PDK, LDK want to vote for Thaci as President on February 11 (Koha)
The paper reports on its front page that the two biggest parties of the ruling coalition, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), have agreed that on February 11, the Kosovo Assembly will vote on PDK leader Hashim Thaci’s candidacy for President of Kosovo. Sources close to the two parties told the paper that there is also an agreement in place to reshuffle some key government ministries. “The leaders of the two parties, Thaci and Mustafa, have agreed that the voting [for President of Kosovo] should take place in February and they also agreed to change the heads of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Interior Affairs,” sources said. The paper predicts that LDK’s Skender Hyseni, who is current Minister of Interior Affairs, could take up the post of Foreign Minister, while a powerful member of the PDK could be appointed Minister of Interior as preparations for the period when the Special Court is expected to become operational.
Tahiri: Kosovo to get own dialing prefix in March (dailies)
Kosovo’s minister without portfolio Edita Tahiri confirmed that Austria has officially applied with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for a dialing prefix for Kosovo. According to her, the new Kosovo prefix will be 383 and the ITU will grant it in the first half of March. In an interview for Epoka e Re, Tahiri said that it was agreed in the course of the EU-facilitated dialogue with Belgrade that Austria would apply for the prefix on Kosovo’s behalf and that this is a significant achievement for Kosovo. She also said that the Pristina-Belgrade dialogue will continue with the working groups at the technical level expected to meet in mid-January and with regards to the meeting of prime ministers, Tahiri said it is not clear when this would happen as it depends on Brussels.
Establishment of Association/Community, a long process (Telegrafi)
Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa’s foreign policy advisor Valon Murtezaj told Radio Free Europe that the Government of Kosovo is looking to assess all the details of the recent Constitutional Court’s decision on the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities before it takes further action. “The next step will be the setting up of a wide group of experts. Apart from experts from civil society, the group will consist of experts from the government institutions and the entire political spectrum. We consider that the issues such as the Association and those of national interest should not be a burden or a credit to anyone individually,” Murtezaj said, adding that the process will take time.
Serbian government doesn’t want to dissolve its parallel structures (Koha)
According to Belgrade officials, the dissolution of Serbian parallel structures in Kosovo will not be discussed at the upcoming meeting between Prime Ministers Isa Mustafa and Aleksandar Vucic in Brussels, the paper reports on page three. In a reply to the paper, Serbian government representatives said on Tuesday that no agreement reached in Brussels obliges them to dissolve the parallel structures operating in Kosovo. Meanwhile, Kosovo’s Minister for Dialogue, Edita Tahiri, said recently that the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities will not be established without the full dissolution of Serbia’s parallel structures.
Serb pilgrims set to visit Gjakova today (Kosovapress)
Serb Orthodox pilgrims are expected to visit Gjakova/Djakovica today ahead as part of the Orthodox Christmas celebrations. However, residents of the city have announced they will protest against the visit. One of the organisers of the protest, Mimoza Shala, said the residents will make it clear that the Serb visitors are not welcomed in the city as they fear that persons involved in war crimes against the Albanian population could be among the pilgrims. “We will be in front of the church to oppose their visit,” said Shala. Last year, the remarks the then Minister of Communities and Returns Aleksandar Jablanovic made at the protest of the local residents sparked wide outrage in Kosovo which subsequently led to his dismissal.
Jablanovic: I will not join Serb pilgrims tomorrow (Indeksonline)
Former Minister for Communities and Returns Aleksandar Jablanovic told Indeksonline yesterday that he does not plan to join Serb Orthodox pilgrims on their visit to Gjakova/Djakovica. “I will be in my hometown tomorrow for Christmas and I am not interested in any type of provocation,” said Jablanovic. A year ago, Jablanovic was dismissed from his ministerial post after he called families of missing persons protesting against the visit of Serb pilgrims “beasts”.
