LOCAL PRESS 

UNMIK’s engagement continues to be necessary in Kosovo and Metohija (srbija.gov.rs)

Serbian Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic stated today in talks with the Head of the UN Office in Belgrade Simona MirelaMiculescu that the United Nations are especially important for the protection of our sovereignty and territorial integrity. Selakovic underlined that Serbia considers the United Nations the most important international organization, which is also important for the protection of the cultural and religious heritage in Kosovo and Metohija, where the role of UNESCO is invaluable. He underlines the importance of UNMIK’s engagement, pointing to the significance of its continuous presence in the province towards creating conditions for a normal and dignified life of the Serbs and other non-Albanian communities in our southern province. According to him, UNMIK should remain engaged in all issues of importance for the consistent implementation of UNSCR 1244, in a non-reduced scope and with an unchanged mandate.

The Minister also pointed to the importance of the continued examination of the issue of Kosovo and Metohija at the UN Security Council sessions, adding that Serbia attaches great importance to the reports of the UN Secretary General on UNMIK’s work, which are necessary for the most objective presentation of facts and realistic assessment of the situation on the ground. For Serbia, as he explained, it is important that the Security Council and the international community are informed on a regular basis and in a transparent manner about the political and security situation in Kosovo and Metohija, especially in view of the position of the Serbs and other non-Albanians, rule of law, respect of human rights, protection of cultural and religious heritage, as well as all other problems faced by the Serbs and other non-Albanians in the province. Selakovic expressed gratitude to Miculescu for the excellent cooperation that the government and the relevant ministry had with the UN Office during her mandate, as well as the belief that the cooperation will continue with the same intensity in the following period.

Selakovic: Serbia highly appreciates India’s principled position regarding Kosovo and Metohija (RTV) 

Serbian Foreign Minister Nikola Selakovic met today with Ambassador of India to Serbia Subrata Bhattacharjee, who handed over to Minister Selakovic a letter of congratulations from Indian Minister of Foreign Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on the occasion of Selakovic’s appointment to the position of foreign minister. Selakovic stated that he will invest personal efforts in the further improvement of friendly relations and cooperation of the two countries, which are firmly based on the values of the Non-Aligned Movement and added that economic cooperation has a lot of unused potential. Selakovic said that Serbia highly appreciates India’s principled position regarding Kosovo and Metohija, by which it keeps its role of a guardian and creator of a more just international order, based on the respect for the fundamental principles of international law. Selakovic thanked India for a sincere support to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Serbia and explained that Belgrade is fully committed to dialogue with Pristina, as the only sustainable solution for the peace and stability in the Balkans and the economic and social prosperity of the region. Expressing satisfaction over the additional strengthening of close ties between Serbia and India through the exchange of visits at the high and highest level, Selakovic underlined that Serbia would be very honored to host President of India Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Nerendra Modi, who were personally invited by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to visit Serbia, according to a statement from the Serbian Foreign Ministry.

Stankovic: Dismissal of Serbs in Bujanovac may be interpreted as provocation (Politika/Novosti) 

The Chairperson of the Coordinating Body for Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja municipalities Zoran Stankovic assessed on Monday that the proposals of the Bujanovac authorities to appoint an Albanian minister for the honorary citizen of Bujanovac and to dismiss the only two Serb directors in the local self-government do not contribute to progress and unity. “Such a move may be interpreted as provocation,” he said. Stankovic says that tolerance and patience are not only an obligation of one side, in this case the state, but every citizen of this country has rights and obligations, while political leaders have also responsibility. When it comes to the decision of declaring Albanian Foreign Minister Gent Cakaj an honorary citizen, Stankovic says the law is clear and the matter is defined by the Law on Local Self-Government. “This Law stipulates that the local self-government can decide on awarding the title ‘honorary citizen’ to a person whose work and achievements are of special significance for the municipality along with the previous approval of the ministry in charge of local self-government affairs,” said Stankovic. We will continue, he adds, to work on enabling all citizens living in the three municipalities good conditions for life and work along with respecting the Serbian Constitution and laws.

EU sources: No reason why change in Washington should affect Belgrade-Pristina dialogue (Beta) 

Efforts are being made to organize a high-level meeting within the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and there is no reason why the change at the top in Washington should affect that process, EU sources told Beta in Brussels. It is still premature and EU High Representative Josep Borrell and special representative for the dialogue Miroslav Lajcak have not received any indication of the intentions and the way in which Washington might help the EU in the dialogue, given that the US administration teams have yet to be formed and to define their political programs, said the officials in Brussels. This was their answer to Beta’s question of whether it could be glimpsed how the new head of the White House, Joseph Biden, and his cabinet planned on leading the policy in the Balkans and supporting the EU in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, keeping in mind that some in Kosovo Albanian political circles have been calling for its suspension. There is no such indication yet and so any speculation and questions “are premature”, the sources stressed, “more so since the dialogue is an EU-facilitated process which is linked to the EU path of Kosovo and Serbia and the dynamics of it and its future depend exclusively on the EU and of course on Belgrade and Pristina and their ability to move forward with the agreement and necessary compromise”.

Majority of Serbians opposed to NATO membership (Beta) 

The Center for Free Elections and Democracy (CeSID) said that three fourths of the population of Serbia are opposed to NATO membership. CeSID official Ivo Colovic told a Belgrade NATO Week conference that just 14 percent of the 800 people polled have a positive attitude towards cooperation with the Alliance. He said that half the polled said that they favor EU membership, adding that the people who are opposed to EU membership are aged 18-29 and over the age of 60.

REGIONAL PRESS 

 

B&H CEC: 96.22 percent of ballots processed so far (RTRS)

The Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Central Election Commission (CEC) stated on Monday evening that 96.22 percent of ballots from the local elections held in B&H on Sunday were processed so far. According to the B&H CEC, there were 94.02 percent valid ballots and 5.98 percent of invalid ballots. Voters had a chance to vote for 114 political parties and 425 candidates.

Media carry names of newly elected Mayors and Heads of Municipalities (Hayat)

Hayat presented the results of the 15 November local elections in line with the latest preliminary results of the elections published by the B&H CEC. According to the map, SDA won the elections in the Federation of B&H (FB&H) with 26 posts for city mayors and heads of municipalities. HDZ B&H won 20 posts for city mayors and heads of municipalities, SDP B&H won seven posts for city mayors and heads of municipalities, while the parties gathered around The Four, NBL, SNSD and HDZ 1990 won three posts for city mayors and heads of municipalities each. Independent candidates won posts for city mayors and heads of municipalities in four local communities. The biggest changes in the elections happened in the Sarajevo Canton (SC). NS’ Srdjan Mandic is the new Head of the Sarajevo Center Municipality, NiP’s Hasan Tanovic is the new Head of the Novo Sarajevo Municipality, NiP’s Nermin Muzur is the new Head of the Ilidza Municipality, while the election race is uncertain in the Ilijas Municipality and the Novi Grad Sarajevo Municipality between SDA and NiP. As for the Stari Grad Sarajevo, Hadzici, Trnovo and Vogosca Municipalities, the current heads of municipalities were reelected. As for the City of Bihac, current Mayor of Bihac Suhret Fazlic (POMAK) was reelected, while in the City of Zenica current Mayor of Zenica Fuad Kasumovic was reelected as independent candidate. In Visoko, current Prime Minister of the Zenica-Doboj Canton Mirza Ganic won the post of Visoko Mayor, while in Tuzla current Mayor of Tuzla Jasmin Imamovic (SDP B&H) was reelected to the same post. When it comes to the RS, SNSD was defeated in Bijeljina where SDS’ Ljubisa Petrovic won the post of Bijeljina Mayor. SNSD was also defeated in Banja Luka where PDP’s Drasko Stanivukovic won the post of Banja Luka Mayor. According to the latest data from Srebrenica, SNSD’s Mladen Grujicic has a lead ahead of SDA’s Alija Tabakovic. In Velika Kladusa, the latest data indicate that current Head of Velika Kladusa Municipality Fikret Abdic will be reelected to this post.

Future convocations of municipal councils already outlined (Dnevni avaz)

The B&H CEC started publishing results for municipal councils but those are still based on a very small number of ballots. The daily noted that it is still too early to speak about the number of mandates individual parties won, but future convocation of councils can be clearly presumed. In Centar Municipality of Sarajevo, People and Justice (NIP) won the highest number of votes, followed by SDA and Our Party (NS), while the parties which crossed the threshold were SDP, Platform for Progress, SBB B&H and DF-GS coalition. In Novo Sarajevo Municipality, NIP won the highest number of votes, followed by NS and SDA, while SDP, Platform for Progress, Independent B&H List (NBL), DF-GS Coalition and SBB B&H crossed the threshold. In Stari Grad Municipality of Sarajevo, NBL won the highest number of votes, followed by SDA and NIP, while NS, Alliance for Stari Grad, SBB B&H, Platform for Progress and LDS crossed the threshold. In Novi Grad Sarajevo Municipality, SDA won the highest number of votes, followed by NIP, NS and Platform for Progress. The parties which crossed the threshold were SDP, BOSS, DF-GS, SBB B&H and USD B&H. In Tuzla, SDP won the highest number of votes, followed by SDA and Social-democrats of B&H. The threshold was crossed by ‘Tuzlanska alternativa’, SBB B&H, Platform for Progress, DF, NS, SBiH, PDA and HDZ B&H. In Zenica, Fuad Kasumovic’s ‘Zenicka inicijativa’ will most likely have the majority, followed by SDA, SDP, Social-democrats of B&H, A-SDA, Independent Bloc with Senad Sepic at the helm, SBB B&H and NIP. In Banja Luka, SNSD will have the majority, followed by PDP, SP RS, DNS, United Srpska and SDS. In Trebinje, SNSD maintained the majority, followed by the List of Nebojsa Vukanovic and SDS.

Media bring preliminary results of elections in RS (N1)

N1 reported about preliminary results of the local elections held in the Republika Srpska (RS) on Sunday, reminding that counting of votes is still underway. According to N1, two out of the three ruling parties in B&H suffered a big defeat based on the preliminary results which is especially visible in Sarajevo and Banja Luka; SNSD suffered defeat in Banja Luka, Bijeljina and Semberija despite of the fact that they won over 60 percent of local communities. Thus, factions and divisions within SNSD and within the coalition have come to the surface. When it comes to Banja Luka, candidate of the opposition for a new Mayor of Banja Luka Drasko Stanivukovic declared victory in this race and their supporters celebrated in Banja Luka on Sunday evening while at the same time, members of SNSD were shocked that their candidate Igor Radojicic was defeated. Addressing a press conference, leader of SNSD Milorad Dodik removed Radojicic from the post of Head of SNSD City Board in Banja Luka and announced that he will take over this position. Dodik said that he wishes Radojicic to get well soon, adding that SNSD will negotiate with him about their future cooperation. Dodik underlined: “We are not giving up on him, although Banja Luka obviously did”. Candidate of SDS-PDP Ljubisa Petrovic won the seat of Mayor of Bijeljina, candidate of the coalition ‘Zajedno za Semberiju i Srpsku’ Mico Micic was defeated and thus, Bijeljina remained a bastion of SDS. Member of SDS Milan Milicevic again won and he will remain Head of Teslic Municipality. SNSD again won the power in Trebinje, Zvornik, Istocno Sarajevo and won the power in Prijedor where SNSD’s Dalibor Pavlovic won the seat of Mayor of Prijedor. After nearly 30 years, SNSD won the power in Gacko. The United Srpska won two seats for heads of municipalities, while the List ‘Za pravdu i red’ led by Nebojsa Vukanovic turned out to be the second strongest in Trebinje. Unlike the list ‘Banja Luka zove’, NDP led by Dragan Cavic and the movements ‘Pravda’ and ‘Poligraf’ did not reach the election threshold.

SNSD, United Srpska, SP are content with preliminary results of elections; Dodik: We win 48 out of 63 local communities (RTRS)

RTRS brings reactions of SNSD, SP and the United Srpska about preliminary results of the local elections held in the RS on Sunday. According to SNSD Executive Committee, the local elections were held under difficult conditions of the Coronavirus pandemic and they welcomed the democratic commitment of citizens of the RS by saying that votes and the result oblige SNSD to continue with the policy and activities of economic stability, maintaining employment and realization of development projects in the entire RS. Leader of SNSD Milorad Dodik said that he is content and that the party will have 45 heads of municipalities and along with victory of their coalition partners, they will win in 48 out of the 63 local communities. Dodik also expressed his content with the overall results in the Herzegovina area. The United Srpska stated that they are way satisfied with results of the local elections. Leader of the United Srpska Nenad Stevandic said that this party registered the highest growth at the elections and expressed his content with the fact that they won two seats for heads of municipalities in Stanari and Bratunac. SP also stated that they are content with the result that they achieved at the elections. Leader of SP Petar Djokic said that they will win around 91 seats in municipal assemblies; 88 in the RS and three in the Federation of B&H.

SNSD wins most votes for posts of mayor and municipality head in 42 local communities in RS; DNS loses its stronghold in Prijedor (ATV)

ATV reports that SNSD won the most votes for posts of mayor and municipality head in 42 local communities in the RS. Entire Potkozarje gave its trust to the biggest party in the RS. This year's local elections in B&H brought certain surprises. The biggest turnaround happened in Prijedor where DNS lost its stronghold. Namely, SNSD's candidate for the post of Prijedor Mayor Dalibor Pavlovic won 45,83 percent of the votes, leaving behind opponents from DNS Dragutin Rodic and SDS Maja Dragojevic-Stojic. As things currently stand, SNSD and its coalition partners will form parliamentary majority in Prijedor. The big surprise of these local elections is Derventa. According to current indicators, after four terms in office, current Head of Derventa Municipality Milorad Simic failed to win a fifth term. However, given that difference between Simic and his opponent Vlado Kovacevic (SNSD) amounts to only two percent, SNSD expects the election result in Derventa to turn in their favor. SNSD and its coalition partners have majority in Derventa Municipal Assembly as well. Long-term Head of Brod Municipality Ilija Jovicic lost to SDS' Zoran Vidic who won 58.99 percent of the votes. However, although SNSD lost the post of Head of Brod Municipality, SNSD's candidates for councilors in Brod Municipal Assembly are in the lead with 29.21 percent of the votes. SNSD lost Modrica as well. Namely, voters in Modrica have elected SDS' Jovica Radulovic as the new Head of Modrica Municipality. Voters in Stanari have elected candidate of 'United Srpska' Radojica Celic as the Head of Stanari Municipality. Celic had only 99 votes more than SNSD's Dusan Panic. However, SNSD candidates for the posts of councilors in Stanari Municipal Assembly won as much as 44.09 percent of the votes. Bosko Jugovic was reelected as the Head of Pale Municipality, defeating the candidate of the opposition, Nenad Vukovic. There were big surprises in Herzegovina as well. SNSD's candidate for the post of Gacko Municipality Head won the elections. Thus, SDS lost one of its strongholds in Herzegovina. SNSD's Zoran Adzic was reelected as Gradiska Mayor, while SNSD's Zoran Stevanovic was reelected as the Mayor of Zvornik. Current Trebinje Mayor Mirko Curic was also reelected to his post. In municipalities with majority Serb population in the Federation of B&H (FB&H), SNSD candidates won municipality head posts in three of the four municipalities, including Drvar, Glamoc and Bosansko Grahovo. Candidate of the SNSD-DNS Mladen Kljajic won the race for a new Head of the Municipality Krupa na Uni. Candidate of SNSD Dragan Mastikosa also won the race for a new Head of Ostra Luka Municipality and according to Mastikosa, the coalition made of six parties will have 12 out of the 15 delegates in the municipal assembly. SNSD’s Miroslav Drljaca again won and he will remain Head of Novi Grad Municipality for the next four years and SNSD won the majority of seats in the Novi Grad Municipal Assembly. SNSD’s Radenko Reljic also won the race for a new Head of Kozarska Dubica Municipality and thus, he remains on this post for four more years. After eight years, SNSD won the power in Kostajnica as their candidate Nikola Janjetovic won the seat of Head of Kozarska Dubica Municipality.

SNSD's Jerinic reelected as Doboj Mayor (ATV)

ATV reports that SNSD's Boris Jerinic was reelected as Doboj Mayor in Sunday's local elections in B&H. According to the preliminary results of the local elections in B&H, Jerinic won 34,734 or 82.3 percent of the votes. SP candidate for the post of Doboj Mayor Srdjan Todorovic won 13 percent of the votes, while SDS' candidate Cvijan Filipovic won 4.8 percent of the votes. Jerinic stated that in the next four years, he will lead Doboj in a well-known way. "A lot of projects that were commenced, a lot of obligations ahead of us and this is not an individual victory, this is victory of the City of Doboj, the City of Doboj wants to take a big step forward," Jerinic stressed. SNSD will have absolute majority in Doboj City Assembly. SNSD is one of the five political parties that crossed the threshold in Doboj and it won between 22 and 24 out of a total of 31 post in Doboj City Assembly. SP, DEMOS and Coalition 'Doboj at Heart' each won two councilor posts in Doboj City Assembly, while DNS won one councilor post in Doboj. President of the Doboj City Election Commission Nenad Paleksic said that election irregularities that occurred did not have an impact on the results of the elections in Doboj. However, the opposition is not giving up on its demand to annul the elections in Doboj. Five political subjects signed a joint statement and forwarded it to the B&H Central Election Commission (CEC). The Doboj City Election Commission received 251 complaints and most of them were related to the inability of observers to access polling stations. The elections in Doboj were also marked by a high turnout of as much as 73 percent, as well as by the fact that SDS with only 400 votes did not cross the election threshold.

HDZ B&H wins local elections in majority of municipalities predominantly inhabited by Croats (BHT1)

HDZ B&H won the local elections in the majority of municipalities predominantly inhabited by Croats. In some municipalities, HDZ B&H marked the election victory independently, while in some this political party was in coalition with other Croat parties. HDZ B&H once again won the posts of Heads of Municipalities and Mayors of Cities in Usora, Zepce, Siroki Brijeg, Grude, Ravno, Citluk, Capljina, Stolac, Kiseljak, and Kresevo. Aside from the senior personnel, HDZ B&H’s new local officials have won the posts in Neum, Ljubuski, and Posusje. HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic stated that around 60-70% of HDZ B&H’s councilors in the local councils are new figures. In addition, HDZ 1990 won a larger number of posts of local councilors, along with the post of Head of Prozor-Rama Municipality where its member Jozo Ivancevic won his fourth mandate. In a phone statement to BHT1, HDZ 1990 leader Ilija Cvitanovic noted that HDZ 1990 won the posts of Heads of Municipalities in Prozor-Rama and Odzak, as well as Tomislavgrad in coalition with HNP, and posts in Vitez and Novi Travnik in coalition with HDZ B&H. “I believe that we will mark victory in Uskoplje, too. I am pleased with the results,” he said. HRS leader Slaven Raguz told BHT1 that HRS won posts of local councilors in eight municipal and city councils. He stressed that HRS won multiple posts in Livno along with Capljina.

Irregularities reported during local elections 2020 (Hayat)

The Coalition for Free and Fair Elections ‘Pod Lupom’ reported on Monday that the voter turnout in the 2020 local elections was 51 percent, which is lower by 2.88 percent compared to the local elections in 2016. Part of analysts believe that lower turnout results from the epidemiological situation caused by the Coronavirus pandemic and that this could be a reason why some of the citizens have decided not to vote, while others argue that lower turnout has nothing to do with the epidemiological situation because 52 to 54 percent represents B&H’s usual turnout in the election cycles and this means that more than one million citizens do not vote in the elections. The ‘Pod Lupom’ Coalition also stated that the election day on Sunday passed normally at most of the polling stations, but that certain number of irregularities were registered in the election process. ‘Pod Lupom’ presented a preliminary assessment on Monday that the day of the local elections, on Sunday, passed in line with the law at the majority of the polling stations. However, ‘Pod Lupom’, whose observers monitored the election processes, detected certain irregularities that tend to reoccur every election cycle. ‘Pod Lupom’ detected a combination of different election irregularities at 4% of the polling stations. According to ‘Pod Lupom’, such irregularities could point to different intentional manipulations. ‘Pod Lupom’ thus announced the intention to request recount of votes at the most critical polling stations at which the serious violations of the election rules were recorded. Specifically, around 200 critical situations were reported to ‘Pod Lupom’ on the election day, and the largest number of them refers to depriving their observers of the right to access the polling stations or irregularities detected during voting. Other irregularities refer to the lack of election materials. Nearly 30% of the cases involved wrong manner of packing the materials, while 6% of the cases included damage indicating that the voting material had been opened. ‘Pod Lupom’ reported noticing cases where one person was given multiple ballots, where one person voted multiple times, or where someone voted on behalf of someone else, at 36 locations. The situation in which voters arrived with an already completed ballot and left with a set of empty ballots was registered in Vares, Prijedor, Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje, Novo Sarajevo, Stari Grad, and Brcko District. Director of ‘Pod Lupom’ Dario Jovanovic said: “Sunday night, we recorded in Novi Grad at least 29 bags that were open when they arrived in the premises of the local election commission. The election race there is still tight and it refers to a difference of 300 votes.” Jovanovic stressed that determining the results at the polling stations mainly passed in accordance with the law, but there were certain suspicious situations. He specified that, at 24 polling stations, there were pens at the desk where the ballots were counted, which indicates a possible case of adding votes. Representative of ‘Pod Lupom’ and former member of the B&H Central Election Commission (CEC) Vehid Sehic announced that the Election Law should be amended in a way that the voting material from the polling stations would be monitored by the police as well as the observers, to eliminate the suspicion of manipulating the materials. In a video statement to BHT1, representative of Transparency International B&H (TI B&H) Srdjan Traljic emphasized that TI B&H discovered irregularities regarding violations of election silence, where text messages were used for lobbying for certain candidates. Traljic added that some citizens reported that they came to their polling station only to discover that they were registered for absentee voting.

Dodik announces financing of Banja Luka from RS level will cease due to election result (O kanal)

President of SNSD Milorad Dodik admitted the defeat of his party in the elections in Banja Luka on Monday. Namely, candidate of SNSD Igor Radojicic lost to candidate of PDP and SDS Drasko Stanivukovic. Dodik assessed the loss as a big one for SNSD and believes that citizens of Banja Luka were not fair towards his candidate. He announced that there is no way that SNSD and their coalition partners will cooperate with PDP and Stanivukovic and everyone who believes otherwise is delusional. Dodik announced that all investments financing of the city of Banja Luka from the RS level will cease. “We will stop all financing from the RS level until we see how the city will develop and relate politically. In any case, I believe that, definitely I want to say that this has been a big mistake of those that think they have their rights and in this way, I will not forgive them what they did to Igor (Radojicic). This is not a threat, this is my personal opinion and I have the right to this, as a human,” said Dodik. Also, Dodik announced detailed analysis of results of elections in Banja Luka. Commenting on Dodik’s threats, Stanivukovic stated that such statements of Dodik represents revenge against citizens of the biggest city in the RS. He said that Dodik as the Serb member of B&H Presidency should not interfere in the relations in Banja Luka, reminding that Dodik today demonstrates completed different stances from those he presented on the election day on Sunday. Stanivukovic stressed that he does not need parliamentary majority but he needs honest work of all city bodies, concluding that political setting of accounts must be ended because that will not bring any benefit to citizens. He announced that he is open for the cooperation with everyone who worked hard and honorably in Banja Luka, regardless of their political affiliation. PDP leader Branislav Borenovic immediately reacted to Dodik's statement saying that whoever loses has the right to be angry. “But, no one has the right to take revenge and punish the citizens for their political defeat. Besides illegally mixing the RS, local and competences he has at the B&H level, in his irrational statements and vengeful messages that he has been sending to the citizens of Banja Luka as of last night (Sunday night), Dodik surpassed both himself and the level of arrogance he usually displays,” Borenovic was quoted as saying.

 

PM sending message of reconciliation with delegation to Vukovar (Hina)

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Monday Deputy PM Boris Milosevic would be in the Remembrance Day procession in Vukovar on Wednesday and that this was an important message in line with the government's policy of reconciliation and looking to the future. Speaking to the press, Plenkovic said he would be joined in the procession by Milosevic of the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS), Deputy PM Tomo Medved, and ministers Natasa Tramisak, Mario Banozic and Josip Aladrovic. Ministers Gordan Grlic Radman, Marija Vuckovic and Ivan Malenica will go to the commemoration in Skabrnja. Plenkovic said Milosevis's going to Vukovar was a very important message of honoring the victims of Vukovar and the Homeland War. "I think it is in line with our policy, the policy of reconciliation, looking to the future, coexistence." He recalled that Milosevic came to Knin in August on the occasion of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, while Medved went to Grubori and he to Varivode.

Plenkovic said the presence of the Deputy PM in Vukovar would bring full circle "gestures which are important, valuable, essential for Croatia in the fourth decade of its democracy, respecting the Homeland War, remembering the sacrifice of Croatian defenders, notably those who gave their lives in Vukovar, Skabrnja and other parts of Croatia.

 

Meeting between representatives of the Socialist People’s Party and Krivokapic (CdM)

Representatives of the Socialist People’s Party had a meeting with Zdravko Krivokapic to discuss the remaining open issues in relation to delegating staff in the new administration. According to the unofficial information, this party wants 12 directors in administrations (agencies), 4-5 ambassador functions, 30 directors of schools, 5 directors of hospitals or healthcare centers, as well as 5 directors in public institutions. Vasilije Lalosevic  told journalists that they had to their best to form the government on 2 December. “We want Montenegro of equal chances. The meeting was good and we are on the right way to stating that it will not be as it used to be. The new government will show responsibility for everybody. We will propose candidates and we have people to cover important positions. Citizens should not worry. We will be rational, as they expect us to be,” Lalosevic said. President of this party, Vladimir Jokovic, didn’t attend the meeting. He has said earlier that this party has no objections to the proposed composition of the government.

I think the parties will get seats in the government (RTCG)

According to the percentage of participation in the government, political parties will also get seats in the future government, said SNP official Vasilije Lalosevic after the meeting with Prime Minister-designate Zdravko Krivokapic. Lalosevic also stated that after today's meeting he would make a list of candidates for places by depth. He also said that it was not a fight for positions and that the SNP would nominate the best people. "It is too early to talk about the places that the SNP is looking for", Lalosevic stated and explained that it’s about 300 to 400 positions. He also stated that all appointments would be made in a legal manner.

"We will nominate people, not only for seats but also for management boards and for everything else, but it is too early to say, we have people who would cover very responsible positions," Lalosevic said. He also said that the people should not worry, because, as he added, changes would happen after 2 December. "There will be changes, we will behave domestically, rationally, as the people expect from us," Lalosevic said. He also said that everything must be done for Montenegro to get a government on 2 December that would unblock the system, which, as he added, was not good. "We want Montenegro of equal opportunities for all, Montenegro that solves problems, and this meeting is for that purpose and it was very fruitful," Lalosevic concluded.

 

Dimitrov: At the moment we have negative stance from Bulgaria (Telma)

 

Bulgaria’s stance is currently negative and Macedonia’s negotiating framework will not be adopted at the EU General Affairs Council (GAC) on Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs, Nikola Dimitrov, said Monday on TV Telma. “Our issue will probably be discussed, but given all the statements, especially this weekend there were many statements from Sofia on this issue, and given the procedures in the EU, no decisions will be made tomorrow. The negotiating framework will not be adopted,” Dimitrov said. According to the latest information coming from the EU, the German presidency will not adopt the negotiating framework unless a consensus is secured, and at this point, says Dimitrov, it is clear that we have a negative stance from our eastern neighbor. The Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs stressed that the government remains committed to finding a solution, because the stakes are high for us, as well as for the EU and Bulgaria, but said that issues such as language or identity are not up for discussion. Dimitrov said that if the blocking of the start of Macedonia’s EU accession negotiations continues, then it would be good to focus on the reform agenda at home and wait for the EU to find a European solution that will not interfere in Macedonian identity issues. “We will talk as long as there is minimal room for some success, but we will not talk about issues that are not up for discussion. Our position is crystal clear. If the Macedonian language is an obstacle for the first international conference, then okay, let there be no conference. In October we received a report on how far we’ve come and how ready we are for membership. The reports are comparable in the region. This year we are first in terms of democracy, democratic institutions, media, rule of law. This means that the accession process itself does not work wonders. If the EU continues like this, we do not know how it will continue, it would be nice to focus on the reform agenda at home, regardless if there will be negotiations. And to invite member states to help us from outside. For example, a country that is a leader in the rule of law, let’s invite it to help us in judicial reforms. It will be bad if we get into some desperation of endless waiting. We must keep the reform condition. So that we are in shape when the EU provides a European solution,” says Dimitrov.

Mickoski to call leaders’ meeting with Sela and Gashi, invite Ahmeti, Thaci and Kasami as well (Republika)

The leader of VMRO-DPMNE, Hristijan Mickoski, said at a press conference that these days he would invite the leaders of the opposition parties to a leaders’ meeting to discuss the future of Macedonia, if the government does not do that. “If the government does not do it, these days I will invite the leaders of the opposition parties to a leaders’ meeting. The meeting will focus on the future of Macedonia, all the accumulated problems that are a result of the bad policies of Zoran Zaev. They bribed, blackmailed and managed to obtain 10,000 votes more than VMRO-DPMNE. That bribe today has led us to the abyss, to choose either assimilation or European integration. We cannot agree with that, it is necessary to reset society, we need new politicians who will be able to fight for Macedonia’s EU accession in a dignified manner,” said Mickoski. He added that in addition to opposition leaders Zijadin Sela and Afrim Gashi, he will also invite the leaders of the parties in power with Zaev to attend the leaders’ meeting.

 

White House deal, a farce (ADN)

The current state of Albanian-Greek relations, the chances for the start of the first intergovernmental negotiations of Albania and North Macedonia with the EU within this year, COVID-19’s impact on the Western Balkans and EU’s effort to support the region were among the issues discussed with Assoc. Prof. Nikolaos Tzifakis, Chair of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of the Peloponnese in an exclusive interview with Albanian Daily News (ADN). “The bilateral relations are very good and the agreement among the two countries to bring the delimitation of maritime borders to the International Court of Justice is a very positive development. It is an issue that was meant to be resolved a decade ago. The idea of bringing the dispute to international justice is mutually beneficial for the two countries, said Tzifakis, who is also Research Associate with the Martens Centre for European Studies. His research focuses on international relations theory, EU external policies and the Balkans. His publications include articles published in Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Conflict Security Development, Ethnopolitics, European Foreign Affairs Review, Global Society, International Journal, Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Problems of Post-Communism, and Southeast European and Black Sea Studies. According to Professor Tzifakis, the compromise solution of the delimitation of maritime borders through an International Court verdict minimizes the political cost for both of them. “It also carries the expectation of avoiding another complication with Albania’s Constitutional Court and it creates a very good precedent for the delimitation of the Greek-Turkish maritime borders.” In the meantime, he confessed that the prevailing view in Greece is that Prime Minister Edi Rama contested the 2009 agreement in the Albanian Constitutional Court to please the Turkish side, and due to this some Greek analysts doubt his commitment to this issue. “They think that the Albanian government is just interested in clearing the way from all possible obstacles to opening EU accession negotiations ahead of the April 2021 parliamentary elections.” His opinion on the reluctance of the Netherlands and other EU member states to concede to the opening of EU accession negotiations with Albania is not entirely unfounded, because in his view the country has been an underperformer in justice reforms with a non-functioning Constitutional Court for a long period of time, in electoral reforms, and in the combat against corruption and organized crime. The Professor hastened to say that he was not implying that Albania should not be invited to open accession negotiations. “Quite the contrary, this is long overdue. I am just arguing that the Albanian authorities have not tried very hard to dissipate the concerns of those believing that the country has made insufficient progress. The Albanian government has not convincingly demonstrated that it has the political will to pass from a procedural to a genuine compliance with EU rules and norms.” The Professor dwelt also on the election results in the US which, as he said, represent a clear message of disapproval of President Donald Trump’s governance that was marked by scandals, lies, policy amateurism, and a drive to divide and polarize the American society. “But we are expecting a return to normality and predictability in international politics. We are hoping for a renewed American commitment to the transatlantic partnership in a growingly multi-polar world where the influence of several non-Western powers is constantly rising.” However, he did not expect that the Western Balkans will be a top priority of the new president as the stabilization of the region and the emergence of pressing issues elsewhere have long ago diverted the US attention away from the Balkans. According to him, the exceptional state of transatlantic cacophony between US and EU gave ample room of maneuver to the leaderships in Belgrade and Pristina to openly discuss a possible change of borders between Serbia and Kosovo. Regarding the Washington statements signed individually in September by the leaderships of Serbia and Kosovo have been short-lived from day one and their time horizon has coincided with the duration of Trump’s Presidency. “I am afraid that we all witnessed a poorly-prepared event that visibly turned into a farce, planned by Richard Grenell and hosted by President Donald Trump, in a desperate White House quest for a foreign policy success in view of the Presidential elections” Assoc. Prof. Nikolaos Tzifakis said in the following interview:

At the outset let me thank you Professor for sharing some of your thoughts with Albanian Daily News and first of all the interest is to learn your assessment of the bilateral relations between Albania and Greece, and in this frame what is your opinion on the future of the resolution to the pending issues, including the maritime dispute over their sea borders in the Ionian Sea which, as the government leaderships of the two countries agreed, will be taken to the International Court of Justice? 

Bilateral relations are very good and the agreement among the two countries to bring the delimitation of maritime borders to the International Court of Justice is a very positive development. It is an issue that was meant to be resolved a decade ago. The idea of bringing the dispute to international justice is mutually beneficial for the two countries. A compromise solution through an International Court verdict minimizes the political cost for both of them. It also carries the expectation of avoiding another complication with Albania’s Constitutional Court and it creates a very good precedent for the delimitation of the Greek-Turkish maritime borders. The prevailing view in Greece is that (Prime Minister) Edi Rama contested the 2009 agreement in the Albanian Constitutional Court to please the Turkish side. As a result, some Greek analysts doubt the commitment of Prime Minister Edi Rama to this issue. They think that the Albanian government is just interested in clearing the way from all possible obstacles to opening EU accession negotiations ahead of the April 2021 parliamentary elections. Similarly, Albanian analysts have expressed concerns about the merits of such a deal. In this regard, it is crucial that the leaderships of the two countries move on very quickly with the recourse to the ICJ to prove critics on both sides wrong.

As a follow up, Professor, how would you consider the reluctance of some EU member countries to okay the start of the intergovernmental talks of Albania with the Union? In your view, could the engagement of the country in the talks along with North Macedonia bring about more positive results for Albania’s reformation process in line with EU standards? 

I ought to admit that the reluctance of the Netherlands and other EU member states to concede to the opening of accession negotiations is not entirely unfounded. Albania has been an underperformer in justice reforms (with a non-functioning Constitutional Court for a long period of time), in electoral reforms, and in the combat against corruption and organized crime. The vetting process in the justice has manifested the magnitude of the problem. And the way the Albanian authorities managed the question of the demolition of the National Theatre demonstrated the absence from the authorities of a rule of law mentality. Having said that, I am not implying that Albania should not be invited to open accession negotiations. Quite the contrary, this is long overdue. I am just arguing that the Albanian authorities have not tried very hard to dissipate the concerns of those believing that the country has made insufficient progress. The Albanian government has not convincingly demonstrated that it has the political will to pass from a procedural to a genuine compliance with EU rules and norms. The idea of coupling Albania and North Macedonia in the EU discussions about the opening of accession negotiations has without doubt benefited Albania so far.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to hit the region like the rest of Europe and parts of the world causing a multifaceted crisis. How would you assess the regional cooperation in face of the crisis, and the EU's solidarity with the Balkans? 

Notwithstanding that many external powers such as China, Russia and Turkey are visibly struggling to exert influence in the region the EU remains the only actor that has devised a noticeable medium-term strategy for the region’s economic growth and development. At the height of the pandemic’s first wave, the EU decided to offer a package of over 3.3 billion EURO to support the efforts of the Western Balkan governments to tackle COVID-19 and attain the post-pandemic economic recovery. A month ago, the Commission unveiled a very ambitious investment plan worth 9 billion EURO for the 2021-2027 period. It aims to support the region’s economic convergence with the EU primarily through investments and support to ten flagship priorities. These include transport and energy connectivity, green and digital transformation, private sector competitiveness and support to health, education and social protection, with a special attention to the youth. The EU financial assistance is definitely not enough. However, it aims at stimulating the region’s growth, not to perpetuate the Western Balkan dependence on external assistance. And definitely, it is not a fairy tale as the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic claimed last March. It is much more meaningful than China’s mask diplomacy, or the Chinese financed projects in the region that carry several risks such as engulfing the Western Balkans in a debt trap.

Now let me turn to the highlight on the world political scene – the after presidential election in the US where President Trump insists not to accept the defeat versus Joe Biden, who as results indicate will be the new President of this country. 

I think that the election results represent a clear message of disapproval of President Donald Trump’s governance that was marked by scandals, lies, policy amateurism, and a drive to divide and polarize the American society. We should not overlook the fact that the Republican Party has got a better outcome in the Senate elections in comparison to Trump’s own results in the Presidential elections. It is very unfortunate that the outgoing President has so far failed to stand to the heights of the circumstances and contribute to the normal alternation of power. But we are expecting a return to normality and predictability in international politics. We are hoping for a renewed American commitment to the transatlantic partnership in a growingly multi-polar world where the influence of several non-Western powers is constantly rising. We are waiting to see the United States acting again like a defender of the liberal postwar world order – revolving around the operation of the market economy – that opposes the return to national protectionism. We are urged to see climate change becoming again a policy priority.

President- elect Biden is very familiar with the Balkans. Do you think there will be a shift in the US policy towards the region, and secondly will the deal brokered by Mr. Trump in the White House between Serb President Alexander Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti be affected? 

I do not think that the Western Balkans was a top priority for either candidate in the US Presidential elections. The stabilization of the region and the emergence of pressing issues elsewhere have long ago diverted the US attention away from the Balkans. In this respect, we should not expect any grandiose strategic plans or very ambitious initiatives for the region. What we need, and we missed during the previous four years, is a better coordination among the transatlantic partners in a division of labor in the Western Balkans where the EU has the primary policy initiative and the US provides critical political support. We should not forget that it was the exceptional state of transatlantic cacophony that gave ample room of maneuver to the leaderships in Belgrade and Pristina to openly discuss a possible change of borders between Serbia and Kosovo. The Washington statements signed individually in September by the leaderships of Serbia and Kosovo (strictly speaking, there was no bilateral Serbia-Kosovo deal) have been short-lived from day one and their time horizon has coincided with the duration of Trump’s Presidency. I am afraid that we all witnessed a poorly-prepared event that visibly turned into a farce, planned by Richard Grenell and hosted by President Donald Trump, in a desperate White House quest for a foreign policy success in view of the Presidential elections.