LOCAL PRESS

Brnabic: Serbs in Kosovo on brink of humanitarian disaster (Tanjug)

Pristina’s measures in Kosovo and Metohija have brought the Serbs there to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic has said. “The example of what is happening in Kosovo and Metohija is a warning to us about how harmful the consequences of trade and other blockades can be. The taxes on products from central Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina have brought Serbs in our southern province onto the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe, and Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija also suffer the consequences due to the price increases of products,” she told the Third International Conference “Belgrade Strategic Dialogue”, entitled, “The Belt Initiative and the Road to the Balkans”. Brnabic also assessed that the secondary and more serious consequence was the political and security destabilization that arose due to a series of such thoughtless and anti-civilization moves of Pristina, contrary to reason, in the order of things that many wise people in China were aware of two and a half millennia ago. The Serbian prime minister pointed out that Serbia is sincerely determined toward completely free trade and economic cooperation, adding that her country does not believe that isolation can lead to prosperity and advancements.

Stefanovic: We will fight for peace to be preserved and Serbs protected (RTS)

Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said on Saturday that all diplomatic, political and security forces of Serbia are focused on protecting the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija from any harm. Stefanovic told Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) that our country will fight for peace to be preserved at all costs and the Serbs to be protected. We need to protect our people, who are at this moment the most vulnerable, he said, adding this will always be the policy of Serbia.

We cannot allow anyone to harass the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija and violate their rights. Our task is to stand by them and to continue to fight with diplomatic means, Stefanovic underlined.

He said that, unfortunately, Kosovo Albanians do not care about the situation in the region, and that their leadership is not mature or able to understand that any escalation of tensions is scaring off investors, and that that is not only Serbia’s business, but of all countries in the region.

Commenting on the statement of Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister Enver Hoxhaj on the creation of an informal anti-Serb pact in the region or the announcements from Pristina about the formation of a Kosovo army, Stefanovic said that nothing justifies this type of tensions in Kosovo and Metohija. Stefanovic underlined that Belgrade has pointed out that such behavior is not in accordance with international resolutions, UN Security Council Resolution 1244, agreement made within the Brussels agreement and NATO guarantees, but that the Pristina side has always turned a deaf ear to Serbia’s warnings.

Djuric: Every new measure by Pristina is a one-way ticket for disaster of both Serbs and Albanians (RTS)

Reacting to Ramush Haradinaj’s statement that Pristina could undertake even worse steps that have nothing to do with taxes, the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric told RTS: “The things that Pristina is doing is a one-way ticket for the disaster of both Albanians and Serbs and it is finally necessary for someone from the international community to do something before it is too late,” said Djuric.

Djuric: Pristina is destabilizing the region (Politika)

It would be reasonable if Pristina would immediately abolish its 100 percent tax increase on Serbian products, and the creation of Kosovo’s armed forces is a danger to the entire region, Marko Djuric said on Sunday. Djuric told Politika that, would Pristina be behaving reasonably, it would refrain from destabilizing and escalating the situation in the region, adding that neither Serbs, nor Albanians would benefit from it. The establishment of Kosovo’s army is, according to Djuric, illegal. It breaches the Kumanovo Agreement and Resolution 1244, with which the war in Kosovo and Metohija has ended but which is contrary to the constitution which Pristina adopted. Would international law be applied, KFOR would have to disarm any Albanian paramilitary in Kosovo and not help one be formed, he said. “You can’t put weapons into the hands of irresponsible and twisted people and expect they will use it only for military exercises,” Djuric said. Asked whether Belgrade will react if Pristina sends that army to the north where mostly Serbs live, Djuric said that President Aleksandar Vucic has clearly stated that Serbia will not allow any military operations against Serbs as the ones seen during the Yugoslav wars, and to anyone who is smart, this should be enough. He said the negotiations with Pristina over the status of Kosovo were currently put on ice.

Ljajic: Pristina opened Pandora’s box, crisis of EU authority at work (RTS)

Serbian Minister of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications Rasim Ljajic stated on Saturday that trade with businesses in Kosovo and Metohija has been completely interrupted after Pristina’s decision to increase taxes on goods from Serbia proper to 100 percent. Ljajic told RTS that before the introduction of tariffs, the monthly trade amounted to approximately 40 million Euros, and estimated that the consequences of the decision of Pristina will be very high even if this decision is abolished immediately. Commenting the announcement that Kosovo security forces will be transformed into an army, Ljajic says that taxes opened Pandora’s box. “When they saw that nobody’s influence could make them withdraw the tax increase, they figured they can now go for everything else they had planned as well. I think Pristina will not stop on this and will continue creating obstacles which will be detrimental to the entire situation in the region, instead of seeking solutions. If we can’t find final solutions, let’s at least enable the people to live normally,” he said. He does not believe that the authorities in Pristina will bear consequences for the introduction of the 100 percent import tariffs and that he expects that the Standing Committee on Stabilization and Association will only request Pristina once more to abolish the tariffs. We also face the crisis of authority of the European Union because if you cannot solve this kind of dispute, which is simple, then how can you mediate in seeking a political solution to a much more complicated problem, Ljajic asked. Speaking about negotiations on free trade with the Eurasian Economic Union, Ljajic said that 80 percent of the agreement has been harmonized, and voiced expectation that this document will be signed during the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Serbia in January next year.

REGIONAL PRESS

B&H CEC determines results of indirect elections for B&H HoP and RS CoP (FTV)

At a session that took place in Sarajevo on Friday, the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Central Election Commission (CEC) confirmed the results of election of Serb delegates to the B&H House of Peoples (HoP) from Republika Srpska (RS) and delegates to the RS Council of Peoples (CoP). The B&H CEC is yet to decide which population census will be applied in the process of distribution of seats in the Federation of B&H HoP – the one from 1991 or the one from 2013. The deadline for distribution of seats in the Federation of B&H HoP expired on Thursday.

According to the results determined by the CEC, Mladen Bosic, Nikola Spiric, Sredoje Novic, Dusanka Majkic and Lazar Prodanovic got elected to the B&H HoP. According to results of the elections for the RS CoP, delegates from the line of Serb people are: Vukota Govedarica, Ognjen Tadic, Dragan Ristic, Vojislav Gligic, Zivko Marjanac, Miroslav Lazarevic, Jasna Lukic and Slavko Dunjic. Bosniak delegates in the RS CoP are: Faruk Djozic, Dzevad Mahmutovic, Mihnet Okic, Muris Cirkic, Ahmet Cirkic, Alija Tabakovic, Dzemaludin Sabanovic and Igor Bosnjak. Delegates in the RS CoP from line of Croats are: Nada Tesanovic, Ivo Bosnjak, Ivo Mijic, Davor Cordas, Zdenka Gojkovic, Djuro Ivanovic, Ivo Kamenjasevic and Dragana Mikic. Delegates in the RS CoP from line of Others are: Franc Sosnja, Danijel Puhalic, Jovana Carkic and Radenko Rikic.

EU has reacted to an open letter of former High Representatives (BHT1)

The EU has reacted to an open letter of former High Representatives Christian Schwarz-Schilling, Paddy Ashdown and Carl Bildt regarding Croatia’s interference with political processes in B&H. EU Spokesperson Maja Kocijancic stated that legality of the election of members of the B&H Presidency is not being brought into question. She reiterated the EU’s views on the need for rapid formation of all legislative and executive authorities by finding a solution to the issue of the Federation of B&H House of Peoples. “The EU remains committed to supporting the local authorities in the process of finding a sustainable solution,” Kocijancic was quoted as saying.

Lavrov: Protectorate in B&H prevents development of B&H and hampers process of reconciliation (RTRS)

Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov said that protectorate in B&H, which is being maintained thanks to the position of the High Representative, prevents development of B&H and hampers the process of reconciliation. Lavrov also said that the High Representative in B&H has a destabilizing role, noting that instead of protecting the Dayton Peace Accords (DPA), the HR is most often working on its degradation. Lavrov also commented new attempts to strengthen the presence of NATO in the Balkans by saying that this leads to destabilization of Europe, growth of tensions and appearance of new lines of division.

Dodik: Without dialogue on solutions imposed by HRs, B&H should not exist (ATV)

Chairman of the B&H Presidency and SNSD leader Milorad Dodik announced on Sunday that the Republika Srpska (RS) parliament will decide on the new RS government on December 17. Asked whether there will be a change of the Constitution of the RS, as he announced on several occasions, which would be in line with the Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA) and the Constitution of B&H and in which all competences of the RS would be stated, i.e. competences that were taken away from the RS by the self-will of High Representatives, such as indirect taxes, defense, judiciary and intelligence service, Dodik said that he expects the story about the change of the Constitution of the RS to be put on the agenda again in a couple of months. Dodik stressed that SNSD and he, in his former capacity of the RS President, have been working on the concept of the new constitutional system for quite some time. “It basically means adjusting to certain practical and quick solutions, preventing of any kind of delays in decision-making by bodies in the RS and defining some important things,” Dodik said, adding that he believes the death penalty should be removed from the Constitution of the RS. Dodik also stated that without dialogue on solutions imposed by High Representatives, B&H should not exist. He pointed out that legal and political violence of the High Representatives is on the scene in B&H. He underlined that none of laws imposed by the High Representatives was will of the RS. Dodik underlined that “for some time we naively believed to those from the international community who had been convincing us to adopt it and then we can change it. Due to the fact we were naïve, we adopted some laws and now Bosniaks do not want to discuss them.” Talking about formation of the B&H Council of Ministers (CoM), Dodik underlined that RS Minister of Finance Zoran Tegeltija will be SNSD’s candidate for the post of a Chairman of the B&H CoM. Dodik also talked about the recent meeting with US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Palmer. Among other things, Dodik said that the US is a powerful country and that good relations with the US should be priority. Dodik stated that during the abovementioned meeting, the US representatives attempted to convince him about their good intentions. “However, I can talk about many examples regarding their bad intentions and bad activities in B&H they implemented in the previous period,” explained Chairman of B&H Presidency.

Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs replies to letter of three former HRs (HRT)

The Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs issued a statement on Saturday that represent a response to a letter of three former High Representatives (HRs) for Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), Christian Schwarz-Schilling, Paddy Ashdown and Carl Bildt. Among other things, the Ministry’s statement reads that unlike three former High Representatives, official Zagreb has not been interfering in internal issues of B&H, instead it has been fulfilling its international obligations. “Unfortunately, constituent peoples, partly because of decisions of certain High Representatives, are currently not equal, which is a cause for serious concern and can undermine the functionality and stability of B&H,” reads the statement. The Ministry added that latest example of inequality were the elections for members of the Presidency of B&H in October this year, when the Croat member of the B&H Presidency was elected mainly by the votes of members of the Bosniak people. The statement also reminded that decision of the Constitutional Court of B&H passed upon motion filed by Bozo Ljubic annulled some stipulations of the Election Law of B&H because these stipulations failed to provide legitimate and proportional representativeness of constituent peoples in the Federation of B&H House of Peoples. Also, Prime Minister of Croatia Andrej Plenkovic said that it is constitutional obligation of the Croatian Government to protect interests of Croats living outside of Croatia. He stressed that Croatia’s policy “in terms of foreign policy” will resume to insist on this topic.

Greek government swifts focus to constitutional amendments in Macedonia – reactions to Zaev’s statements continue (Nezavisen vesnik)

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev’s statements on the “Macedonian language” brought the strong retort of Alexis Tispras‘ coalition partner and current Defence Minister and leader of Independent Greeks, Panos Kammenos. “It is now obvious that all talks on the survival of the so-called Prespes agreement have come to an end,” Kammenos said, referring to the “provocative behavior and irredentism” from the part of Macedonia. On his part, however, government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said in an interview that all the necessary moves would be made by the government of Macedonia to ensure “the absolute respect for the Prespes agreement from our neighboring country”. As he stressed, there needs to be “a detailed discussion and explanation of certain things in relation to the agreement on the part of fYROM”.

The focus of the Government on the constitutional amendments

In Athens, there have been reports stating that an interpretive statement in relation to the Agreement on Language and Ethnicity is being prepared, something that was condemned by the head of the Greek Prime Minister’s cabinet Vaggelis Kalpadakis. Speaking to reporters in Moscow, where he is accompanying Alexis Tsipras during his visit, he referred to the government spokesman’s statements, Dimitris Tzanakopoulos, stressing that the attention of the Greek government focuses on the process of constitutional amendments.

Tzanakopoulos: It is unlikely that the agreement will not be ratified in the Greek Parliament

At the same time, the turmoil that has been caused in Athens in the wake of Zaev’s statements has raised concern to MPs outside the coalition government who had announced that they would support the deal, mainly from The Potami party. “Progressive forces will realize the necessity to take advantage of the opportunity to finally resolve one of the last hotspots of tension in the Balkans”, said the spokesman of the Greek government, estimating that it is unlikely that the agreement would not be ratified, given that the Constitutional Review has been successfully completed on the part of Macedonia. It is reminded that New Democracy, through its leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has asked the Greek parliamentarians not to ratify the Prespes agreement. What’s more, in the announcement the main opposition party reiterates the accusation to the government that it has granted “the so-called ‘Macedonian ethnicity’ and language, feeding the irredentist claims of Skopje”.

Macedonian Foreign Ministry responds to Bulgarian Deputy PM Karakachanov’s threat over Zaev’s ‘Macedonian language’ (Nezavisen vesnik)

The Foreign Ministry in Macedonia has responded to Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and VMRO party leader Krassimir Karakachanov‘s threat to block the country’s path to the EU and NATO if its Prime Minister Zoran Zaev continues to claim the Prespa Agreement recognizes a “Macedonian language”. Words such as those by Karakachanov could create negative attitudes and hostility instead of friendship, the Foreign Ministry said. “The Republic of Macedonia will continue its active, constructive and good neighborly policy in the future in the spirit of the Treaty with Bulgaria and the European values,” the Foreign Ministry said. Karakachanov, in a statement issued by VMRO on December 8, had advised Zaev not to “misuse” the topic of the Macedonian language. The VMRO leader accused the representatives of Macedonia on the joint commission with Bulgaria on shared history of wanting to “validate a false version of history”. Karakachanov said that he could not accept “people with unclear views and with an inverted reading of the history to slip into NATO and the EU, on the back and at the expense of Bulgaria and historical justice, least of all by pushing the Macedonian language behind the scenes”. He said that unless the joint historical commission acknowledged that up to 1944, the Republic of Macedonia and Republic of Bulgaria had a shared history, he would insist that an annex be added to the bilateral good-neighborliness treaty specifying this.

If this was refused, he would oppose Bulgaria’s support for the neighboring country joining NATO and the EU, he said.

Lavrov: Constitutional changes imposed by blackmailing and bribing lawmakers (Nezavisen vesnik)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that constitutional changes were imposed by blackmailing and bribing the lawmakers and by direct interference of foreign diplomats.

Lavrov said that “large and continuous interfering of NATO and EU in the internal affairs of Macedonia is obvious.” “The referendum as it is known, failed. In this situation, the lawmakers were blackmailed and bribed with direct interference of foreign diplomats including here US ambassador in the country, to vote on constitutional changes in the Parliament on Oct. 19. Now there are frantic attempts to get the process in the final stretch by early 2019, Lavrov told, claiming that Washington’s aim is the speed up accession of Skopje into NATO, and adding, “consultations with Brussels for European integration can take several decades,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Opposition MPs who voted for constitutional changes deny Lavrov’s claims (Meta)

Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said that he blamed the United States and the EU for brutal systematic interference in the internal affairs of Macedonia. In that context, he said that “On October 19, “Parliament passed a resolution on constitutional changes by blackmailing and bribing MPs from the opposition in which foreign diplomats were directly involved, including the US ambassador.” Contrary to claims made by the Russian foreign minister regarding the pressures and bribes inflicted on MPs from the opposition, in which, the current ambassador of the United States directly participated, the eight MPs from VMRO-DPMNE backed the start of the constitutional changes, categorically pointing out that they made the decision of their own free will, in accordance to their convictions.

Nola Ismajloska-Starova:

By my own conviction, I voted “For”. This process must be jointly implemented, I want to be actively involved in it, to help find solutions, and therefore I have decided to open the Constitution. When making the decision, I was guided by a personal desire for the prosperity of Macedonia and I responsibly reject any allegations of threats made to me.

Zekir Ramzilovic:

Instead of waking up to a start of chaos, Macedonia woke up with the beginning of a crisis resolution. These are the real reasons for voting and our decision is a consequence of such efforts made without any pressure from anyone, but as our freely expressed will based on the political responsibility we had at this fateful moment for our country. Everything else is speculation and slander that will not pass unpunished.

Emilija Aleksandrova:

The decision was hard indeed, being aware of the seriousness of the situation both in the country and in politics, and what kind of waves it will cause especially within my own party. However, my colleagues and I firmly believe that we gave it a chance and it is the right path, it is normal to mention once again that only by accepting our conditions.

Ljuben Arnaudov:

I do not think anyone is a traitor. It is not true that we received threats or that we received money. Nothing was promised.

EU Ambassador: Important week for government and opposition (ADN)

The EU Ambassador to Albania, Luigi Soreca, visited on Saturday afternoon the Winter Fair, organized by the EU presence in the country. Soreca was expressed positive about the recommendations’ achievements and said that the upcoming week is an important one for the government and opposition. “During these 90 days of my presence in Albania I have seen progress, ambition to reach the recommendations and see positivity in this regard. We are entering a very important period, such as the agreement on electoral code and judicial reform. An important week is coming for the government and the opposition. They should do their best for the country and the time is now,” said Soreca.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

Macedonia’s Amnesty Caught Between Law and Pragmatism (BIRN, by Vlado Apostolov, 10 December 2018)

While rights experts say the proposed amnesty will violate legal principles and create a dangerous precedent, others view it as a price worth paying to get the ‘name’ agreement with Greece through parliament.

The parliamentary commission tasked with the handling “national reconciliation” in Macedonia is hard at work preparing a draft law. It will offer a selective amnesty to some of those involved in last year’s mob attack on parliament, which was designed to stop the formation of a new government. The planned amnesty will almost certainly cover the opposition VMRO DPMNE MPs party now standing trial for their involvement in the April rampage, but who this October supported the all-import agreement with Greece in parliament, and conditioned their further support on an amnesty. Expectations are that the draft will be presented by the end of this week. Judging by the available data, the only people who will not be amnestied will be the organizers of the attack and those who directly committed violence. Meanwhile, the trial of 30 participants in the events last week heard new testimonies that shed fresh light on events behind the scenes on April 27 last year. These may open a path towards new sets of charges for the alleged organizers of the incident, which main prosecutor in the case, Vilma Ruskovska, is already working on.

Breach of constitutional principles:

Ruskovska is frustrated by the government’s announcement of a selective amnesty when she and her team of prosecutors have invested so much effort in investigating the case. “I don’t know how they plan to package it because a selective amnesty would breach one of the most important constitutional principles, about the equality of all citizens,” Ruskovska said in a recent interview for 1TV. A prominent lawyer, Aleksandar Tortevski, agreed. “The way this law is announced, it will be against the constitution and cannot be done without a serious breach of legal principles,” Tortevski told BIRN. “They should let Mihajlo Manevski do it for them,” Tortevski said ironically, referring to the former Justice Minister from 2006 to 2011 who was seen as the architect of the decay of the justice system under the government of former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski who has since fled the country. Tortevski likened such an amnesty to a “stove made of wood,” which would inevitably get burned. Political science professor and human rights activist Mirjana Najcevska said such an amnesty would continue the culture and practice of impunity that had marred Macedonia for decades. “Such a law would promote violence as a legitimate element of political struggle,” she said. “Impunity for the attack on April 27, 2017 will be a continuation of the impunity for the attack on [opposition] MPs that happened on December 24, 2012. In future, this would produce fresh attacks that would similarly utterly destabilize constitutional order and prevent the establishment of the rule of law,” Najcevska added.

On December 24, 2012, then opposition Social Democratic MPs were violently expelled from parliament by security officers as they tried to block the adoption of the state budget for the following year. The Social Democrat-led government under Zoran Zaev seems aware that the polls show the amnesty is not popular. But it seems determined to push for it, in exchange for securing a much-needed two-thirds majority in parliament to pass the agreement with Greece on changing the country’s name. A final vote on the constitutional changes that form part of the “name” is expected in January. Uneasily aware of their previous statements that matched the slogan: “No Justice, No Peace”, used by the protesters in 2016 that helped topple the Gruevski regime, the new government is not trying to justify the amnesty in terms of principle. Instead, it has shifted the argument towards political pragmatism, repeating that it is ready to pay a political price for its controversial offer. In an interview for BIRN published in late November, the head of the Macedonian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, Uranija Pirovska, warned it not to cross some of its own red lines. “There should always be red lines when it comes to achieving certain political goals. No matter how important they are for Macedonia, they must not be a reason for breaching law and justice,” she said.

Necessary price for a greater good:

On the other hand, some political analysts told BIRN that they saw a selective amnesty, even if it did cross red lines, as a “necessary evil” to achieve the greater good of adopting the “name” agreement with Greece, as this would open up Macedonia’s stalled Euro-Atlantic perspectives.

Political analyst Gordan Georgiev said the government and the entire country trod a thin line.

“The role of the government, and to a lesser degree, of the opposition, is to create conditions for opening or solving the big issues that may have a key impact on the future and even on the survival of our country,” he said. “In a situation where a large majority of citizens are against any kind of amnesty, the role of the government is to find the middle ground, which will allow it to move forward through the crisis without paying too high price for it … for the future health of the whole of society.” Georgiev summarized that if the scope of the amnesty was too wide, that would legitimize similar violent precedents in future, while if its scope was too narrow, that would result in the failure of the “name” agreement. “Cynicism – which has become our only credo for coping with the Macedonian political mist – teaches: ‘Do what you can, damn it, as long as we don’t pay too high a price!’” Georgiev concluded. Political science professor Nenad Markovic, who supports the “name” agreement, agreed. He told BIRN that the only thing worse than the adoption of the name agreement this way, with all the suspicions of political bargaining, would be if it failed to get adopted. “If the agreement fails to pass the phases so far, that will be a complete and absolute defeat for all of us,” Markovic said.