Zbogar: Two more conditions before visa free travel for Kosovo (Kosova Sot)
The Head of the EU Office in Kosovo Samuel Zbogar said that Kosovo needs to continue fight against corruption and organised crime as well as ratify border demarcation agreement with Montenegro before its people are able to travel without visas to European countries. Zbogar said the EU will continue monitoring progress in these two issued and warned there is little time left.
Mustafa indicates establishment of Armed Forces, Serbs unaware (Zeri)
Kosovo Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, has indicated that the Armed Forces of Kosovo will be established soon, but he did not mention any agreement with Serb representatives in the Kosovo Assembly. “We are working on the establishment of the Kosovo Army. This will be a European-level army and it will be admitted in NATO,” Mustafa said recently. Representatives of the Serbian List, meanwhile, said no one has discussed the matter with them. They even considered as unserious statements by Kosovo politicians that the armed forces will be formed soon. Bajram Gecaj, Kosovo’s Deputy Minister for Local Government and advisor to the Prime Minister, told the paper: “The Kosovo Army will be formed in one way or another. It is difficult to say when this will happen, because we need to reach an agreement with community MPs. I believe there is general consensus among the Albanian political parties. There is nothing concrete yet if the Serbian List will support or oppose the formation of the Armed Forces”.
No government reshuffling (Koha)
The paper reports on its front page that the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) will not agree to a partial reshuffling of the government. The PDK wants an eventual reshuffling process to include all partners of the ruling coalition. Hajredin Kuci, PDK deputy leader and Minister of Justice, told the paper that the matter will be decided by the PDK and LDK leaders. The paper notes that changes in the government will take place after former PDK leader Hashim Thaci has taken up the Office of the President of Kosovo. Based on official statements, Kuci will leave the Ministry of Justice to become Principal Deputy Prime Minister, while PDK’s Gani Koci will take over the Ministry of Justice. Enver Hoxhaj will become Minister of Foreign Affairs. Unnamed sources meanwhile told the paper that international officials are not satisfied with the government’s performance and that they told this to Prime Minister Isa Mustafa. International officials reportedly advised Mustafa that he needs to make changes in the sectors where the biggest flaws have been evidenced.
Lunacek: Serbia should recognize Kosovo (Zeri)
The European Parliament Vice President and Rapporteur for Kosovo, Ulrike Lunacek, told the paper on Monday that Serbia knows that the European Union will not accept any state which has not defined its borders. For this reason she says that Serbia will recognize Kosovo. Lunacek also said Kosovo will have the full support of the European Parliament when the recommendation for visa liberalization will go there. She called on Kosovo’s political class to invest in a joint effort with civil society and prominent Kosovars to convince the 28 Interior Ministers of the Council of Europe to approve the visa liberalization recommendation. Asked about the special court that will address war crimes allegations, Lunacek called on the EU to provide sufficient funds for its functioning. In the end, she said she hopes that in 10 years Kosovo will be part of the European Union. In regards to Serbian elections in Kosovo, she said such elections were organized by the OSCE and as such did not violate Kosovo’s Constitution. However, she said the interfering behavior of some Serb politicians was controversial and she urged them to respect the agreement on normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
Kosovo Serbs want special visa liberalization (Zeri/RFE)
Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister and member of Serbian List, Branimir Stojanovic, told Radio Free Europe that after the visa liberalization recommendation for Kosovo, a solution must be found for Serbian citizens in Kosovo that they can also move without visas in the Schengen area. “It should be possible for all passports, even for those issued by the Coordination Centre or any other body. For us, this is a technical issue. It is completely meaningless. I will try that with the representatives of other communities to talk with the EU and to motivate them to amend this status,” Stojanovic said. A few days ago, the Office for Kosovo in the Serbian Government, through a press release, noted that “Belgrade will ask the EU to apply visa liberalization also to the Serb people living in Kosovo, despite what kind of passports they have.”
Selimi: UN, EU, and NATO membership, priority for Kosovo (Epoka e Re)
Kosovo’s acting Foreign Minister Petrit Selimi said in his word at the spring school for junior diplomats that the priorities of his ministry include Kosovo’s membership in the UN, EU, NATO and other international organisations. He said Kosovo is focused on developing modern diplomacy but that, alike in other new countries, this still remains a challenge.
Albin Kurti in Skopje protest (Zeri)
Former leader of Vetevendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, has joined the protest in Skopje on Monday organized by the Albanian opposition parties in Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The protest was held on the occasion of the anniversary of the events of Kumanovo. Vetevendosje Movement on Sunday gave public support to this protest against the FYROM government.
