LOCAL PRESS 

 

Lajcak: Leaders of Serbia, Kosovo make full progress in negotiations (Beta)

 

EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue Miroslav Lajcak said in Brussels on Sept. 7 that "full progress" had been made in the negotiations between the leaders of Serbia and Kosovo on topics opened earlier in the dialogue under the Union's auspices.  "In our meetings, we spoke about economic cooperation and missing and displaced persons – the topics which were opened in our last high-level meeting. And I am happy to announce that we made full progress in the discussions," Lajcak said after a round of talks between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Premier Avdullah Hoti.

 

Vucic said after the meeting that the participants had "essentially harmonized" the issues of missing and internally displaced persons and economic issues, and had opened two new topics, the matter of the Community of Serb Municipalities and the financial demands the two sides were making on each other. 

 

Hoti said that progress had been made toward "reaching a final agreement" with Belgrade, which should be legally binding. 

 

The heads of the Serbian and Kosovo negotiating teams, Marko Djuric and Skender Hyseni 

respectively, will resume talks on the Community of Serb Municipalities on Sept. 17, while the next high-level meeting is set to be held in Brussels on Sept. 28, said Vucic. 

 

The Patriarch: The absolute position of the church is the one in which Kosovo is part of Serbia (Nova.rs)

 

Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church Irinej said today that the only agreement that the Serbian Orthodox Church accepts is the one in which Kosovo is part of Serbia. "That is absolutely the position of the Church and nothing has changed there. We will still see in which direction the negotiations between the Serbian and Albanian sides are going, we are still getting to know the matter" Patriarch Irinej told Nova.rs, commenting on the negotiations that took place between Belgrade and Pristina. 

 

The Patriarch emphasized that the Serbian Orthodox Church would join the negotiations on Kosovo, if an invitation follows. "If someone invites us and gives us a chance, we will join the talks on Kosovo. Otherwise, we will certainly follow how the progress of the negotiation process" Irinej said. 

 

According to him, the representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church are waiting to hear what the original agreement reads, and he personally, as well as the Church, supports the idea of ​​normalizing relations between Albanians and Serbs. "That would be normal. It is necessary to establish a good relationship between those two peoples" Patriarch Irinej said. 

 

Dacic: It's important for trump to see Kosovo's embassy in Jerusalem (Happy TV) 

 

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said on Sept. 7 that it was not unusual that U.S. President Donald Trump had introduced Middle East themes in the Serbian-Kosovo agreement signed in Washington, on Sept. 4, bearing in mind his foreign policy agenda, as well as U.S. internal affairs, the Jewish community in America and all others in favor of his policy of support to Israel. "Trump's strategic goal is to have as many foreign embassies in Jerusalem, and even more so to see Kosovo - if Israel decides to recognize its independence, and it promised it will - opening one as the first Muslim country to do so" Dacic said in an 

interview with the Happy TV, adding that Serbia's delegation at the White House did not allow anything to undermine its relations with Russia and China. Minister Dacic added that signing the Belgrade-Pristina agreement in Washington was a major foreign policy event for Serbia, and that the document would be very useful for the country. 

 

Jeremic: With Washington document Serbia weakens position in talks with Kosovo (Beta)

 

People's Party leader and former chairman of the U.N. General Assembly Vuk Jeremic 

told Beta on Sept. 7 that by an "apparent" violation of Resolution 478, i.e. the decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Serbia had violated international law and conspicuously weakened its chief argument in international activities related to Kosovo policy. Jeremic said that all U.N. Security Council resolutions were binding for all U.N. member states and represented an integral part of international law. He said that Serbia had significantly weakened its own arguments in international relations, because the core of the Kosovo policy was the citing of international law and Resolution 1244. "Therefore, if you are ready to unilaterally violate a Security Council resolution, then that greatly weakens the strength of your appeal when you cite another resolution," Jeremic explained and added that so far, after the U.S. in 2018, only Guatemala had violated Resolution 478, and one had to wonder how that did not raise any red flags for the Serbian delegation in Washington. 

Jeremic further said that the Serbian delegation had not included anyone with any kind of diplomatic experience and that the Serbian Foreign Ministry had not been consulted on the document at all. 

 

Tadic: Vucic's promise to move Tel Aviv embassy against UN & EU (FoNet)

 

Serbia's former President Boris Tadic severely criticized the current head of state Aleksandar Vucic on Monday because of the decision to move the country's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, adding it was the violation of the UN Resolution after the General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to ask nations not to establish diplomatic missions in the historic city. He told a news conference the Washington agreement was "the most devastating step" in Belgrade's foreign policy. "With this agreement, Serbia accepted to move its embassy to Jerusalem, and Israel accepted to recognize Kosovo's independence in return" Tadic said, adding only the US and Guatemala had done it. He said that that on hand it was "extremely sensitive foreign policy issue," after the UN resolution saying it was unacceptable to the Islamic community, and on the other, that Serbia already had good relations with Israel. 

 

The UN passed that Resolution on December 21, 2017, following the US President Donald Trump decision to move his country's embassy to Jerusalem two weeks before when he formally recognized the city as the capital of Israel. 

 

Professor Vojin Rakic, UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for Europe (Haifa), told N1 TV that "such behavior will have serious consequences for Serbia. The consent to the relocation of the embassy to Jerusalem, by which Serbia violated UN Security Council Resolution 478, gives Albanians the right to ask - why then do you persistently insist on Resolution 1244" which is neutral regarding Kosovo's final status. 

 

Tadic said that was an extremely wrong political promise, bearing in mind that it also meant the Israeli's recognition of Kosovo's independence. If that happens, Serbia will be the second country in Europe besides Romania, which announced it in March, despite the European Union's opposition. 

 

Analysts have said that that part of the Belgrade – Pristina agreement signed at the White House was the most important topic for the US President Donald Trump's foreign policy during the campaign for the presidential elections in November. 

 

Commenting on other agreed topics, Tadic said that "after this agreement, it will be irrelevant whether Serbia will recognise Kosovo's independence. That kind of the deal relativises the importance of the recognition because it will be unimportant following all these agreements which implicates the recognition of Kosovo" Tadic told reporters. 

 

Other surprising elements in the agreement were the commitment not to install 5G network "from the insecure suppliers," which referred to the Chinese Huawei company without mentioning it, and some also not specified steps regarding Belgrade relations with Russia. Those are in line with the EU foreign and economic policies which Serbia has to follow once it joins the bloc. But, Tadic said that Vucic jeopardized relations with China and Russia by accepting those points of the White House agreement.     

 

EU warns Serbia, Kosovo about moving embassies to Jerusalem (B92)

 

The European Union warned Serbia and Kosovo on Monday that they could undermine their EU membership hopes by moving their Israeli embassies to Jerusalem, as US President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement about the change left officials in Belgrade and Pristina scrambling to limit the political fallout. 

 

The EU was surprised that Serbia agreed to move its embassy to Jerusalem in a deal brokered by the Trump administration which included Israel recognizing Kosovo. “Serbian officials appeared to be watering down their commitment to Trump, and Kosovo sought to allay concerns among Muslim countries” it said. 

 

“In Belgrade, Serbian officials appeared to be stepping back from the embassy pledge, with Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic saying the final decision will still have to be discussed by the government and will depend on “a number of factors” including future development of ties with Israel. Kosovo’s President Hashim Thaci, meanwhile, was on the phone with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, trying to assuage fears about the decision to recognize Israel expressed by Turkey and the Arab League group of countries. “Such a recognition will not violate under any circumstances the strategic, friendly and fraternal partnership with Turkey” Thaci said after the conversation. 

 

“There is no EU member state with an embassy in Jerusalem. Any diplomatic steps that could call into question the EU’s common position on Jerusalem are a matter of serious concern and regret” European Commission spokesman Peter Stano said. 

 

“Stano, speaking as Serbian President Aleksander Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minster Avdullah Hoti were holding a new round of talks in Brussels on normalizing their relations, said the EU was told in advance only about the economic aspects of the White House event, not about movements in Jerusalem. Vucic and Hoti recommitted to the European track, saying “that they attach the highest priority to EU integration and to continuing the work on the EU-facilitated Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue.” In what was described as a “joint statement” issued by the office of EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, Vucic and Hoti also said they “committed to redoubling their efforts to ensure further EU alignment in accordance with their respective obligations.”   

 

They appeared to play down Friday’s announcement, by saying that “the recently agreed documents in Washington, D.C., building on previous Dialogue-related commitments undertaken by the two parties, could provide a useful contribution to reaching a comprehensive, legally binding agreement on normalization of relations”. 

 

Vucic denies dispute with Russia, says it’s only “an indecent post” by Russia’s FM spokeswoman (Pink TV)

“Belgrade and Moscow are not in any conflict - it is just an indecent move by Maria Zakharova” Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucicsaid in a statement from Brussels for Pink TV. 

 

“They [critics of the Serbian President] said that we are Russian servants and working with the Russians not the Europeans, and now they’re saying that we are in conflict with the Russians. We are not in conflict, apart from an indecent post by the Russia’s Ministry if Foreign Affairs spokeswoman. I am proud of the reaction of the free and independent Serbian state which is protecting its interests and not asking anyone what to do” Vucic said. 

 

Vucic said on Monday that those who criticize him for signing the document in Washington “cannot enter the White House even as a tourist”, as if the fact that he met with the US President Donald Trump was an unprecedented achievement by itself.  Vucic said that he was “leading Serbia as a free country” and that he was “thinking only about its interests”. 

Serbia was “given the most honor” in Washington last week, and “there is nothing humiliating” in the document signed in the presence of Trump, he said. “I am proud of that agreement. We achieved the greatest possible thing in the most difficult conditions” Vucic said. 

 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic also commented the issue, saying that the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Serbia and Russia had “made efforts to close the case of Zakharova’s post” in order to remove any doubts about the two countries’ closeness. “As President Vucic said, this will not leave a mark on our good relations” Dacic said to TV Happy. 

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Bosnia and Herzegovina 

 

Turkovic welcomes signing of agreement on normalization of economic relations between Belgrade and Pristina (Hayat)

Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Minister of Foreign Affairs Bisera Turkovic welcomed on Monday the signing of the agreement on normalization of economic relations between Belgrade and Pristina, stressing that this agreement means progress and normalization of relations in the region. Turkovic pointed out that economic cooperation in the region can be a model for building better relations and stronger connections that will contribute to raising the living standard of all citizens. "I sincerely hope that this, but also future initiatives, will serve as impetus to all countries in the region on the path to the EU and NATO" Turkovic was quoted as saying. 

 

Dodik: Memorandum between B&H CEC and IFES interferes with sovereignty of elections (RTRS)

 

The Republika Srpska (RS) National Assembly (RSNA), at its special session held on Monday, endorsed the statement of Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Milorad Dodik submitted regarding the decision of Croat member of the B&H Presidency Zeljko Komsic and Bosniak member of the B&H Presidency Sefik Dzaferovic under which the proposal of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the B&H Central Election Commission (CEC) and International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is accepted, confirming that the vital interest of the RS has been violated and the decision will not enter into force. In his introductory address to the RSNA Dodik explained that the Decision on approving the signing of the MoU between the B&H CEC and the IFES is very harmful and destructive for the RS vital interests as it interferes with the sovereignty of elections. “The foreign policy is in the hands of the B&H Presidency and that is why consensus must be ensured, if there is no consensus it can be decided on those issues via outvoting, i.e. one member of the Presidency, if deemed as such, may raise the issue of vital national relations, state interests of the RS’’ said Dodik.  

 

Dodik added that according to the memorandum, the IFES together with the B&H CEC wants to deal with all the important aspects of the electoral process “Why would we accept such a thing? Why would we, as the RS, accept to have foreigners in the electoral process that we have been trying to resolve in the B&H Constitutional Court, as well as a foreigner called High Representative’’ said Dodik.  

 

Dodk noted that the electoral process in B&H needs democracy and independence and he believes that the political parties from the RS are ready to participate in such a process. He added: “The election process is something else, it needs to be at the B&H Parliament. But managing the voters’ registers, managing a demographic process is giving the electoral process, the most important process, into the hands of other foreigners. I am not in favor it and I believe that parliamentary majority is not in favor of it’’. 

RS President Zeljka Cvijanovic said that RS institutions need to react in cases when the Serb member of the B&H Presidency is outvoted. She stressed that the adoption of the memorandum represents the illegal interference with the election process in B&H, which began with the illegal appointment of the new convocation of the B&H CEC. ˝They have strong political connections and are closely tied to political parties and SDS and PDP. Another point regarding the convocation is that Bosniak members were not changed, but Serbs and Croats were replaced by people who did not prove through public tenders and vacancies that they can do this job˝ said Cvijanovic.  

 

RS Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic said that the election process cannot be compromised, and the will of citizens is the most important part of the election system. 

 

B&H CEC President Bakalar comments RSNA session (Dnevni avaz)

Commenting the session of Republika Srpska (RS) National Assembly, regarding the Decision on approving of signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Central Election Commission (CEC) and International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), President of B&H Central Election Commission (CEC), Zeljko Bakalar stated that B&H CEC will not receive approval for signing of the Memorandum with IFES, but this changes nothing, as the cooperation with IFES goes back to 1995. “IFES is working exclusively on the issues of strengthening of election administration in B&H and assists elections commissions in the entire world. More intensive cooperation between B&H CEC and IFES starts from 2017, upon the Commission’s demand. Basically, we continue the cooperation whether we sign the Memorandum or not”, said Bakalar.  

 

He added that Memorandum was supposed only to present formalization of the cooperation: “Strengthening of capacities of election administration is based on the issues which regard the cyber security, but we are talking about strengthening of domestic capacities and not about someone from the side interfering with the election process. This is about strengthening of our personnel and technical capacities in order to avoid possible hacker attacks. IFES will send experts who will assist us and these are not American experts, but a French and a local expert” said Bakalar.  

 

Montenegro 

 

Pisonero: The EU expects political dialogue and acceleration of reforms in Montenegro (CDM)

 

In the current post-election context in Montenegro, the European Union expects calm, restraint, inclusive political dialogue and respect for the principles of the union, European Commission spokeswoman Ana Pisonero Hernandez said. She also assessed that with the great turnout in the elections, Montenegrin citizens showed readiness to decide on their own future. 

 

"The forthcoming constitution of the new parliament and the formation of a new government are the exclusive responsibility of Montenegrin political actors. "In recent years, the EU has strengthened cooperation with partners in the Western Balkans on resilience, cyber security and strategic communication to better prepare them to face any unacceptable impact" the European Commission spokeswoman said in response to a question on whether Brussels is worried that foreign actors could use the current situation in Montenegro to encourage instability. 

 

She said that the European Union expects the constitution of a new parliament and the formation of a new government "which will continue the stable path of Montenegro towards the union". "Montenegro has come a long way in the process of joining the union and the coming months must be used to deepen and accelerate political and economic reforms, especially in the area of ​​the rule of law, where the next step is to meet the obligations of Chapters 23 and 24" Pisonero said. 

 

She added that the new Montenegrin government, when formed, is expected to address citizens' expectations regarding progress in the accession process, as well as the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. "The European Union is fully committed to further supporting Montenegro's EU accession process as well as the economic recovery following the Covid19 crisis, including through the forthcoming Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans" Pisonero concluded. 

 

North Macedonia 

 

VMRO-DPMNE to stage protest on Wednesday (MIA)

As of Wednesday, VMRO-DPMNE will start a series of protests, says party leader Hristijan Mickoski. “I urge citizens to come out and protest at 6 pm on Wednesday, September 9. The Ministry of Justice will be the starting point and the Energy Regulatory Commission the final destination. Electricity is expensive and people are poor” Mickoski told Monday’s press conference. He said the protest will be the first in the series of protests in the coming period. Mickoski noted it is time for all dissatisfied political parties, intellectuals, trade unions, associations and individuals to unite against the ruling authorities, which continue to get rich at the people’s expense. 

 

“It is true that we have different viewpoints and maybe different concepts. But people in Tetovo, Bitola, Shtip and Skopje are united by poverty and we must fight against this. We must not allow for a rich government and poor people. We must fight for a system, for values, for our future. As I have already said, a mafia is not toppled by one battle but many, and this is the beginning of their end” stressed Mickoski. 

 

Zaev says protests show opposition’s frustration (MIA)

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said Monday that the opposition’s announcements for mass protests across the country show its frustration of not being in power. PM Zaev said protests are a normal thing in a democracy, while the Government and the parliamentary majority will do its utmost to eliminate arguments for any protest and dissatisfaction among the people. “The opposition is frustrated because it is not in power. Without giving time to see how successful we can be, they demonstrate this frustration” Zaev told reporters. 

 

INTERNATIONAL 

 

A new "apple of discord" in the US - EU relations lies in the Washington Agreement (Sputnik)

One point of the agreement signed in Washington between Belgrade and Pristina, under the US auspices, became a new apple of discord between the USA and the EU. As Sputnik writes, this is a point within the framework of the agreement on the normalization of economic relations between Belgrade and Pristina, and according to which it was agreed that Serbia would move the embassy to Jerusalem. 

 

According to a document signed by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia will become the first European country to open an embassy in Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Senator Ted Cruz were among the first to welcome the decision. 

 

Netanyahu thanked Vucic for the decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and transfer the Serbian embassy to that city. He added that efforts are continuing to persuade other European countries to do the same. The Israeli Prime Minister thanked US President Donald Trump for his contribution to that achievement, and Senator Cruz wrote on Twitter that he welcomed the announcement of the opening of the Serbian embassy in Jerusalem. "This step deepens the ties and I am looking forward to new similar moves" he said. 

On the other hand, completely different messages came from the European Union and Palestine. 

 

EU spokesman Peter Stano said that for Brussels, the issue of moving embassies to Jerusalem is a bilateral announcement by Serbia towards Israel, reminding that the EU's position is known and has not changed. "No EU member has an embassy in Jerusalem, nor a representative office of the European Union. This is in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 478" Stano explained. He also reminded of the conclusions of the EU Summit from December that the position of Brussels is clear and that Israel and Palestine must find a solution on Jerusalem as the capital. "Serbia, which is already negotiating EU accession, must progressively harmonize its policy towards third countries with EU decisions. All diplomatic steps that are not in line with that are a cause for concern" Stano stressed. 

 

An even more violent reaction came from Palestine in the form of a warning that the Palestinian Authority would sever diplomatic relations with any country that moved the embassy to Jerusalem. The Secretary General of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Saeb Erekat, who was the main peace negotiator with Israel, announced that on Twitter. "We appeal to all states to respect international law, including UN Security Council resolutions 478 and 2334. Violation of international law is a sign of weakness, not strength" he wrote. 

 

Despite various signals from the states, the Serbian member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), Milorad Dodik, sent a request for holding a session of the Presidency at which the transfer of the Embassy of B&H from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would be discussed.