LOCAL PRESS

Dacic: Serbia will not lodge protest to France over Kosovo flag (Politika)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic has stated that Serbia will not lodge a protest over the Kosovo flag on the Notre Dame cathedral. “Having in mind the upcoming visit of Emanuel Macron, the first visit of the French President to Serbia after eighteen years, my opinion is that this should be left for talks,” Dacic told Politika. He assessed the placing of the Kosovo flag on Notre Dame as generally a huge scandal because there is no military parade where the defeated take part. “We cannot present that, but we can have better relations with Paric, because the upcoming visit of Emanueal Macron is very important,” said Dacic.

Notre Dame: Kosovo flag based on government list (Beta/AFP/Politika)

A spokesman for the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris said on Monday that the flag of Kosovo is flying in front of that church because officials from Pristina have been invited to next Sunday’s commemoration to mark the end of World War 1, the Beta news agency reported quoting an AFP report. An unnamed Notre Dame de Paris spokesperson said the decision on which flags to raise was taken based on a list of invited officials drawn up by the French government.  “Notre Dame takes no stand and is not involved in diplomacy,” the spokesperson said.

Fleckenstein: Kosovo key issue (N1)

The Kosovo issue is a crucial issue because it is necessary to know how to live with a neighbor to be able to exist within the European Union, particularly since the EU won’t import conflicts, Knut Fleckenstein, a member of the European Parliament (EP) told N1. He has added that since the EU does not want to take in any rivalries, Belgrade and Pristina have to find a way to solve their problems. “We thought – let Cyprus in, and then we will solve the issue with Turkey a non-EU member state. Nothing has been resolved. That is why our experience dictates that such problems must be solved before joining the bloc,” Fleckenstein said. “I’m aware how big that problem is, but we shouldn’t get involved. I have great respect for presidents Vucic and Thaci who want to find a solution, and we should let them do it. We shouldn’t comment and criticize every word they say,” he said. Fleckenstein said it was a tough issue for both Kosovo and Serbia and his advice would be “to let the two do their job.” “If there will be a suggestion, we will listen to it and then we will see what result can be achieved. Let Vucic and Thaci do that difficult work, don’t give them recommendations in advance,” Fleckenstein said, adding he would not like to be in their shoes. Asked if 2025 was realistic for Serbia’s full EU membership, Fleckenstein said he would not like to play with figures. “It’s a theoretical deadline. If everything goes smoothly, then it would be a good date for orientation. What year that would be, I don’t know. If I knew I would have been the head of the European Commission,” Fleckenstein said. He added that a lot had changed in Serbia in the last several years, but that a lot remained to be done.

“Many reforms related to the rule of law and media position have started but have to be implemented, to become a part of life. The successes are visible in the economy,” he said, adding “the focus should be on media freedom where everything is OK on paper, but it should be in practice.” Fleckenstein said the issue of media freedom was not only for the government to deal with but for brave journalists as well.

REGIONAL PRESS

Dodik and Dacic react to Komsic’s statement (N1)

In an interview for Belgrade daily Telegraf, newly elected Croat member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency, Zeljko Komsic said that official Zagreb and Belgrade must respect B&H borders. “Just respect this and you will have no problems with me.” Newly elected Serb member of the B&H Presidency Milorad Dodik said that Komsic stated threats on behalf of himself, but added that any kind of threats aimed towards Serbia are “unacceptable”. Dodik responded to Komsic’s claims and said that he is a “lost man, in search of his own identity”. He added that Komsic did not even take office and was already able to complicate the relations B&H maintains with both Croatia and Serbia. Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said that Komsic’s statements sound a lot like “Belgrade and Zagreb should fear ‘Greater B&H’” and that it would be also good to tell the Muslim countries where B&H’s borders are. Dacic also said that Komsic is a successor of outgoing Bosniak member of B&H Presidency and leader of SDA Bakir Izetbegovic.

Vucic makes comparison between Kosovo and RS (N1)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met with Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz on Monday in Belgrade. Vucic said that Austria supports any solution to the Kosovo issue that is reached by Serbs and Albanians. At a joint press conference with Kurz in Belgrade, Vucic said Austria had recognized Kosovo’s independence ten years ago but that he was grateful to Kurz for the fact Austria was supportive of any compromise solution. Vucic mentioned B&H during the press conference, in particular Republika Srpska (RS), when talking about the Kosovo issue. He talked about correction of borders and compared the Kosovo issue with the RS. “How will I explain the Serbian people here that Albanians in Kosovo have the right to self-determination, but Serbs in the RS do not have the same right? I am the first to advocate the territorial integrity of B&H and I repeat that always. How can I then explain this? What principles would I use to explain it?” asked Vucic.

OSCE’s Berton meets HDZ B&H leader Covic (TV1)

Head of the OSCE Mission to B&H Bruce Berton met with Croat member of the B&H Presidency Dragan Covic in Mostar on Monday. Berton stressed that it is especially important for the OSCE to have regulated and reformed electoral legislation from the aspect of compliance with the Constitution of B&H and in terms of improving security and transparency of the elections which is why, according to him, further delays in solving these issues are unacceptable.

Covic deemed as bad the fact that the problem of amending the B&H Election Law was not solved before the beginning of the electoral process in B&H which, according to him, resulted in repeating mistakes from the past. Covic emphasized that amending of the Election Law has to provide all legal preconditions for protection of integrity, constitutionality of election process, as well as of its democratic character. He added that principles of constituent status and legitimate representation at all administrative-political levels have to be respected in the abovementioned process.

Novalic, Wigemark define three focus points (Fena)

Head of the EU Delegation to Bosnia, Lars Gunnar-Wigemark, met with the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Prime Minister, Fadil Novalic, and talked about Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) EU integration process, and the position of youth. The two made a list of three main focus points for the new authorities. Wigemark said the EU provides unconditional support to the reform process in the country. Both interlocutors said B&H made significant progress fighting organized crime and corruption. “Special departments for fighting organized crime and corruption at the Federation of B&H Supreme Court and Prosecution have not started working yet because the Court couldn’t find the space where to base them” Novalic said adding that this must be resolved as soon as possible. According to Novalic, he and Wigemark concluded the Federation of B&H authorities must focus on three things: youth, economic growth and the fight against corruption, as well as ecology as the possible fourth point of focus. “The goal is to define common goals in all focus points and to work on them,” he added.

Ambassador Wigemark also asked about the government formation process after the election, stressing it is important that the authorities and parliaments be stable throughout the country.

The Ambassador also noted the importance of solving the youth issue and added that new jobs are key to creating a perspective for youth in B&H. Only through new jobs and opportunities can the youth contribute to B&H’s development and further progress, he said.

Inzko: Serbs are not yet constituent in all parts of Federation of B&H (Nezavisne novine)

High Representative (HR) Valentin Inzko will present his report about the situation in B&H to the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Tuesday. According to daily, Inzko will inform the UNSC that Serbs still do not have the status of constituent people in all parts of the Federation of B&H.

Daily learns that the majority of Inzko’s report will be dedicated to election process in B&H; the HR will speak about bad rhetoric, intimidation of voters, pressures on voters aimed at making them vote in line with certain parties’ wishes, and he will also say that very little time during the campaign was dedicated to the rule of law, economic integration and creation of new jobs.

Inzko will underline that the OSCE standards have not been implemented during the election process; he will remind of certain political parties and NGO’s objections related to election process, and warn that elections in Mostar have not taken place since 2008. Inzko will call on new authorities in the country to reach an agreement on changes to the Election Law of B&H as soon as possible, in order to implement recommendations of the international community. He will also remind that the court ruling in ‘Sejdic-Finci vs. B&H’ case has not been implemented yet. Furthermore, according to daily, the HR will also talk about the need to create conditions for the rule of law, as well as about country’s European integration. Inzko will praise the fact that B&H has sent answers to European Commission’s Questionnaire, and remind that answers to follow-up questions are still being prepared. The HR will call on authorities to speed up country’s European path; however, according to daily, it remains unclear if Inzko will mention ‘Euro-Atlantic integration’ in his report, since Russia is against such terminology. Inzko will mention HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic’s objections about the way Zeljko Komsic has been elected Croat member of the Presidency of B&H, and he will remind that nothing has been done so far to implement the Constitutional Court of B&H’s decision in ‘Ljubic’ case. The HR will underline that authorities in B&H have not done much to implement reforms in the country, as well as that the previous convocation of the Parliament of B&H was one on the least efficient ever. Inzko will also talk about violations of the Dayton Peace Agreement, and warn that the DPA must not be violated. The daily learns that Inzko will also condemn Republika Srpska National Assembly’s decision to revoke the report on events in and around Srebrenica in the summer of 1995, and underline that such moves cause harm to reconciliation and creation of conditions for coexistence in B&H. And finally, according to daily, Inzko will praise the fact that changes to the Law on Criminal Procedure have been adopted. The daily briefly noted that representatives of the Centers for Civic Initiatives (CCI) agree with parts of Inzko’s report, which read that authorities in B&H have done a poor job.

Dodik calls on Serbs in US to vote for Republican Party (RTRS)

RS President and newly-elected Serb member of the B&H Presidency Milorad Dodik has called on Serbs in the US to vote for candidates of US President Donald Trump’s Republican Party in the elections for Congress and Senate that will be held on November 6. He has stressed that the Serbian Diaspora is united and there is no doubt that now, just like in the presidential elections they, will support President Trump. Dodik reminded that Trump recently said before the UN General Assembly that the US rejects the ideology of globalism and supports patriotism in the whole world, which are the values shared by Serbs.

President and Foreign Affairs Ministry at odds over Marrakesh Agreement (HRT)

Croatia, like most UN members, has participated in the preparation of the so-called Marrakech Agreement, which is part of the Global Compact. The agreement is a global catalog of measures addressing the issue of “regular” migration, which should be adopted in Morocco this December.

The Marrakech Agreement has become the subject of political controversy after President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic announced that she would not attend an intergovernmental conference in Marrakech at which the agreement is to be adopted. In a letter the President sent to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in August she stated that she was extremely pleased to be involved in adopting the document on migrants in Marrakech. On Friday Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic noted that the Marrakesh Agreement only regulates regular migration and added that he had been informed that President Grabar-Kitarovic would be in Morocco in December to ratify the agreement. President Grabar-Kitarovic harshly criticized the foreign ministry’s failure to inform the public of the Marrakesh Agreement on regular migration, which has resulted in public dispute over the document. The president added that she “neither supports nor opposes” the agreement, noting that a global agreement on migration is needed provided that it is not a controversial issue among states countries. “I believed that the Marrakech Agreement would regulate some of these issues and in August I sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Guterres that I am confirming that I would come to Marrakech. However, in the meantime there have been a number of changes, and it turns out that there is no global agreement on migration. The number of countries backing away from this agreement, for a variety of reasons, is growing on a daily basis. I am not being influenced by the United States or Austria or any other country, I represent the interests of the Republic of Croatia,” she said. She added that the Marrakesh Agreement was being forced into the public sphere to serve as a distraction from the true problems facing the country. The issue has also draw commentary from other politicians. MOST Party Chairman Bozo Petrov called on the president and prime minister to come clean to the public as to what is truly in the agreement. “Is what Austrian Prime Minister Sebastian Kurz saying true, that the Marrakech agreement blurs the distinction between illegal and legal migration?” Meanwhile, the People’s Party (HNS) has criticized the president for cozying up to the extreme right ahead of elections instead of co-creating the country’s foreign policy with the government.

Markovic to Amfilohije: I am worried about Your constant efforts to divide (CDM)

Prime Minister Dusko Markovic said to the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Amfilohije Radovic, that the fact that there are no any valid planning documents for the top of Rumija means that no construction or any kind of intervention can take place there. He added that the way Amfilohije divides Montenegro and thus ruins the foundations and sense of Montenegrin cultural, multi-ethnic and religious coexistence scares him more than that tin object on Rumija. “Although I thought that the conversation between the Prime Minister and the Metropolitan might take different format, I have to tell You that I am glad that you made the letter you addressed to the President of the Government of Montenegro available to public. That way, people will be able to see how Your arguments for defending the illegal construction on Rumija actually work against you. You said yourself “there is no any legal document” and that means that any kind of construction can take place in this place, not even a “little church” on Rumija, as you qualify it”, reads the letter of Marković addressed to Amfilohije Radovic. Markovic invited Amfilohije to believe that illegal construction on Rumija will obey the law in its entirety. Markovic pointed out another important aspect of the whole situation. “You are constantly dividing instead of summing. You are not showing your interest in uniting Orthodox world in Montenegro. This time, you gave yourself freedom to divide Albanians on suitable and unsuitable, those who are welcome on Rumija and those who are not. Do not do that, Metropolitan! Do not touch the most precious of Montenegrin values. That scares me more than the existence of that tin facility you call church. As I already said, it will remain where it is if the law agrees. If there are no lawful grounds it will not!,” says Markovic in his letter. Prime Minister reminded Amfilohije that he asked him several times to look for the solutions for every open question with joint forces. “I will do this once again, believing that, thanks to wisdom, patience and acceptance of reality, we can contribute to orthodox and overall cohesion in our only homeland,” reads Markovic’s letter.

DF leaders sent letters to Putin, Vucic, Macron… (CDM)

The Democratic Front (DF) leaders Andrija Mandic and Milan Knezevic sent letters to the presidents of: Russia Vladimir Putin, France Emmanuel Macron, Serbia Aleksandar Vucic, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Liliane Maury Pasquier, the European Parliament Antonio Tajani and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly George Tsereteli. The DF leaders asked them to help Montenegro defend fundamental democratic principles, as the Montenegrin regime has been seriously destabilizing the country’s social-political circumstances. This, they added, estranges the country from the civic consensus, which is, according to Mandic and Knezevic, one of the key prerequisites for the EU accession of “Montenegro where the 1945 regime still exists”. According to them, the strongest opposition coalition in Montenegro has been going through all possible phases of the institutional persecution for over 2 years. “We are convinced that Europe has no a political association persecuted to such an extent as ours has been, whose leaders are part of several court proceedings and officials detained for several months, with continuous violation of fundamental human rights. This includes violation of our right to organizing basic international political activities, given the fact we do not possess our travel documents anymore,” the leaders complained in the letter, adding that Montenegrin authorities gave them permission to travel for some time, that is, until 30 October when they abruptly informed Mandic and Knezevic their travel documents will be seized again, for fear they might be plotting escape from Montenegro.

Gruevski will keep his mandate, but not his freedom (Nezavisen vesnik)

The chances of depriving the former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski of his parliamentary mandate due to the final verdict on the case ‘Tank’ are very small. The two-thirds majority, which passed the decision to join the constitutional changes, is unlikely to be repeated in the case of Gruevski. His until recently fellow party members, who are now part of a new independent parliamentary group, have announced they will not provide support for taking away the former prime minister’s mandate. In the best-case scenario, according to the estimates, a majority of 72 votes could be secured, despite a total of 48 votes in the parliamentary group of VMRO-DPMNE, plus eight lawmakers excluded from that camp. In other parliamentary parties, there is mainly support to revoke Gruevski’s mandate, given that the ‘Tank’ case is only one of the cases that the SPO was opened against him, for which court proceedings are still pending or are in the phase of (pre) investigation. From this aspect, the estimates are that the Parliamentary Committee on Procedural and Mandate-Immunity Issues, which will meet tomorrow, will make a decision by which it will recommend to the Parliament’s plenum to accept the proposal for revoking the mandate of Gruevski, on the basis of received notification from Department for Organized Crime at the Basic Court -Skopje 1. However, it will be unlikely that parliament will provide the necessary 80 votes for Gruevski to go to prison without his parliamentary mandate.

Therefore, keeping his parliamentary mandate is not an obstacle for Gruevski to go to prison. Especially since on Friday the court rejected his request for postponement of the prison sentence due to obligations in parliament. Accordingly, the former prime minister should check himself in the Sutka prison no later than Thursday, although his team of lawyers announced today that they will appeal the decision of the preliminary procedure judge. These days, VMRO-DPMNE seems to be preparing the field to present Gruevski as a victim of political and legal persecution, who is now facing the possibility of losing his parliamentary post. In that direction, VMRO-DPMNE vice president Aleksandar Nikoloski is also saying that it is rude what is happening to the former Prime Minister in relation to the ‘Tank’ case. “All rules have been violated. The person is held accountable for being driven in an armored vehicle. This is neither crime nor corruption,” Nikoloski said in an interview with Factor magazine. VMRO-DPMNE came out with announcements pointing fingers to Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, pointing out that he was the only pardoned politician in the prime ministerial post in the world. “He stole eight million euros from the state through the Global case, and found his rescue in his mentor Branko Crvenkovski. With the coming to power, crime has multiplied. While citizens can barely make ends meet, and the number of people living in poverty has risen to 460,000, the Zaev family purchase whole industrial giants at a very low price” the VMRO-DPMNE statement read. The SDSM replied with a reaction that, while the citizens were massively getting poorer, VMRO-DPMNE uncontrollably threw the country into bigger debts. The money of the citizens was spent on luxury, baroque, monuments and criminal tenders, only in order to fulfill the criminal interests of Nikola Gruevski and his associates. Unlike VMRO-DPMNE’s approach led by Gruevski, the SDSM-led government manages the citizens’ money in a responsible and responsive manner, SDSM stressed. The report on Gruevski sent by the judge Dobrila Kacarska to the government speaker Talat Xhaferi, on the basis of which the Rules of Procedure will be chaired, is in accordance with Article 59 paragraph 1 of the Rules of Procedures that read as follows: For the MP convicted of a criminal or other offense makes him unworthy of performing the post as MP, the court that ruled the sentence is informed to the President of the Assembly. The President shall immediately forward the notification to the Committee on Rules of Procedure and Mandatory Immunity. According to the Constitution, a MP has his/her mandate terminated when convicted of a criminal offense for which a sentence of imprisonment of at least five years is foreseen. On the other hand, a MP may be deprived of his/her mandate even when he/she is convicted of a criminal or other offense that makes him/her unworthy of performing the office of MP, as well as for unjustified absence from the Assembly for more than six months. Commission for procedural and mandate-immunity issues in this composition, late last year, recommended the deprivation of the immunity of the six members of parliament from the VMRO-DPMNE camp who were then suspected of the events on April 27. The Commission’s proposal was also passed in plenary session, but with the difference that 61 votes are necessary to revoke immunity.

If his parliamentary mandate is not taken away, Nikola Gruevski, according to parliamentary interpretations, will still be able to exercise some of the privileges he has as a MP. On the other hand, if he goes to jail, he will not be able to perform his parliamentary duties on a regular basis, such as communication with the voters in his constituency or for the presence of plebiscite and commission sessions. In such a case, Gruevski would continue to receive his salary from the Assembly. But it is unclear whether this would be the entire monthly salary, or the incomes would have been reduced, in accordance with the Law on MP. This regulation provides for the possibility of reducing by two thirds of the salary of a parliamentarian who does not participate in the work of the Assembly. But that mainly applies when it comes to boycotting. According to the Law on MP, if the MP is unjustifiably absent from the session of the Assembly, that is, from the session of the working body of which he is a member, the salary and other personal incomes are reduced accordingly, and no fees are charged. Accordingly, the amount of salary Gruevski receives depends on whether he regularly renders justice to parliament in absentia from the plenary sessions and the sessions of committees in which he is a member. On the other hand, the Constitution provides for the deprivation of the parliamentary mandate for unjustified and continuous absence from parliament for a period of six months. Assuming that Gruevski starts the serving of his two-year prison sentence on Thursday, November 8th, and if, in the meantime, it does not come to shorten it or to a new legally valid verdict, then he could return to parliament before the expiration of his term of office (at the end of 2020), except in the case of extraordinary elections. But his possible new MP candidacy, according to the interpretations, would depend on whether he was sentenced to another prison sentence – for other criminal acts and whether he had served it.

VMRO-DPMNE will appeal the decision on freezing the party’s property in Strasbourg (Nezavisen vesnik)

VMRO-DPMNE will appeal the decision on freezing the party’s property in Strasbourg VMRO-DPMNE prepares an appeal to the Strasbourg court after the court’s decision to positively respond to the SPO’s demand for freezing the property. The main opposition party believes that it is a politically motivated decision. “First and foremost, there is no mandate, authority and competence to initiate a request for the determination of the interim measure by the PMO. Second and, more importantly, VMRO-DPMNE as a legal entity is not at all suspect in the procedure. The court illegally seizes the rights of persons who are not suspected. The only intention is political persecution and disruption of the possibility for the normal functioning of a political party of the opposition. Thus, a message is sent publicly to intimidate that anyone can be a victim if he does not agree or opposes the Zaev anti-state policy,” party spokesman Naum Stoilkovski said. VMRO-DPMNE is convinced that the court’s decision is a political persecution only six months before the elections and pressure from the criminal government against the opposition, so that it cannot prepare for the election campaign. “No funds have been chosen for this gang to provide a cleared area for the realization of the sale of everything that is Macedonian and the general robbery,” Stoilkovski pointed out.

Rama’s threats, Presidency reacts (ADN)

Presidency reacted immediately after the Prime Minister’s warning that the Interior Ministry will be directed by Sander Lleshi as vice minister, after the head of state, Ilir Meta refused to decree him. President’s Spokesman, Tedi Blushi stated that the President is convinced that the time of governing the country as in Communism has finished. He also declared that the President will not allow any challenging attempt against the authority he represents. “The President will not allow any challenging attempt against the institution he represents, as the Head of the country as well as the General Commander of Armed Forces and Chairman of National Security’s Council,” Presidency reacted. He added that President Meta confirmed his commitment, in accordance with Constitution, to cooperate with all institutions in the country, in the interest of the stability and growth of the culture of inter-institutional cooperation with transparency and constructiveness.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

Serbia’s EU future requires solution for Kosovo: Austrian Chancellor (Xinhua, 5 November 2018)

BELGRADE — Austria is willing to support Serbia to open more negotiation chapters with the European Union (EU), Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said here on Monday, adding that ultimately the membership depends on resolution of the Kosovo issue. He made the remarks at a joint press conference with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Vucic said at the press conference that he asked Kurz, who arrived in Belgrade for a two-day visit, for Austrian support on the European path, in order to open more negotiation chapters, noting that the necessary progress in the integration is for the benefit of the people, especially during Austria’s EU presidency. He said Serbia and Austria have good political relations and even better economic relations with trade exchange this year exceeding 1 billion euros (currently 1 euro equals to about 1.14 U.S. dollars), and showing prospects for a even greater growth in the future.

“I believe that Austria, which is among the most important investors here, can encourage investors to additionally invest in our country,” Vucic said. Kurz stressed that Austria, during its ongoing EU presidency, is investing all its efforts into getting the countries of the Western Balkans, especially Serbia, closer to the EU and that there is a joint dedication to opening additional chapters in the accession negotiations with Serbia. “As a convinced European, I will say that the EU will become a whole, only when countries of the Western Balkans, and among them, especially Serbia — become a part of it,” he said. However, he reflected that people in Serbia need to know that the membership in EU can only be realized once a solution is found for the issue of Kosovo and Metohija, Serbian southern province that unilaterally seceded in 2008, in a dialogue between Serbia and authorities in Pristina. “From my angle it is of essential importance for this dialogue to be successfully completed and I ask people to support those politicians that are willing to go down this road. What matters to us is peaceful coexistence, to leave past in the past, and to have stability and peace in future and not destruction and war,” Kurz said, pledging that Austrian government supports any agreement that will lead to a long-term solution. Kurz also met Serbia Prime Minister Ana Brnabic before going to Pristina where he will talk with authorities in the province, and visit some of the 417 Austrian soldiers stationed there within the Kosovo Force led by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).