Albanian Language Media:

• Biden congratulates Osmani on Kosovo independence day (media)
• Krasniqi meets Hovenier, “crucial to safeguard partnership with U.S.” (media)
• Ismaili meets Guerot, briefs on new cash payment operations regulation (media)
• Quint, EU ambassadors meet representatives of Kosovo Serb community (media)
• Joint meeting with Kurti and Vucic not on Borrell’s agenda (RFE)
• Ahmeti: Kosovo got here through cooperation with international community (KSP)
• Montenegro Deputy PM Gjeloshaj to visit Kosovo (media)
• VV MPs want IMC board dismissed, because of return of “Arena Sport” (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Quint ambassadors and head of EU delegation in Kosovo with representatives of Serbs (KiM radio)
• Borrell announced separate meetings with Kurti and Vucic in Munich (Beta, Danas)
• Vucic in Munich with Cameron and Hahn (RTS)
• Vucevic: Kurti creating impossible conditions for survival of Kosovo Serbs (Tanjug, TV Prva) 
• 23 years since bomb attack against Nis-Express bus in Livadice, memorial service held in Laplje Selo (KoSSev, media)
• Office for KiM: Devastating that the Livadice crime is a closed case (RTS, media)
• Serbian List: We demand those responsible for crimes against Serbs be urgently found and punished (Kosovo Online)
• Abolition of dinar directly affects salaries, pensions, and social assistance for about 95,000 people (DW, Danas, KoSSev)
• Derikravic continues hunger strike, his representative says his condition deteriorates (KoSSev, Radio KIM)
• Sentic visits Visoki Decani Monastery, says Constitutional Court decision on monastery’s land to be implemented without delay (KoSSev, media)

Opinion:

• Weller: Serbia’s great challenge to Kosovo (Koha)

Albanian Language Media  

Biden congratulates Osmani on Kosovo independence day (media)

All news websites cover a letter that U.S. President Joe Biden sent to Kosovo President Osmani congratulating her and the people of Kosovo “as you honor your Independence Day on February 17”.

“Kosovo and the United States share an abiding friendship and partnership – strengthened by our common vision for a more peaceful, secure, and prosperous region. The United States strongly supports a multiethnic Kosovo and its integration into European and Euro-Atlantic institutions. We also continue to back the EU-facilitated Dialogue’s efforts to achieve a comprehensive normalization agreement with Serbia – an important step towards eventual mutual recognition. Alongside nations across the region, and around the world, the United States encourages Kosovo’s leadership to fulfill all its obligations, including all past agreements reached through this process.”

“In this year ahead, I look forward to continuing to work together on building inclusive economic growth, strengthening democratic institutions, and advancing the rule of law. I also look forward to our ongoing security cooperation and joint efforts to advance the reforms necessary to eventually achieve Kosovo’s goal of EU integration. And together, we will continue to stand up for freedom – including by standing together with Ukraine in the face of Russia’s brutal aggression.” 

Krasniqi meets Hovenier, “crucial to safeguard partnership with U.S.” (media)

Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Memli Krasniqi met today with U.S. Ambassador to Kosovo Jeffrey Hovenier. “On the eve of celebrating the 16th anniversary of Kosovo’s Independence, by highly appreciating the unconditional and unreserved support of the U.S. for our country’s long journey toward freedom, independence, and state-building, I stressed that it is crucial to safeguard and further the partnership with the U.S. – Kosovo’s chief strategic ally. The Democratic Party of Kosovo will continue to work in this respect, and play a constructive role in advancing the good relations with the United States of America,” Krasniqi said in a Facebook post after the meeting.

Ismaili meets Guerot, briefs on new cash payment operations regulation (media)

Governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Ahmet Ismaili, met today with the French Ambassador to Kosovo, Olivier Guerot, and briefed him on developments in Kosovo’s financial system, macroeconomic developments, the Strategic Plan of the CBK, and also explained the main aspects, effects and arguments for the new regulation on cash payment operations. “With regards to concerns raised about the impact [of the regulation] on a certain community, it was explained that the regulation does not ban or limit receiving funds in Euro bank accounts, and it does not limit the exchange activity performed by banking and non-banking financial institutions licensed by the CBK,” a press release issued by the CBK notes. The CBK also said it is actively continuing to implement information and awareness raising campaigns on the matter.

Quint, EU ambassadors meet representatives of Kosovo Serb community (media)

Most news websites report that German Ambassador to Kosovo, Jorn Rohde, said in a post on X today that Quint and EU ambassadors met with Deputy Ombudsperson and representatives of the Kosovo Serb community “all of whom are trusted partners in our shared efforts to advance human rights and interethnic relations in Kosovo”. Radio Free Europe covers the meeting under the headline Quint supports the group of Serbs that were criticized by [Kosovo Deputy PM Besnik] Bislimi.

Joint meeting with Kurti and Vucic not on Borrell’s agenda (RFE)

EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Affairs, Josep Borrell, said that he will hold separate meetings with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Munich, but that a joint meeting with the two leaders is not on the agenda.

Kurti and Vucic are among many leaders from different countries attending the Munich Security Conference. “It is not in my plans, it is not on my agenda, but if it were possible, we would be happy. Otherwise, I will have to try to do this [Kurti-Vucic meeting] somewhere else,” Borrell said.

Ahmeti: Kosovo got here through cooperation with international community (KSP)

Leader of the Democratic Union for Integrity (BDI) in North Macedonia, Ali Ahmeti, said in an interview with the news agency that Kosovo needs to act in coordination with the international community. He said that states were built with alliances and that the institutions of Kosovo should do the same. “Kosovo has its authorities and international subjectivity. But Kosovo got here through communication and cooperation with the international community, especially with the United States of America, the European Union and NATO. Therefore this communication must continue, because throughout history states were built with alliances, states were built with friends, and we need to safeguard and strengthen our alliances,” he argued.

Commenting on Kosovo’s decision on the use of the Serbian Dinar in its territory and the effect it had on relations with the United States, Ahmeti said that friendships should be expanded and not have opposition to advice coming from the international community. He also said that Kosovo needs to continue communicating with Washington and Brussels.

Montenegro Deputy PM Gjeloshaj to visit Kosovo (media)

Several news websites report that Montenegro Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Economic Development, will visit Kosovo on the 16th anniversary of independence. “Montenegro has recognized [Kosovo’s] independence and continues to have state cooperation with Kosovo,” Gjeloshaj said.

Gjeloshaj said he was invited to the celebration ceremony by Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani, Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Assembly Speaker Glauk Konjufca. “This confirms the continuation of close cooperation and good neighborly relations between the two countries. On behalf of the Government of Montenegro, I will congratulate the 16th anniversary of Independence to the leaders and citizens of the Republic of Kosovo,” he said.

VV MPs want IMC board dismissed, because of return of “Arena Sport” (media)

Members of the Independent Media Commission (IMC) for the second time went to the Kosovo Assembly Committee for Public Administration, Local Government, Media and Regional Development, to answer questions about the decision to return the channels of “Arena Sport” to cable platforms in Kosovo, Koha reports. 

Vetevendosje MP Nijazi Isaku again called for the dismissal of the IMC Board arguing that the board “no longer has credibility to lead the IMC”. “Dismissal and only dismissal,” he said, after asking several times why the first decision made in October last year on Arena Sport channels was changed. He read the IMC’s decision from February which stopped the broadcasting of Arena Sport channels. The news website recalls that the decision to stop the broadcasting was made “after the channels broadcast video messages praising the Serb terrorists that organized the attack in Banjska”. Isaku said today: “the whole country knows that national security was attacked on October 3. What changed then? The decision contains no timeline or suspension”.

Jeton Mehmeti, IMC board chairman, responded by reading the IMC regulation according to which a decision enters into force and remains in force until the day when the IMC considers there are changes in circumstances, the violation”. He also argued that the decision to return the channels was neither immediate nor simple. 

Several news websites cover a reaction by media lawyer Flutra Kusari who said “what the Vetevendosje Movement did in the Assembly today with the members of the Independent Media Commission is the same as summoning judges and holding them accountable for their decisions. This is a brutal attack against the independence of an institution which according to the Constitution is independent. I am shocked with the quick deterioration of the freedom of media in Kosovo. But my main concern has to do with the physical security of IMC members. The language used by the MPs last week and today (although somewhat toned down today) is inciting hatred against the members. I hope nothing happens to them”.

Serbian Language Media

Quint ambassadors and head of EU delegation in Kosovo with representatives of Serbs (KiM radio)

The Deputy Ombudsman and representatives of the Serb community in Kosovo spoke with the ambassadors of the Quint member states and the head of the EU delegation in Kosovo, reported KiM radio.

“Quint and the EU ambassadors appreciated the opportunity to meet today with the Deputy Ombudsperson and representatives of the Kosovo Serb community – all of whom are trusted partners in our joint efforts to improve human rights and inter-ethnic relations in Kosovo,” German Ambassador Jorn Rohde said on the X, reported Kim radio. 

KiM radio recalled the Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi’s recent criticism of the EU’s special representative for Belgrade-Pristina talks, Miroslav Lajcak, over his meeting with members of the NCEU and Serbs from Kosovo, when he said the delegation was “mainly composed of Serbian non-governmental organizations from Kosovo, which actively and openly stand against the integration of Serbian citizens into the economic and social life of Kosovo”.

Borrell announced separate meetings with Kurti and Vucic in Munich (Beta, Danas)

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy and Security, Josep Borrell, said that in Munich, where the Security Conference is being held, he will have separate meetings with the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, reported Danas, citing Beta news agency. 

However, a joint meeting is not planned.

“It’s not in my plans, but if it was possible, we’d be happy. Otherwise, I should try to organize that meeting somewhere else,” Borrell said from Munich.

Today begins the three-day Munich conference on security, which will be attended by a number of leaders, including Kurti and Vucic. 

Vucic in Munich with Cameron and Hahn (RTS)

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic is participating in the world’s leading forum for debate on international security policy, which begins in the afternoon in Munich, reported RTS.

Before the start of the 60th Munich Conference, Vucic is meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Great Britain, David Cameron, and a meeting with Johannes Hahn, the European Commissioner for Budgetary Affairs, is scheduled. He will be participating in several security panels today as well as meeting the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Odile Renaud-Basso.

During the three days of the Munich conference, the biggest challenges of foreign and security policy will be discussed.

According to the organizers, the aim of the meeting is to build trust, to contribute to the peaceful resolution of the conflict, by maintaining a continuous and informal dialogue within the international community.

Vucevic: Kurti creating impossible conditions for survival of Kosovo Serbs (Tanjug, TV Prva) 

Serbian Deputy PM and Defence Minister Milos Vucevic said on Friday Pristina’s PM Albin Kurti was creating impossible conditions for the survival of Serbs in Kosovo, reported Tanjug. 

The situation in Kosovo is very difficult and it is a delusion that Kurti has suspended a decision to ban the Serbian dinar, Vucevic said in an appearance on Prva TV.

“Kurti has even said something that sounds like mockery: ‘I have not banned the dinar – you are just not allowed to buy anything and not allowed to use it.’ He is very creative in his terror against the Serbs. He is creating impossible conditions for the survival of Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija,” Vucevic said.

Kurti’s agenda is that Serbs cannot survive in Kosovo, according to Vucevic. 

“With devilish cunningness, he says he will address them in the Serbian language and communicate with them better. He will explain to us in Serbian that we do not need health centres and that he can get us arrested wherever he wants and ban us from having everything any people can have and expect. Only the Serbs are banned from having that in the 21st century. Essentially, no one in Europe is condemning that, except in some protocol statements,” Vucevic said.

He also said an initiative to reinstate compulsory military service in Serbia was not related to Kosovo but national defense.

23 years since bomb attack against Nis-Express bus in Livadice, memorial service held in Laplje Selo (KoSSev, media)

Today marks 23 years since the bomb attack against the Nis-Express bus in Livadice, near Podujevo, killing 12 Serbs and injuring 43 more. The youngest victim was two-years old Danilo Cokic whose parents were also killed. The anniversary, as during the previous years, will be marked by a memorial service at the Saint Petka Church in Laplje Selo, KoSSev portal reported. Memorial service is organized by the Cultural-Education Committee in Gracanica and Raska-Prizren Diocese. 

Passengers on the Nis-Express bus from central Serbia, were displaced persons from Kosovo, who headed that day to Gracanica on the occasion of All Souls Day. By activating a land mine on Nis-Pristina motorway, in the village of Livadice, near Podujevo, the first in a convoy of seven buses transporting displaced persons, escorted by Swedish and British KFOR, was struck in an explosion. Ten persons died on the spot, two more succumbed to their injuries later.

One month after the attack on March 19, 2001, four Albanians, suspected of carrying out the attack, were arrested. Three were members of the-then Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC), including colonel Cel Gashi, officer Avdi Behluli and Jusuf Veli, while later on the main suspect Florim Ejupi was not a KPC member, but had a criminal record in Germany.

After the first-instance verdict sentencing Ejupi to 40 years in prison, the Kosovo Supreme Court, due to lack of evidence as it said, acquitted Ejupi in 2009. Ejupi was linked with the crime based on material evidence found on the spot, including a cigarette but, and parts of material from used explosives containing Ejupi’s DNK, later confirmed in Germany.

The years after, affairs rather than results marred the investigation, the portal added.

One of them was an escape of Florim Ejupi from US Bondsteel Camp in 2001, and then judicial acquittal of other three suspects, who were then greeted as heroes at the-then KPC, with some of them continuing their careers.  

The number of investigators over the years has reduced, and investigation weakened. EULEX then launched a new investigation by which it was only assessed that what happened in Livadice can not be an act of a single person. International representatives kept saying it was very important that perpetrators are brought to justice and families of the victims to know the truth.

On the 12th anniversary of the crime, when investigation was already suspended, EULEX spokesperson said EULEX was “ready” to reopen the investigation if there is “new evidence”.

Office for KiM: Devastating that the Livadice crime is a closed case (RTS, media)

On the occasion of 23 years since an attack was committed on the territory of Kosovo, in which 12 Serbs died and 43 were injured, the Office for Kosovo and Metohija said it is devastating that the crime in Livadice is a closed case, reported RTS.

The Office recalls that the Nis Express bus, blown up 23 years ago in Livadice, near Podujevo, carried displaced Serbs who, accompanied by KFOR soldiers, were going to Gracanica to mark the Memorial Day, adding that among the 12 dead, was a two-year-old child.

“Even after more than two decades, neither the immediate perpetrators nor their principals were held accountable for this crime, which, among other things, testifies to the complete inability and lack of interest of the Pristina institutions to face the crimes committed in the name of the so-called independent Kosovo, but also to the passivity of the international community,” read the KiM Office statement. 

It emphasizes that it is devastating that this case is closed. 

“And if the only suspect, Florim Ejupi, who was sentenced to 40 years in prison in the first-instance proceedings, the so-called Supreme Court of Kosovo in 2009 acquitted him due to lack of evidence,” the announcement states.

The Office reminds that the crime in Livadice took place in the presence of international security forces and that this is precisely why it represents a defeat for the international community in Kosovo “that proved inadequate to secure safety for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, but also justice for all victims. We remind you that it is still not known who killed Serbian children in Gorazdevac, 14 harvesters in Staro Gracko, the Stolic family in Obilic, who burns and demolishes Serbian houses and desecrates churches and monasteries in KiM almost daily…”, the announcement states. 

The statement emphasizes that Serbs in Kosovo are still second-class citizens and are exposed to various forms of discrimination, pressure, and intimidation – with the aim of their expulsion.

The international community and Pristina are requested to reopen investigations into all crimes against the Serbian people and other non-Albanians in Kosovo, it added. 

“Because until this is done, Kosovo and Metohija will be a haven and a safe zone for villains and terrorists. And the Government of the Republic of Serbia will never stop seeking justice for the victims of this and other monstrous crimes committed throughout the province,” the Office said.

Serbian List: We demand those responsible for crimes against Serbs be urgently found and punished (Kosovo Online)

On the 23rd anniversary of the Livadice bomb attack against Nis-Express bus, Serbian List said that on this day we remember “one of the most monstrous terrorist attacks in Kosovo and Metohija in which Serbs were killed”, Kosovo Online portal reports.

The Serbian List also demanded those responsible to be found and punished for their crime. Recalling that the attack left 12 Serbs killed and 43 injured, Serbian List said that the only suspect after few years in prison was released “due to lack of evidence”, and this case, same as other crimes against the Serbs in Kosovo, which took place in the presence of international military and police forces, including the murder of children in Gorazdevac, harvesters in Staro Gracko, Stolic family in Obilic, remained unresolved.

“On behalf of the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, we demand those responsible for the crimes against Serbs to be urgently found and punished as it is the only way to send the message that violence is unacceptable, that those crimes do not have statute of limitation, and in order to prevent persecution and attacks against Serbs, Serbian Orthodox Church and their properties from happening 25 years after the end of conflict”, Serbian List said. 

Abolition of dinar directly affects salaries, pensions, and social assistance for about 95,000 people (DW, Danas, KoSSev)

Will Serbia continue to be able to finance salaries, pensions, and social assistance in Kosovo? There is a three-month transitional period in which a solution should be found after the “abolition of the dinar”. Fear reigns in the Serbian community, reported Danas, citing DW.

Since the beginning of February, according to the decision of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK), the dinar can no longer be used in Kosovo. In the north of Kosovo, where Serbs live almost exclusively, business is mostly done in dinars. In Zubin Potok, there is a long line in front of Postal Savings Bank, the only Serbian bank that still operates on the territory of Kosovo.

Milos Vucinic (26) lives with his parents in the village of Zupce, north of Zubin Potok. They usually buy groceries in the village store. As long as Milos remembers, he was paying in dinars there.

“The decision made by PM Kurti on the dinar has an impact on people in the North,” Milos said. 

His parents are also feeling the consequences. Milos’s mother – who works as a teacher in Zubin Potok – receives her salary from Belgrade. Last time, she had to drive forty kilometers to Raska to withdraw money.

Several transporters with Serbian dinars have already been seized or stopped at the ABL. Because of this, thousands of people protested in North Mitrovica this week, and Western officials and ambassadors criticized Pristina for the unilateral measure.

On Monday, the CBK approved a three-month transitional period. According to DW, three banks operating in Kosovo and Serbia – Raiffeisen, NLB and ProCredit – are authorized to receive dinars and convert them into euros. Some suggestions were also made on how to exchange the dinar for the euro in the future.

”Parallel structures” in Kosovo

“This problem does not only affect the north of Kosovo, but the entire Serbian population in Kosovo because it directly affects salaries, pensions and social assistance for about 95,000 people,” Ilir Deda from the Institute for Humanities in Vienna told DW.

Serbia still has schools, hospitals, and offices in Kosovo.

Former Kosovo MP Deda says that currency is not the key issue here. “It is about the lack of a comprehensive solution for the institutions that Serbia finances and controls in Kosovo,” he says.

The solution is the Association/Community of Serbian Municipalities, which would regulate how Serbia supports institutions that would be anchored in the Kosovo system. But since 2013, Pristina has not implemented the agreement from Brussels. In general, the dialogue mediated by the EU has long been deadlocked and comes down to damage control and preventing the escalation of tensions, line over license plates. After the last attempts – last year in Ohrid and Brussels – Serbian officials clearly said that they will not implement some of the agreed points, especially those concerning the admission of Kosovo to the UN.

Dialogue under the leadership of Brussels is the only thing that exists

For Branislav Krstic, a journalist and analyst from North Mitrovica, the decision on the dinar represents a “violation of collective rights”. “The main goal is to make it impossible for Serbs to survive in Kosovo,” says Krstic.

President Vucic also sees the matter the same. At the emergency session of the UN SC, he spoke about “crimes against humanity” and “violation of Resolution 1244”.

PM Albin Kurti, on the other hand, said that the single currency in the form of the euro is not a revenge against the Serbs, but an attempt to suppress financial malfeasance. He promised better communication with the K-Serbs and ease of transition to the euro.

The Security Council referred to the EU – such issues are resolved under the baton of Brussels.

Deda agrees with that. “Dialogue mediated by the EU is a challenging process, but it is the only thing we have and will have in the near future,” he told DW.

“The chapter of normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia cannot be closed without decisive, credible and visionary engagement of the West,” Deda is convinced.

An uncertain future

Pristina’s new rules disrupted the everyday life of K- Serbs. For example, the authorities in Belgrade pay a monthly scholarship of 12,000 dinars to good students.

Now it is unclear how that money will arrive in Kosovo; a solution should be found in a transitional period of three months.

Milos, who himself attended a Serbian school in Zubin Potok, admits that he is afraid. He wonders what’s next. “Kosovo seal on our certificates and diplomas or maybe the ban on Serbian schools?”

He says the future of Serbs in Kosovo is uncertain. Milos himself is thinking about leaving – to Belgrade or abroad.

Derikravic continues hunger strike, his representative says his condition deteriorates (KoSSev, Radio KIM)

Yesterday was the fourth day since Zarko Derikravic, former owner of the cable operator Lika.doo from Zvecan, entered a hunger strike in protest because, as he claims, the Tax Administration unlawfully took from his account more than 310.000 euros. The Tax Administration refuted his claims saying they acted legally, with his legal representative Halili Voca then refuting the Tax Administration listing number of laws and legal provisions that Tax Administration has violated in his case.

Voca told the media yesterday the health condition of his client is deteriorating, and that he was visited by a medical team. He also said Miljana Scekic from Ombudsperson Institution visited Derikravic at his house yesterday and the medical report on his health condition was sent.

“Scekic was informed by Derikravic’s family of the reasons for the hunger strike which started on Monday, and she is also informed about his health condition by doctors”, Voca said.

He added that ever since his client entered the hunger strike, no one else visited or called them, apart from the EU Office in Pristina.

“The responsibility falls upon those who do not want to deal with his (legal) case, if his condition deteriorates because of hunger strike”, Voca said.

Why did Derikravic go on hunger strike

According to Derikravic, on April 6, 2022, without any written notice, Kosovo Tax Administration withdrew money from his bank account, calculating an added value tax (VAT) and capital gains in the amount of 313,000 euros, and only after two months informed him about it.

He, as well as his representative Halil Voca, claim the money was withdrawn from the account illegally, because the sale of shares is a financial transaction exempted from VAT, and that the Tax Administration Office in Mitrovica committed a criminal act.

Sentic visits Visoki Decani Monastery, says Constitutional Court decision on monastery’s land to be implemented without delay (KoSSev, media)

Kosovo Deputy Ombudsperson Srdjan Sentic visited Visoki Decani Monastery last night and met the Abbot of the Monastery, Father Sava Janjic, KoSSev portal reported. They discussed the current situation in Kosovo and in particular the situation that the Serbian Orthodox Church is facing. Sentic said the decision of the Constitutional Court on returning monastery’s land must be implemented without further delay.

“Serbian Orthodox Church should enjoy its constitutional and internationally recognized guarantees that would enable unobstructed service to the beliers, and protection of the property it owns, as an inviolable right. Unfortunately, the reality points to a different conclusion”, Sentic siad.

Commenting on non-implementation of the Constitutional Court decision from 2016 he said it is a true indicator of the attitude of authorities towards Serbian Orthodox Church, its believers, rule of law, human rights and international standards, as well as religious freedom and property rights. He also said this decision must be implemented without further delay .

And “all those” who every day, and in particular at international level, emphasize the rule of law, human rights and democracy as “principles of their rule” must in line with it firstly start believing in it in unselective manner and for the start implement this verdict, so their stance could become more responsible, inclusive and serious. 

Opinion

Weller: Serbia’s great challenge to Kosovo (Koha)

Opinion piece by Marc Weller, Professor of International Law and International Constitutional Studies in the University of Cambridge.

Since last week, relations between Kosovo and Serbia have taken a new turn. It was taken as read for well over a decade that Kosovo’s statehood is stable and beyond question. True, Belgrade always maintained that it had not accepted the existence of Kosovo as a sovereign state. But it had limited its campaign against Kosovo to diplomatic initiatives. Now, Serbia has changed gear quite dramatically. After its apparent involvement in the serious security incident in Northern Kosovo of last September, it is aggressively questioning the existence of Kosovo as a state while hinting at the threat of the use of force to reintegrate the territory.

This development manifested itself in Serbia’s summoning of a special session of the UN Security Council last week. At the meeting, Serbia alleged that Kosovo is waging an aggressive campaign directed against its ethnic Serb community, especially in the North of Kosovo. Moreover, much of the presentation by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic focused on building an alliance of states committed to the doctrine of territorial integrity and hence opposing statehood for Kosovo. At the same time, the presentation, along with the supporting statement by the Russian Federation, hinted at a threat of the use of force against Kosovo.

President Vucic alleged that the Kosovo government, or in his words, the ‘provisional institutions of self-government in Prishtina,’ had created unbearable living conditions for Serbs in Kosovo and were now carrying out ‘widespread and systematic attacks against Serb civilians.’ This is code for an allegation of the commissioning of crimes against humanity by the Kosovo authorities—the very concept that describes the atrocities committed by Serbia against the people of Kosovo under the regime of Slobodan Milosevic. There is absolutely no indication that Prishtina has ever engaged in practices that could be considered remotely similar.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/cfikZ