Albanian Language Media:

• Kusari-Lila: Association draft to court, not a condition before vote at Committee of Ministers (EO)
• Knaus shares part of Kurt’s speech in Berlin: He said he cannot impose QUINT draft statute on Serbs (Albanian Post)
• Martens: Berlin, Paris intend to postpone vote for CoE membership (Albanian Post)
• Haxhiu: CoE membership paves way for justice for war crimes (media)
• Kryeziu reacts to SL: Cameras in north are in service of public security (media)
• “Nearly 900,000 citizens registered so far, Serbs in north remain hesitant” (Klan)
• Tahiri: Kurti to explain why Serbia remains unpunished even after Banjska (EO)

Serbian Language Media:

• Two Serbs beaten up in Bosniak mahala, Mitrovica North, three Albanians arrested (Tanjug, N1, media)
• Three Albanians arrested, two more identified and one looked for, in relation to attack against Serb young man in Mitrovica North (KoSSev, media)
• Lawyer: Bosniak arrested at Brnjak crossing point over alleged war crimes sent to one-month detention (Kosovo Online)
• Kosovo police started installing security cameras in Mitrovica North, Serbian List demands their removal (KoSSev, media)
• Will holders of “second class“ travel documents, who cannot obtain Kosovo ones, finally get good news? (KoSSev)
• Vucic: Good discussion with Ashton about Serbia’s future, place in world (Tanjug)
• Pahor preparing new proposal for Pristina-Belgrade dialogue (N1)
• Serbia to receive €1.6 billion from EU’s Growth Plan for Western Balkans (N1, RTS)
• Kurti surprised with State Department’s report on human rights in Kosovo (N1, BETA)

Albanian Language Media

Kusari-Lila: Association draft to court, not a condition before vote at Committee of Ministers (EO)

The head of the Parliamentary Group of the Vetevendosje Movement, Mimoza Kusari-Lila, in an interview with Ekonomia Online, said that it is not determined that Kosovo should send the draft statute of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities to the Constitutional Court, before the vote in the Council of Ministers for the admission of Kosovo in the Council of Europe. She said that Kosovo is ready to implement all agreements reached so far, but according to her, those agreements should be applicable and binding for both countries without differences. Kusari-Lila has said that it cannot be considered that only the formation of the Association can be a mechanism for the integration of the Serb community in the institutions of Kosovo. According to her, Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe is the only and main guarantee for the implementation of the rights of all without differences.

She also said that it would be good if the internationals who emphasize that sending the draft to the Constitutional Court should be done before the vote in the Council of Ministers, to insist that the vote for the membership of Kosovo in CoE happens as soon as possible.

Knaus shares part of Kurt’s speech in Berlin: He said he cannot impose QUINT draft statute on Serbs (Albanian Post)

Gerald Knaus, director of the European Initiative for Stability (ESI), said that during a meeting in Berlin, Germany, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said that he cannot impose the draft statute of the Association of Municipalities with a Serb Majority drafted by QUINT on the Serbs, because this constitutes a violation of the principles of the Council of Europe and the Constitution of Kosovo.

“The matter should actually be clear: In mid-April, after a detailed review by several responsible committees, special rapporteurs and specially commissioned constitutional lawyers, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe voted by a clear majority in favor of admitting Kosovo. Europe’s youngest state fulfills all the criteria to become a member of Europe’s oldest association of democracies, was the conclusion. 131 MPs voted for Kosovo’s admission, while only 29 voted against.

But the final say in the admission of new members does not lie with the people’s representatives in the Parliament of the Council of Europe, but with the foreign ministers of its member states. They meet once a year in the so-called Committee of Ministers. This year’s meeting is in May. And there, support for Kosovo does not seem to be as clear as in the Parliamentary Assembly…

It is striking that so far not a single elected representative of Serb municipalities in Kosovo has officially commented on the western states [Quint]’ association of municipalities’ draft statutes.

In the four Serb-dominated municipalities in the north of Kosovo, where Serbs make up the vast majority of the population, there are currently not even elected Serb mayors. The reason: the Serb population boycotted the local elections in the north at the behest of Belgrade.

This is another argument that Kurti put forward in Berlin: an association of municipalities, be it Serbian, can only be founded by these municipalities themselves. It would be a violation of the principles of the Council of Europe and the Constitution of Kosovo if the Kosovar government wanted to impose a draft from the Quint (or any other) on the Serb municipalities’ association by decree. His government can provide the framework and support the founding of an association of municipalities with goodwill, but it cannot impose it – the impetus for this would have to come from the local level, from the municipalities themselves, said Kurti.

However, it is not surprising that this impetus has not come. From the perspective of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who controls and directs the politicians of the Kosovar Serbs, the conflict is a perfect trap for Kosovo: Belgrade prohibits Serb politicians in its former province from taking promising initiatives to establish an association of municipalities or from supporting proposals that are in line with the Council of Europe, while at the same time loudly complaining about the lack of that association.

In Belgrade, a perfect excuse has been created for Serbian diplomacy in order to prevent Kosovo from integrating into the West. With the left hand, conditions are being set for Kosovo, and the right hand is ensuring that they cannot be met…

In order to meet Quint’s demand, there was also discussion in Berlin about whether its proposal for a Serbian association of municipalities could now be submitted to outstanding constitutional lawyers from the Council of Europe for examination. This could be a way out of the Serbian trap, according to SPD politicians in Berlin,” Knaus wrote.

Martens: Berlin, Paris intend to postpone vote for CoE membership (Albanian Post)

Michael Martens, journalist of the prestigious German news agency “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”, who covers the Western Balkans, through a post on the “X” platform on Sunday, revealed that some European leaders, especially in Germany and France, are talking about the possibility of postponing the decision-making in the Committee of Ministers for Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe.

“However, in Berlin and Paris – but also in other capitals – there seem to be constituencies that intend to ignore the clear vote of their MPs and instead postpone the vote on Kosovo’s membership application,” Martens wrote, commenting on the suggestions that the advancement towards the Association of Serb-majority municipalities should be a condition for Kosovo.

“Before voting on Kosovo’s application, it must allow the establishment of the Association of Municipalities with a Serb Majority to ensure the rights of the Serb minority. It seems that this line of thinking also exists in the German chancellery. But this request does not mean anything other than giving Serbia the right to veto against the admission of Kosovo”, Martens wrote, among other things.

Haxhiu: CoE membership paves way for justice for war crimes (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, said on Sunday that Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe would pave the way for securing justice for war crimes committed in Kosovo. She said that a priority of the Kosovo government is filing a lawsuit against Serbia for genocide.  “The priority of the government has been to address crimes that have happened during the war period. Last year we adopted a law for the establishment of an institute that will investigate and document what happened during the war in Kosovo. We have also addressed the trials in absentia for war criminals, being that Serbia does not hand over war criminals, and we have also addressed the strategy for transitional justice, which is being assessed by the Ministry of Finance and will then be voted on by the government. The strategy addresses the needs of the victims,” she said.

Kryeziu reacts to SL: Cameras in north are in service of public security (media)

Spokesperson for the Kosovo Government, Perparim Kryeziu, reacted to a statement by the Serbian List about surveillance cameras in public spaces in the north, saying that they are in every city and as such are in the service of public security. He emphasized that these cameras are managed by the police. “In various municipalities with a Serb majority in Kosovo, including those in the north of the country, illegal Serbian structures and terrorist organizations “Civil Defense” and ‘Northern Brigade’ have continuously used surveillance cameras, which were also accessible to the security institutions of Serbia. A significant number of them have been seized by the Kosovo Police under the suspicion that they were used to monitor the movements of citizens and institutions of the Republic of Kosovo,” Kryeziu said in a Facebook post.

Kryeziu argued that the Serbian List’s statement comes as a reaction to the loss of means for pressure and intimidation of citizens. “In the past, collaborators of the Serbian List controlled these cameras. And when they had such control, none of them had worked on January 16, 2018, when the Serbian politician Oliver Ivanovic was killed in the north of Mitrovica,” he said.

“The time of bandits turned into terrorists of the “Northern Brigade” and “Civil Defense” has ended. Everyone should get used to the rule of law in a democratic republic”, continued Kryeziu.

Through a reaction, Serbian List claimed that security cameras in public spaces violate the privacy rights of Serb citizens.

“Nearly 900,000 citizens registered so far, Serbs in north remain hesitant” (Klan)

Head of the Kosovo Agency for Statistics, Avni Kastrati, said on Sunday that nearly 900,000 citizens have registered so far in the population census. “We have crossed the 800,000 figure and we aim to reach the figure of 900,000 registered citizens today. If this trend continues, we will conclude the process in time. We will also have a number of additional days if any families and households remain unregistered for any reason,” he said.

Kastrati said that the applications for registering war damages will serve the institutions for documentation purposes in the future. “This application too is being filled out. This includes several resource data that will help the institutions because they have administrative data that have not been verified before,” he said.

Asked about the registration of the Serb community in the north, Kastrati said there is hesitation to take part in the census, and that the agency will reveal more detailed information today.

Tahiri: Kurti to explain why Serbia remains unpunished even after Banjska (EO)

Kosovo’s former chief negotiator in talks with Serbia, Edita Tahiri, in an interview with Ekonomia Online, has requested from Prime Minister Albin Kurti to explain the reason why it is possible that Kosovo attacked by Serbia is punished with sanctions from the European Union and reprimanded from the U.S., while Serbia as an aggressor is unpunished. She said that it is up to the government to make an official explanation to the people as to why Kosovo is still subject to sanctions. Tahiri has also criticized Prime Minister Kurti about breach of relations with the U.S., by not coordinating with them in advance for the decisions he made. She accused PM Kurti of being in an anti-American position, which according to her, has harmed Kosovo.

Serbian Language Media

Two Serbs beaten up in Bosniak mahala, Mitrovica North, three Albanians arrested (Tanjug, N1, media)

Two Serbs were beaten up in the night between Saturday and Sunday in Bosniak Mahala in Mitrovica North, Kosovo police deputy commander for the region North, Veton Elshani told Tanjug news agency. He also said three Albanians were arrested over the incident.

The incident occurred one hour after midnight. The arrested persons are sent to 48-hour detention.

“This morning at around 11.00 a person came to the police station to report that he was beaten up. According to the medical reports he submitted he sustained slight bodily injuries. After a few hours the police managed to identify and arrest three persons. They were sent to police custody”, Elshani said on Sunday. KoSSev portal reported that one Serb was beaten up, and three Albanians arrested.

Three Albanians arrested, two more identified and one looked for, in relation to attack against Serb young man in Mitrovica North (KoSSev, media)

Kosovo police arrested on Saturday three Albanians, identified two more and is looking for one more person in relation to the recent attack against 20-year old Serb P.K, in a parking lot in Mitrovica North, who was also robbed during the attack, KoSSev portal reported.

It is about a five-member group, as it could be seen on the video of the attack shared on social media, while one of the arrested persons allegedly bought a chain that was stolen during the attack. Kosovo police deputy commander for the region North Veton Elshani confirmed this information to KoSSev portal, adding that suspected attackers, along with a person who allegedly bought the stolen goods, are not from Mitrovica North, but from the southern region and that all of them are Albanians.

Those arrested were born in 2005, 2008 and 1999. While one of them is underage, the last one is also the oldest one, and as Elshani explained he is the person who bought the stolen chain, and he would most probably be processed in a regular procedure.

The case of the attack and robbery of a Serbian young man took place on April 22. According to the testimony and preliminary investigation P.K. was assaulted by several persons in Cika Jovina Street. According to his statement upon hitting him in the head with a heavy object, respectively with a brick, the attackers grabbed a chain from his neck. He was medically treated following the attack. The police initially qualified the case as “robbery”.

Soon after, a video recording of this attack was shared on several Telegram groups and other social media platforms, adding it was recorded behind the building Sunce 3 in Mitrovica North. The Office for Kosovo and Metohija reacted saying that Serbs are faced with unbearable living conditions and that this attack was a direct consequence of anti-Serbian politics of Pristina.

Lawyer: Bosniak arrested at Brnjak crossing point over alleged war crimes sent to one-month detention (Kosovo Online)

Lawyer Ljubomir Pantovic, representing Bosniak Jusuf Sujak, who was arrested on Saturday at Brnjak crossing point for allegedly committing war crimes, told Kosovo Online that the Basic Court in Pristina sent his client to one-month detention.

“He is a Bosniak from Novi Pazar, Jusuf Sujak. He was arrested yesterday at the Brnjak crossing on suspicion of committing the criminal offense of ‘War Crimes against Civilian Population’ during 1999 in Djakovica”, Pantovic said. He added Sujak lived in Djakovica during 1999 and claims he did not commit the alleged crime he is accused of.

Pantovic emphasized that the deadline to file an appeal with the Appeals Court against the detention measure is two days, adding they will do so, but not much is expected from it. He also said they currently do not have information at which detention unit Sujak is sent to, but he assumes it is the high-security detention unit in Grdovac near Podujevo. “I still do not have confirmation that Jusuf is there, but since without exception, all those accused of war crimes are in that detention unit, I believe he is also there”, he said.

Kosovo police started installing security cameras in Mitrovica North, Serbian List demands their removal (KoSSev, media)

Kosovo police started installing security cameras at three locations for the purpose of, as they said, surveillance and security of citizens in Mitrovica North. Serbian List  condemned the move, demanding the cameras be removed immediately citing violation of privacy rights and lack of consultations, KoSSev portal reported.

Kosovo police deputy commander for the region North, Veton Elshani said security cameras will be installed in three locations: near the bus station, the Technical School and in the town center, near the monument to Tzar Lazar.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/rBT15

Will holders of “second class“ travel documents, who cannot obtain Kosovo ones, finally get good news? (KoSSev)

Serbian citizens from Kosovo with passports issued by the Coordination Directorate of the Republic of Serbia – the only Europeans who still need a visa to travel to the Schengen zone – are on the verge of being included in the visa-free regime. Last week, the European Parliament voted in favor of visa liberalization for these passport holders. The decision now must be confirmed by the Council of Ministers. The Serbian public welcomed the move, while the Kosovo government and Albanians strongly objected to it.

How did the holders of these passports become exempt from the visa-free regime?

Citizens of Serbia with regular Serbian passports, issued by the Serbian MIA, have been traveling without visas for almost 15 years, since December 2009. As part of the then dialogue between Serbia and the European Union on visa liberalization, just before it came into effect, the Coordination Administration was formed.

As a condition before recommending visa liberalization for passport holders of the Republic of Serbia, the European Commission declared that the police administrations from Kosovo (Kosovska Mitrovica, Pristina, Prizren and other), which were relocated, should no longer issue passports to citizens of Serbia with residence in Kosovo, and that this competence should be redirected to this body.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/gksI1

Vucic: Good discussion with Ashton about Serbia’s future, place in world (Tanjug)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with British Baroness Catherine Ashton – a former EU foreign policy and security chief – in Belgrade on Friday to discuss Serbia’s future and its place in the world, Tanjug news agency reported. “A very good discussion with Catherine Ashton about Serbia’s future and its place in the contemporary world”, Vucic wrote in a post on his official Instagram account.

Ashton, who is visiting Serbia, also met with Serbian FM Ivica Dacic and Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic on Thursday.

At the meeting with Ashton, Brnabic noted that Pristina had still not met its commitment to establish a Community of Serb Municipalities, which she said was more than 10 years overdue. Brnabic and Ashton also said they hoped Serbia and the UK would strengthen their parliamentary cooperation in the coming years.

Pahor preparing new proposal for Pristina-Belgrade dialogue (N1)

Former president of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, a candidate for the European Union’s special envoy for the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, is preparing a draft for the continuation of negotiations between the two parties, his spokesperson Spela Vovk told the Vijesti portal, N1 reports.

“In the context of his candidacy for the EU special envoy for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, Borut Pahor is working on the preparation of a draft plan for further successful implementation of the dialogue, which has unfortunately stalled”, she said. Vovk emphasized that Pahor also wants to consult EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Josep Borrell, EU member states and representatives of the Quint countries.

The position is currently held by Slovakian diplomat Miroslav Lajcak, who is leaving for the new position of EU ambassador in Switzerland this year.

Serbia to receive €1.6 billion from EU’s Growth Plan for Western Balkans (N1, RTS)

Serbia is set to receive one billion and 630 million euros over the next four years as part of the new European Union (EU) Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, totaling 6 billion euros, sources in Brussels told the Serbian public broadcaster RTS.

This amount has been determined based on the assessment of the European Commission, which takes into account the population and GDP levels, said the RTS. According to the same calculation, Bosnia and Herzegovina has been allocated 969 million euros, Albania will receive 924 million, North Macedonia 807 million, Kosovo 888 million, and Montenegro 388 million euros.

Diplomatic sources said approximately 30 percent of the total growth fund has been allocated for Serbia, but that these funds won’t be distributed automatically. The sources explained that the actual amount of the funds will hinge on the EU’s evaluation of whether Serbia is meeting the agreed-upon goals in reforming the rule of law, the democratic system, normalizing relations with Pristina, and aligning with the EU’s foreign policy. This additional funding supplements existing pre-accession IPA funds.

Kurti surprised with State Department’s report on human rights in Kosovo (N1, BETA)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said that he was surprised by the US State Department’s report on human rights in the section on Kosovo and criticized that body for not mentioning the evaluations of international organizations that, as he said, show Kosovo’s progress, N1 reported.

The State Department’s report assessed that there were no significant changes in the state of human rights in Kosovo in 2023. As the most serious problems the report mentioned the independence of the judiciary, restrictions on freedom of expression and the media, corruption in the government, gender-based violence and threats of violence against ethnic minorities.