LOCAL PRESS

Vucic: Additional security measures following Paris attacks (Tanjug)

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic says Serbia has taken additional security measures following the Paris attacks, but will not change the current policy. Speaking on Monday ahead of a conference in Belgrade to mark International Day of Tolerance, Vucic said that the situation on the ground will be monitored, and adequately responded to. “That is the best protection against any irresponsible move, although one can never have one hundred percent influence on it,” he told reporters, according to Tanjug. Vucic added he was “proud of the fact nobody in Serbia attacked citizens of Muslim faith, their stores, bakeries,” and that if such a thing occurred, it would be ‘severely sanctioned”. “Serbia has managed to ensure peace and security,” said Vucic. Asked about the security situation, considering that one of the suspected terrorists in Paris passed through Serbia using the migrant route, Vucic responded by saying that 490,000 migrants passed through Serbia. 

Stefanovic: Security situation Serbia stable (RTS)

After the terrorist attacks in Paris, Serbia will step up combat readiness of its counter-terrorism units by a certain degree, Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic stated, adding that the Security Services Work Coordination Bureau convened on Saturday to discuss a series of terrorist attacks in Paris and how does it reflect on Serbia and the region. It is planned to additionally promote and purchase equipment and armament in the fight against terrorism, Stefanovic told Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS). Serbian citizens can have trust in the security services and there are no indications that Serbia is jeopardized by terrorist attacks, Stefanovic said. They can be at ease because the national security services are active in the field not only today and on the occasion of terrorist attacks in Paris, said Stefanovic. “Unfortunately, there have been terrorist threats in our region and drawing from the experience, our operative and combat readiness has been increased for a while. We keep under surveillance all individuals that we believe may be in any way connected to the network that may jeopardize Serbia, but at this moment the citizens of Serbia are safe,” Stefanovic said.

Djuric: Pristina killing dialogue (TV Pink/Tanjug/Danas)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric has told TV Pink that the Pristina authorities are killing the dialogue by not implementing the Brussels dialogue that envisages the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO). Djuric says that Belgrade doesn’t accept “circus shows” and requests that the agreed be implemented without delay. “Serbia will not give up from the signed and if someone thinks this way is mistaken, since the Constitutional Court in Pristina is not for us an authoritative instance. We didn’t make agreement with the Constitutional Court in Pristina regarding the ZSO, but with elected Kosovo Albanian representatives,” Djuric said. He says that we can only talk with Kosovo representatives on how Pristina can transfer more jurisdictions on the ZSO than what is envisaged with the agreement. Djuric stresses that this agreement gives the possibility for additional jurisdictions to be transferred on the ZSO. “All this are games and circus shows for us and it is necessary to implement the agreed for the sake of the credibility of the dialogue. If someone wants to support the resumption of the dialogue, trust needs to be returned, and it can be only by implementing the agreement and we cannot tolerate any games on the amendment of reached agreements. They can only discuss this between themselves,” said Djuric. He says that our side is waiting for Pristina to implement the agreed without delay, noting that it would be inconceivable for someone in Belgrade to agree on something and then to mock the other side and international community. Djuric says that in this case Serbia would be the target of condemnation and sanctions.

Speaking about the formation of two new companies in northern Kosovo and Metohija – EPS trade and Elektrosever, Djuric says that there is a huge problem of electricity payments in Kosovo and Metohija because neither Serbs nor Albanians had been paying in the past period. Djuric points out that the state is losing enormous money by financing this, and that the government and Office for Kosovo and Metohija will help these two new companies to receive payments.

Jevtic: Serb List leaving Kosovo government if agreement on ZSO is not respected (Dnevnik/Tanjug)

Kosovo Minister for Returns Dalibor Jevtic has stated that the Serb List will reexamine its participation in the Kosovo government, and perhaps even leave it if the agreement on the formation of the ZSO is not respected. “One of the items of the coalition agreement, based on which we entered the Kosovo government, was precisely the formation of the ZSO and we have nothing to do with partners who do not respect what they had signed,” Jevtic told the Novi Sad daily Dnevnik. He adds that this is not just about the ZSO, but also about “loss of trust that we have been trying to build not only through the Brussels dialogue, but precisely with our participation in the Kosovo institutions”. This trust will be built only if there is full respect of everything that had been agreed both in Brussels and in Pristina, said Jevtic.

Belgrade not giving up from Brussels agreement (B92)

Belgrade is not going to give up from the signed in Brussels. Kosovo Serb representatives have announced they would leave the government if the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO) is not formed. Even though dialogue has no alternative for Belgrade, the possibility of discontinuing the negotiations is not excluded. The state leadership explains the situation in which one side can do anything and the other can do nothing with the words that Pristina is killing the dialogue and that Belgrade doesn’t accept a circus show. “Abandoning negotiations would not imply discontinuation of normalization of relations. I think that Brussels, which was passive and lamely responded towards Pristina, could get engaged, as well as Washington,” says the Chairman of the parliamentary Committee for Kosovo and Metohija Milovan Drecun. Experts are categorical, so regardless of the behavior of the other side, the best thing for Serbia is to remain at the table. “I don’t know any other model except talks. I think that closing doors is an invitation for conflict, and I don’t see either the possibility or wish to realize this,” says Nenad Djurdjevic of the Ethnic Relations Forum.

Cvetkovic: Suspension of Brussels agreement endangers Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija (Politika)

What are the estimates of the Serbian Military Agency when it comes to the security of the Serbs and the Serbian heritage in Kosovo and Metohija?

“The security situation in Kosovo and Metohija has long been complex. Over the past period, it has been additionally disturbed with activities and measures of the ‘Kosovo institutions’ that directly influence the security of the Serbs and the Serbian heritage in the province. This primarily refers to the decision passed at the end of October on the suspension of the implementation of the Brussels agreement on the formation of the ZSO, until the ‘constitutional court’ passes the decision on whether the agreement is in accordance with the ‘Kosovo constitution’. The Serb population in the province would be additionally homogenized with the formation of the ZSO; the Serbian position would be strengthened and additional guarantees would be offered for security and other social challenges faced by the Serbs in this region. Suspension, postponement or cessation of the implementation of the Brussels agreement would reduce the faith of the Serb people in a safe survival in their homes, while, on the other side, it would strengthen the positions of the Albanian extremist factor. The failure of Pristina’s initiative for UNESCO membership will additionally pose in the following period a factor of uncertainty of the Serbs in view of their security, having in mind that the Albanians will try to depict the cultural-historical sights as part of the ‘Kosovo cultural identity’, despite the fact that the majority of these sights were destroyed on 17 March 2004 during the pogrom,” the Head of the Serbian Military Security Agency (VBA) Petar Cvetkovic told Politika.

Novosti Internet poll

Is the Dayton Accord, after 20 years, the only guarantor of the survival of the Republika Srpska?

Yes       66.36 percent

No         33.64 percent

REGIONAL PRESS

B&H Security Minister: Attacks in Paris demonstrate seriousness of situation (Srna)

B&H Security Minister Dragan Mektic is of the opinion that the terrorist attacks in Paris have demonstrated once again, in the cruelest possible way, the seriousness of the situation, when it comes to anti-terrorism combat. He told Srna that the terrorism should be definitely defeated, because just a theory of having it under control will result in such cases in the future, too.

“Generally and globally, defeating terrorism fails, especially in places where the terrorism is being generated. Everything that is happening in France, the world, Bosnia and Herzegovina, is the outcome of the export of terrorism and radicalism that has nothing to do with democratic and civilized values and religious beliefs,” said Mektic. He expects that enough will to defeat terrorism will be found globally, because combating such evil is not a problem of one country only. “If so, France would have easily resolved this issue because it is a rich and big country with capacity and capability for it. Full cooperation between the states and the highest possible level of data and information exchange are inevitable,” said Mektic. When it comes to the terrorism threat level in B&H, he pointed out that, if it is possible that something like this happens in a large country like France, than the entire B&H’s vulnerability problem is obvious, since it lacks good coordination among the security agencies. In his opinion, B&H needs to learn from all these cases. He confirmed that he has recently held a meeting with security agencies in B&H about this issue and that a precaution level has been raised to the highest. “The security agencies have undertaken some concrete measures, which is normal after such threat as terrorism. The most important thing is to improve coordination, to take any information seriously as if it could be a key to the solution of many things. I keep saying and emphasizing that even tiny information can be a key to the solution and the prevention of an event,” said Mektic. He also said that he earlier planned to travel to Paris on Monday, November 16, where he would attend the meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, including the one with the French interior minister. “I will talk with him about the latest event and share some of my thinking on the problem and the anti-terrorism combat with him,” said Mektic.

Dodik: Decisive international anti-terrorism combat required (Srna)

The Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik has sent condolence message to President of France, Francois Hollande, and the French people over the terrorist attack that occurred in Paris, saying that innocent victims are paying the price for the long-lasting instability in the world, which enabled the development of the groups ready to conduct such a brutal attack. “As it has recently happened in Zvornik, it’s obvious that this is about the terrorism motivated by radical Islam,” Dodik has told Srna and added that no one can remain indifferent before the fact that such groups are ready to conduct heinous attacks. Dodik has stressed that all security structures in RS are highly engaged to monitor the situation and that the mobilization level has not been lowered since the terrorist attack in Zvornik, in an effort to properly cover all security vulnerable points and to monitor the possible movements of anyone. “From the standpoint of the information available, the RS is safe at the moment. There are no possibilities that something similar may happen, even the minimum ones,” Dodik said, adding that the possibility of such groups’ activities cannot be excluded in the future. The RS President stressed that RS keeps the level of preparedness, in terms of security, at a high level regularly monitoring all possible points that, according to estimates, can be a subject to similar attacks. “I am convinced that the international anti-terrorism combat will be efficient and that only united international coalition in this regard could assist in this, which means engaging the West and the East, i.e. Russia, the EU and the United States including all the countries that have estimated that they are threatened and endangered by radical Islamic groups, which are ready to conduct such heinous crimes, as the one in Paris,” said Dodik. He said that after the terrorist attack on the Editorial Boar of the Charlie Hebdo Weekly in Paris, in which the journalists were killed, a complete destabilization of France, and therefore Western Europe, is tried to be made. “We, in the Balkans, are faced with the historical problems on this issue, and now with migratory influx and the fact that the largest number of Islamic State members is in B&H. It is obvious that the Islamic State is experiencing defeat after the Russian military intervention, which makes the diversion of attention to other areas possible,” said Dodik. The RS President pointed out that the fact that the extremists and the Islamic State members directly threatened the Balkans, including B&H, several months ago, should not be ignored. “In this regard, everything to provide coordination of all forces in B&H and to focus all security and political attention on training of the security units to combat fight terrorism must be done,” said Dodik.

Mourning Day in FB&H on Monday, minute of silence at noon (Klix.ba)

At urgent, phone-held session, the government of the FB&H reached a Decision on declaring Monday, November 16, 2015, the Mourning Day in the FB&H. In this way, the FB&H expresses regret and condolences with the French people after a series of terrorist attacks in Paris and killing of innocent people, it was announced. The Mourning Day is marked with obligatory display of the flag of B&H at half-mast at the buildings of the government of FB&H and the institutions of FB&H. Programs of cultural and entertaining character cannot be held at public places in FB&H during the Mourning Day. Media houses at the territory of FB&H are obliged to adjust and adapt their program contents to the Mourning Day, states the Decision by the government of FB&H. Government of FB&H invites the citizens to pay tribute to the victims of terrorist attacks in Paris on the Mourning Day at 12 a.m. with a minute of silence, a prayer, or in any other appropriate way, just like the citizens of all European countries will do. As a sign of mourning for the killed in these terrorist attacks, flags have been lowered at half-mast in front of the headquarters of the government of FB&H in Sarajevo and Mostar, announced the government of FB&H.

Radical Islamic website threatens more blood in Europe, including B&H (Fena)

Radical Islamic website in Bosnian language Vijesti Ummeta, announced the revenge attacks in retaliation for the strikes against the terrorist organization Islamic State and threatens with more casualties across Europe. “You should know that we will come to you soon, and we are already among you. Blood will soon be flowing in the streets of all of Europe, in sha Allah (God willing). Our flag will soon be flying across Europe,” the website said in a threatening message, expressing regret that more people had not been killed in the attacks in Paris on Friday night. It said that the Paris attacks were a response to “attacks on the Caliphate which have killed a large number of Muslim civilians (mostly women and children).” “Where are now your aircrafts and your technology, your surveillance cameras and your troops that you are so proud of? You should know that all that is useless when you fight against Him who is above you and Him who created all what you possess. You should know that there will be no help and salvation for you, unless you accept Islam. Otherwise, the only cure for you is a sword at your throat and a bullet to your forehead,” the message read.

SBB in B&H Council of Ministers by the end of November (Klix.ba)

Presidents of political parties Dragan Covic (HDZ B&H), Bakir Izetbegovic (SDA) and Fahrudin Radoncic (SBB) agreed at the meeting in Mostar that SBB will enter the B&H Council of Ministers and cantonal government as a new coalition partner by the end of November. “It was about time that SBB enters the B&H Council of Ministers and all cantonal levels as a partner. It seems that due to the complex procedures of appointment in the Council of Ministers we will have to start working on Monday,” said Covic. Izetbegovic stated that the new coalition can start working from next week on all levels. Radoncic assessed that the establishment of new cantonal government and the federation government, and now the Council of Ministers, is going by the best dynamics. “We promised to our citizens that this will not be an ordinary coalition where we will be negotiating, but we will be agreeing and we are fulfilling it in the best and most efficient way possible,” said Radoncic.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

Serbia Probes Suspected Kosovo War Mass Grave (BIRN, by Ivana Nikolic, Petrit Collaku, 16 November 2015)

Serbia is investigating a potential mass grave site in the southern Raska region, near where the remains of dozens of Kosovo Albanians killed in the 1998-99 war were exhumed last year.

Serbia’s deputy war crimes prosecutor Dragoljub Stankovic told BIRN on Monday that an investigation was continuing into a potential mass grave in the village of Krizevac in the Raska region. “We have been working for the past ten days, but investigating [the site] is very hard because of the location, which is big,” Stankovic said. He said he could not give any more information about the suspected mass grave or the number of bodies believed to have been buried there. So far, mass graves containing the bodies of more than 1,000 Kosovo Albanians killed during the war have been found in four locations in Serbia – at a police training centre in the Belgrade suburb of Batajnica, in Lake Perucac, at a police centre in Petrovo Selo and at the Rudnica quarry near the town of Raska. The most recent to be discovered was the mass grave in Rudnica last summer, when 52 bodies of Kosovo Albanians killed during the war were found. The victims were mainly from the villages of Rrezalle/Rezala and Cikatove e Vjeter/Staro Cikatovo in the Skenderaj/Srbica municipality. Around 1,670 people are still missing after the end of the war in Kosovo in 1999. Stankovic said the Serbian team would meet counterparts from Kosovo on Monday to discuss potential cooperation in investigating the suspected mass grave. But Prenk Gjetaj, chief of Kosovo’s missing persons commission, said excavations at Krizevac could only go ahead if experts from Kosovo are present. “There will be no excavations without our presence there,” Gjetaj told BIRN on Monday. He said that officials had information that there could be more mass graves of Kosovo war victims in the Rudnica area. “We will see if the information matches up after the research,” he said. The last search for a Kosovo war grave near the southern town of Novi Pazar in April – conducted by both Serbia and Kosovo’s missing person commissions as well as the Serbian war crimes prosecution and the EU’s rule-of-law mission in Kosovo, EULEX – failed to yield any results. In January, the Belgrade-based Humanitarian Law Centre published a report accusing current Serbian Army chief Ljubisa Dikovic, as commander of the 37th Brigade of the Yugoslav Army during the Kosovo conflict, of being responsible for the removal of the bodies of Albanians killed in the Kosovo villages of Rrezalle/Rezala Cikatove e Vjeter/Staro Cikatovo, Zabel i Ulet/Donji Zabelj and Gllanaselle/Gladno Selo in 1999 in an attempted cover-up. Forty-seven of the bodies found in the Rudnica mass grave were from these villages. Dikovic has denied the allegations. So far no one has been prosecuted in Serbia for the operation to remove the bodies. Only former Serbian assistant interior minister Vlastimir Djordjevic has been convicted by the Hague Tribunal of transporting the bodies from Kosovo to Serbia, among other crimes during the late 1990s war.

Holder of Syrian passport found in Paris attack sought asylum in Serbia (Reuters, 15 November 2015)

BELGRADE – The holder of a Syrian passport found near the body of one of the gunmen who died in Friday night’s attacks in Paris passed through Serbia last month where he sought asylum, the Serbian Interior Ministry said. “One of the suspected terrorists, A.A., who is of interest to the French security agencies, was registered on the Presevo border crossing on October 7 this year, where he formally sought asylum,” the ministry said in a statement. The Presevo border crossing separates Serbia from Macedonia. “Checks have confirmed that his details match those of the person who on October 3 was identified in Greece. There was no Interpol warrant issued against this person.” Greek authorities had said on Saturday the passport matched that used by a refugee who arrived on the Greek island of Leros on Oct. 3.

(writing by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by Dominic Evans)