thousand students, families. A big part of this is the hostile relation of Kosovo Albanians towards the Serbs, there are attacks, but since 2012 there has been an epidemic of nepotism and corruption, one of the growing reasons that young people leave is the lack of opportunities and party politics”, Marinkovic pointed out.

The N1 interlocutors had different opinions about the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities (CSM) and whether Serbs in Kosovo need it.

Trajkovic believes that the Community of Serb Municipalities is “the last stone in the foundation of the independent state of Kosovo”.

Marinkovic said he does not agree that Serbs do not need the CSM.

“We need to have functional self-management. That we have the authority to make decisions concerning our lives, and that Pristina has no authority to prevent it. CSM is a great chance for the Serbian community to institutionalise ties with Serbia”, he said.

Trajkovic says that there will be a chance if Serbia agrees to an independent Kosovo.

“CSM will play a big role for those who remain in the state of Kosovo. I will stay and it will benefit us, but strategically it is not in Serbia’ interest. So it’s time to get an answer. Whether the CSM is part of independent Kosovo or the CSM is part of the Serbian system, it cannot be in heaven or on earth”, Trajkovic said.