Kosovo Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci, who is visiting Washington, told the “Voice of America” that dismissal of Jablanović should be seen as individual case.
When asked whether meeting the demands of opposition protesters in Pristina presents a negative message to the representatives of the Serbian community, which is willing to participate in Kosovo institutions, Thaci said that the decision was not directed against the Serbian community.
He said that all politicians in Kosovo have an obligation to send a positive message, and not to provoke a negative reaction. “We started a good cooperation with the Minister Jablanovic and other Serbian ministers. I have worked eight years with Serbian representatives in the Kosovo government. In this case, I think that the statement of the Minister Jablanović was unacceptable and Jablanovic is aware that such statements are unnecessary. I believe that the decision of the Prime Minister Mustafa is correct, and it is not directed against the Serbian community. We simply have to continue to work on our common goals,” said Thaci.
However, the Voice of America highlighted that although the emphasis is currently being placed on the impugned statement of the dismissed minister, remains the problem of repeated incidents of stoning buses with Serb returnees, as well as the fact that there are no Serb citizens in Djakovica. “We have to depersonalize things and look at the priorities. There are important priorities ahead of us that we have to solve. Jablanovic’s statement is unacceptable for all, even for the Serbian community in Kosovo. I talked with them. The decision on dismissal is not aimed at any particular community, especially the Serbian,” said Thaci in an interview for the Voice of America.
