LOCAL PRESS

 

Romania asked to help with "Kosovo compromise" (Tanjug)

 

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met in Bucharest on Thursday with his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Werner Iohannis.

Vucic said that he asked the Romanian president to help Serbia in its efforts to find a compromise solution on the issue of Kosovo and Metohija.

At a joint press conference, Vucic said that he informed his Romanian colleague - who he said has an immeasurable reputation in Europe, the US and the world - about the talks on the issue he recently had with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with EU officials, as well as about "everything which is important for finding a compromise."

The Serbian President said that Romania is the largest country in the region, and having in mind it is also one of the five EU member-states that did not recognize the self-proclaimed independence of Kosovo, added that hhis plea came precisely in order to have assistance "from this neutral and different point of view."

Vucic underlined that Iohannis has a great reputation in the world and that he pleaded both for his personal, and for Romania's support to Serbia's efforts to find a compromise solution.

Vucic reiterated that Serbia's position is that "it cannot happen that one side gets everything and the other loses everything - instead both should be somewhat dissatisfied, which would be a fair and only just solution."

 

Government reshuffle "certain to take place" (TV Prva)

 

A reshuffle of Serbia's government is certain to take place, Prva TV is reporting, adding that most likely the changes will happen in four ministries.

Of interest is also that the reshuffle will be done simultaneously with the announcement of the name of Belgrade's new mayor. A source told the broadcaster that they knew "one minister's job was in danger," while others said two ministers would be replaced "for personal reasons" and two more "for poor results."

"Our source is stressing that the sacking of Culture Minister Vladan Vukosavljevic is almost certain, and that he could be replaced by Official Gazette Director Jelena Trivan. Current Belgrade Mayor Sinisa Mali could replace Goran Knezevic in the Ministry of Economy," Prva TV reported.  It added that health Minister Zlatibor Loncar could be replaced by Zoran Radojicic, while a new ministry, of infrastructure, could be formed, and headed by Goran Vesic.

 

Dacic announces “Cleansing” in SPS; comments the possible government reshuffle (Vecernje Novosti)

 

Dacic announces “Cleansing” in SPS due to poor election results.

“Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) needs reforms after a small number of votes it won in the city local elections in Belgrade on Sunday” the party leader Ivica Dacic said to daily Vecernje Novosti on Wednesday.

“A ‘broom’ will be busy in the party. For some, it would be better to be no longer at positions. While I was dealing with state affairs, some were hiding behind my personal rating, not doing anything in the field. Well, they will not be able to do it any longer,” Dacic said. He holds it against the SPS officials that they did not use his rating better, and assessed that they should have won at least three percent more votes.

The SPS - United Serbia (JS) ticket won 6.13% (49.895 votes) and eight seats in the Belgrade city assembly. That is eight seats less than in the 2013 local elections.

 

Commenting the possible government reshuffle Dacic said that he is not opposed to a reshuffle but that there has been no mention of that possibility so far.

“There was not talk of a government reshuffle, at least not with me. In any case, that is a question for the prime minister or primarily for the Serbian President and leader of the biggest party Vucic,” Dacic told reporters.

 

Asked if he could be replaced as foreign minister by Minister for European Integration Jadranka Joksimovic with the two ministries being merged, Dacic said she is good at her job and would probably make a good foreign minister.

“No one’s ministerial posting is permanent and if you think I’m going to criticize Jadranka I surely won’t. She is doing her job well and would certainly make a good foreign minister,” Dacic said. He said there’s no problem with a reshuffle but that this was not discussed at cabinet meetings.

 

Sinisa Mali: If Vucic says so, I will be the mayor (Blic)

 

"If President Aleksandar Vucic proposes me to be mayor for the next four years to the councilors, that's how it will be," Sinisa Mali told Blic.

The current mayor of Belgrade spoke about the recently held elections in Belgrade, the results, the election of the mayor, but also about the reconstruction of the government.

Mali said he was satisfied with the results that the SNS achieved on Belgrade elections.

"I think that these elections are the biggest recognition for all of us. We had visible results and realistic plans as a candidate, not just one name," Mali said, adding that "now that they have money, stability and the best team, the results can be guaranteed."

 

Asked what would he said if the SNS president Aleksandar Vucic proposes him to continue to serve as mayor, Mali said: ""If President Aleksandar Vucic proposes me to be mayor for the next four years to the councilors, that's how it will be," Mali said, adding that a good team that is working with the mayor is more important than the mayor.

 

Asked to comment on the writing of some media, which said that a government reconstruction would take place and that he would occupy the post of current finance minister, Mali said that the media likes to speculate and that, as far he is concerned, the greatest honor is to serve his people. And added that functions are not important, it is important that the job gets done.

"I promise you will be notified on time," Mali said.

 

Serbian Orthodox Church to change name because of Kosovo? (Vecernje Novosti, Kurir)

 

The new official name of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) will be the Serbian Orthodox Church - the Patriarchate of Pec.

According to the article, the procedure for the election of the patriarch will be simplified, and the head of the Church will be elected in a secret ballot, requiring a two-thirds majority of the votes of bishops. These are the most important changed envisaged in the proposal of the new Constitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church, writes Vecernje Novosti.

 

An important novelty is that the elected candidate will be called the Archbishop of the Pec, the Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovci and the Patriarch of Serb and Littoral Lands, reports the daily, which had insight into the text.

 

According to the new constitution of the SPC, the existing 13 eparchies will become metropolinates, while the new constitution is most likely to be adopted at the meeting of the highest Church body - the Holy Assembly - in mid-May.

 

The changes to the official name of the Serbian Church are explained by the desire to strengthen the connection with its historical center in the Patriarchate of Pec, but also with Kosovo and Metohija as the most important part of its jurisdiction.

 

The most important changes in the constitutional text concern the procedure of the election of the patriarch, that leaves behind previous practice of holding "an apostolic draw" - i.e., randomly choosing one of the three envelopes containing the names of the candidates.

The draft of the new constitution suggests that patriarchs will be elected in the Patriarchate of Pec, while other possibilities include the Church seats in Belgrade and in Sremski Karlovci.

 

Historian Aleksandar Rakovic thinks it is not a bad solution for the SPC to add the Patriarchy of Pec to its official name - in this way demonstrating its identity that is tied to Kosovo and Metohija, therefore, that Kosovo is inseparable from the identity of the Serb Church.

 

Patriarch backs SPC name change - but won't move to Kosovo

Patriarch Irinej says he supports the idea to add "Patriarchate of Pec" to the official name of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC).

 

"The patriarch cannot move to Pec, Belgrade is still an administrative center," Irinej told the daily Kurir, and added:  "Pec remains as the history of our past, where patriarchs, archbishops sat, and regardless of what happened, Pec remains the historic center of our Church. Everything that contributes to preservation of history, to the attachment of our Church to Pec and Kosovo, we accept."

 

He described the proposal as "very good" and said he hoped it would be adopted. But he is not in favor of changing the current manner of choosing the patriarch, the so-called "apostolic draw."

 

"I would personally like it to remain the way it is, this is my opinion, but we will see how the (SPC) Assembly will decide. These are all suggestions, we will see what will be adopted," said the patriarch.

 

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Parliamentary majority at B&H level falling apart (TV1)

 

After the collapse of the parliamentary majority at the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina level, it seems that the parliamentary majority at the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) level is also heading towards collapse. Namely, at the beginning of Wednesday's session of the B&H House of Representatives (HoR), Safer Demirovic informed the representatives that he is leaving SDA Caucus in the B&H HoR and that he will act as an independent representative from now on. "These are not my personal problems with SDA, but they are problems with SDA which have been generated in the area of Tuzla Canton. I belong to the group which always advocated the position of the electoral base, people who are voting and people who are working with those people to be taken into account a lot more," Demirovic explained.

SDA representatives said that Demirovic's decision came as no surprise. Deputy Speaker of the B&H HoR Sefik Dzaferovic (SDA) said that SDA representatives recognized the fact that there are local powerful people on the ground who act in elections in a way that they are establishing their own network of MPs through which they are pursuing their policies. According to Dzaferovic, B&H Parliament can continue functioning as it is. Specifically, Dzaferovic singled out an example of the set of laws on excise duties in BiH, which was adopted with the support of SNSD from the opposition, while SDS from the ruling majority voted against it. He therefore stressed that laws and decisions in BiH Parliament are not always adopted with the help of votes of the ruling majority.

Shortly after Demirovic announced that he is leaving SDA Caucus, Borislav Bojic also announced that he is leaving SDS Caucus in the B&H HoR. Bojic told media that he will act as an independent representative from now on.

SDS representatives were pretty surprised with Bojic's resignation, noting that Bojic was a person in SDS worthy of respect. Deputy Speaker of the B&H HoR Mladen Bosic (SDS) said that Bojic is a person who deserves respect and an exceptional fighter. "I have to say that the news about this shocked me," Bosic underlined.

 

According to TV1, resignations of Demirovic and Bojic mean that there is no longer parliamentary majority at the B&H level. Since the beginning of this term of office, four representatives left SDA. Besides Bojic, Djordjo Krcmar also left SDS Caucus in the B&H HoR. Ruling coalition SDA-HDZ B&H-SBB B&H-Alliance for Changes (SzP) currently has only 18 representatives in the B&H HoR, while opposition parties, including SDP B&H, DF, SNSD, A-SDA, BPS, the Independent Bloc, DNS, HDZ 1990, together with Demirovic and Bojic, have as many as 24 representatives.

 

HR Inzko meets UN’s Jenca, outlines electoral reform as immediate priority (Oslobodjenje)

 

High Representative Valentin Inzko met with United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Miroslav Jenca in Sarajevo on Wednesday. The HR informed Jenca about the current political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), and underlined that the electoral reform represents an immediate priority. Statement issued by the Office of the High Representative reads that Inzko used the opportunity to express his gratitude to the UN for their efforts in post-war reconstruction of B&H, as well as their support to the work of the OHR, among others, in the UN Security Council. The HR also underlined the important role the UN has in strengthening development and reconciliation in B&H.

 

Izetbegovic: Inzko made a diplomatic mistake (N1)

 

SDA leader and member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Bakir Izetbegovic commented the issue of the Law on Elections of B&H and the fact that High Representative Valentin Inzko hinted he might use his Bonn Powers if the politicians fail to reach an agreement in time, and he said that the HR made a diplomatic mistake, because now everyone is going to sit down and wait for him to do something. He rejected allegations that Inzko might support amendments to the Law on Elections proposed by HDZ B&H.

When the Constitutional Court of B&H declared some of the provisions of the Law on Elections imposed by the HR unconstitutional, said Izetbegovic, it should have told the OHR to amend them. He also noted that SDA is now willing to accept any solution on which HDZ B&H and the civil parties agree.

Asked if it is possible there is going to be a blockade if the elections are held under the old legislation, Izetbegovic said: “I do not think so. Who is going to dare to create a complete blockade? One can go to prison for such things. Everyone keeps threatening, gathering points, but I do not think there is a willingness to truly destabilize the country with such actions.” He also pointed out that the international community sees SDA as its ally, as a pillar in B&H, because the party cooperated with them on the Reform Agenda, the Labor Law and the excise duties. “We are the main ally of the international community. There would be disorder in this country if we were not here.”

 

Covic meets Ambassador Ivantsov, discuss amendments to B&H Election Law (TV1)

 

Chairman of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency Dragan Covic met with Russian Ambassador to B&H Petr Ivantsov on Wednesday. One of the topics of the meeting between Covic and Ambassador Ivantsov were amendments to the B&H Election Law. Ambassador Ivantsov said that the Russian Federation will always provide support to B&H, as a country of three equal peoples and two entities. Covic and Ivantsov also stressed that bilateral relations between B&H and Russia are good, but that there is room for their improvement.

 

Kristo and Colak meet French Ambassador Rousson, discuss reform to electoral legislation (Dnevni list)

 

Speaker of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) House of Representatives (HoR) Borjana Kristo and Deputy Speaker of the B&H House of Peoples (HoP) Barisa Colak (both HDZ B&H) met with French Ambassador to B&H Guillaume Rousson in Sarajevo. According to the daily, they talked, among other issues, abut functioning of authorities in B&H, with special focus on reform to electoral legislation, and B&H’s European path.

It was assessed that issues pertaining to electoral legislation is currently the most important issue in B&H, because its successful resolving would resolve many other important issues in B&H. Kristo reiterated that if the Law on Elections of B&H is not changed, the election results cannot be implemented, which would lead to constitutional crisis and general halt. According to Kristo, the key is to change the law in line with decisions of the Constitutional Court of B&H. Regarding the issue of EU integration of B&H, it was said that there is a general political consensus and that BiH’s European path will not be brought into question. Colak stated successful continuation of the European path requires solving of internal problems first and readiness for dialogue.

 

B&H HoR fails to accept request for discussion on amendments to Criminal Procedure Law in urgent procedure (Dnevni avaz)

 

Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) House of Representatives (HoR) convened on Wednesday and it failed to accept request by Head of SDA Caucus Amir Fazlic for discussion on Proposal of Law on Changes and Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Law of B&H in urgent procedure. The law proposal did not get support of entity majority from Republika Srpska (RS), and will be now forwarded to the Collegium. According to the daily, even simple majority that supported this law had only one vote more than those who opposed it. The author explains that SDA tried to justify necessity of adoption of these law changes in urgent procedure with expiration of 6-month deadline that the Constitutional Court of B&H set before the Parliament of B&H in July last year, regarding harmonization of this law with the Constitution of B&H and the European Convention on Human Rights. The author finds it interesting that SDA remembered this law at the last moment and it delivered to MPs the changes to the law on the eve of the session, which is why they were unable to get properly informed about it. On the other hand, goes on the author, SDA did not open this issue for once over the past nine months, while the Council of Ministers of B&H, led by SDA’s Denis Zvizdic, had enough time to solve this problem. This all led the author to conclude that by proposing the urgent procedure SDA is obviously trying to impose its own solution to this law.

 

The EU Delegation to B&H (EUD) and the OSCE Mission to B&H warned on Wednesday that B&H Ministry of Justice and B&H Council of Ministers (CoM) must urgently adopt the proposal of amendments to the Law on Criminal Procedure in B&H. B&H CoM is then expected to submit the proposal to B&H Parliament for adoption, without further delay. These amendments are necessary for implementation of B&H Constitutional Court (CC)’s decision that requires a stricter legal regime i.e. use and control of special investigative actions in criminal procedures.

 

High Representative Valentin Inzko urged the B&H Parliament to adopt amendments to the B&H Law on Criminal Procedure as soon as possible, in order to ensure full implementation of the state jurisdiction in criminal cases in accordance with international standards of the fight against corruption and organized crime. “B&H should be able to fulfill its obligations defined by the Constitution. One of these obligations is criminal prosecution of law violations, as well as prosecution of criminal offenses that endanger some of the fundamental values that the state should protect by the Criminal Code,” HR Inzko was quoted as saying.

 

8 Bosniak, 2 Croat delegates in RS CoP again file motion with B&H CC for assessment of constitutionality of marking of January 9 as RS Day (EuroBlic)

 

Republika Srpska (RS) is preparing a response to a new lawsuit of eight Bosniaks and two Croats from the RS Council of Peoples (CoP) to Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Constitutional Court (CC) by which they are again trying to dispute marking of January 9 as the RS Day.

Speaker of the RS National Assembly (RSNA) Nedeljko Cubrilovic scheduled the first session of the Team for Preparation of Response and Participation in Defense for Thursday (March 8). The Bosniak and Croat delegates in the RS CoP requested marking of the RS Day to be proclaimed as unconstitutional and they claimed that the RS Day “is a reflection of a political will of single people and privileges only Serbs while discriminating other peoples”. They filed the motion on January 25 this year and accused the RS authorities of directly opposing and refusing to implement previous decision of B&H CC on January 9.

Cubrilovic confirmed to the daily that the RSNA received a request from B&H CC to respond to the request of ten delegates of the RS CoP and he reminded that the RSNA adopted a decision on the RS Day in line with the RS Constitution. Cubrilovic also noted that this was confirmed by the RS CC, which determined on December 22, 2016 that the Law on the Day of Republic did not violate the vital national interest of Bosniak people. Cubrilovic also noted that the referendum on the Day of Republic did not jeopardize the decision of B&H CC in any way as the latest motion claimed. Cubrilovic also assessed that filing of this motion does not contribute to stabilization of circumstances in B&H but it leads to a closed circle which prevents everyone from dealing with issues which are important to citizens. He reiterated that the RS cannot and will never abolish January 9 as the Day of Republic and concluded by saying that nobody can dispute someone else’s birth date.

 

B&H-Croatia-Serbia trilateral meeting in Mostar sparks different reactions (N1)

 

Various reactions have been registered after the trilateral meeting that Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) Presidency members held with Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Mostar on Tuesday.

According to Speaker of the B&H House of Representatives (B&H HoR) Borjana Kristo (HDZ B&H), any kind of dialogue with the neighboring countries is certainly welcome.

B&H HoR Deputy Speaker Sefik Dzaferovic (SDA) assessed that dialogue is the only way to solve all disputable issues on the basis of the principles of mutual respect.

SNSD MP in the B&H HoR Stasa Kosarac assessed that some of the officials representing the three countries are certainly willing to solve all bilateral issues, but B&H is obviously a source of problems in this context. He explained that these problems are caused by the role of Bosniak member of the B&H Presidency Bakir Izetbegovic in this process.

Independent Bloc MP in the B&H HoR Sadik Ahmetovic argued that politicians meet every once in a while, in order to improve their rating, but they never actually solve anything. This time, they are only about to make the list of all problems that need to be solved, Ahmetovic concluded.

NDP MP in the B&H HoR Momcilo Novakovic voiced his expectation that problems will be solved at the highest level from now on, adding that certain progress is expected to be achieved for sure.

According to SNSD, Izetbegovic is the most responsible for the failure of regional policy of B&H. Head of SNSD Caucus in the B&H HoR Stasa Kosarac assessed that B&H’s influence on relations in the region will be getting even weaker until the elections, when the structure of the B&H Presidency is expected to completely change

 

Croatia

 

Trilateral without results confirms weakness of Croatia and Croats in B&H (Jutarnji list)

 

Jutarnji list commented trilateral meeting of members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) with Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Mostar on Tuesday, and noted that nothing of importance happened at the meeting, and many in B&H completely ignored it. “Serbs are focused on themselves. The goal of the opposition is to topple down Milorad Dodik and anything else does not interest them. Finally, a stance that Republika Srpska (RS) has its statehood is not just Dodik’s, as it is shared by other parties in this entity. And that is why their goal is not to change anything, to preserve the ‘letter and spirit’ of the Dayton (Peace Agreement) while waiting on the final conflict of Bosniaks and Croats in the Federation of B&H in order to see what is going to happen with the country,” wrote the author and added that Bosniaks also have a clear stance, which is to strengthen centralized state as much as possible and concentrate all the political power in Sarajevo; Bosniak stance is acceptable to the international community, especially since Bosniak leader Bakir Izetbegovic keeps rejecting Croat proposal for federalization of the country. The author added that Croats are in quite unfortunate situation in B&H, their officials keep saying that the third entity is the best option, but they are aware that is not something the international community is going to accept. HDZ B&H’s proposed amendments to the Law on Elections were not positively received by the West, because it is hard not to conclude that the goal of the amendments is to create ethnic discrimination. Serbian President Vucic is playing a prudent game, wrote the author, refusing to get involved, while the Croatian President claims that Croatia is willing to help without interfering, because the Law on Elections is an internal issue of B&H. In conclusion, the author noted that Croatia is in as bad position as Croats in B&H, because it does not have developed policy towards B&H, while its absolute support to HDZ B&H and its proposals represents an attempt to avoid dealing with the real problems.

 

EU criticizes Croatia’s spending on war veterans (Index.hr)

 

The European Commission says that the veterans are “a privileged category.”

The European Commission (EC), in its latest report on the so-called European Semester for 2018, focuses sharply and negatively on the benefits enjoyed by war veterans in Croatia.

 

In the 73 page report dedicated to Croatia, on page 37 the European Commission says that “the authorities have proposed to further extend the benefits granted to war veterans and their family members, resulting in further increases of their pension ceilings. Little progress has been made to support war veterans' re-integration into the labor market.”

 

The European Commission continues that “the law adopted by government in November 2017 reopens the possibility to register as war veteran, reduces their retirement age and extends the rights of family members to inherit veterans' pensions. The law also introduces a number of additional social benefits for veterans and mandatory financing of veterans' associations (in the range of 0.3-1.0 % of local government budgets). General pensions for war veterans tend to be more than twice as high compared to the general scheme.”

 

The Commission explicitly describes veterans as “a privileged category” and notes that Croatia's social welfare system is functioning poorly, because it is not targeted at those most in need, with the money instead being spent on privileged veterans.

 

For several years now, the EC has warned in its reports that the benefits of Croatian war veterans are economically questionable and socially unjust. In the report for the European Semester 2016, the European Commission wrote that “some general schemes apply strict criteria including asset- and/or means tests and ceilings such as the Guaranteed Minimum Benefit (GMB).

 

However, instead of correcting this imbalance, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and Veterans Affairs Minister Tomo Medved have pushed for a new law that gave veterans even more funds, contrary to the recommendations of the European Commission.

 

Montenegro

 

DIK to enable verification of support signatures (RTCG, MINA)

 

The State Election Commission (DIK) must allow citizens to check whether their name is abused and whether they are on the list of support signatures for any presidential candidate, the Network for Affirmation of the Non-Governmental Sector (MANS) considers.

 

Executive Director of this non-governmental organization, Vanja Calovic Markovic, believes that the situation is dramatic regarding the collection of signatures for the presidential candidacy.

"It is extremely worrisome that DIK does not check the authenticity of the signature at all," Calovic Markovic told MINA agency.

She recalled that MANS had previously proposed that citizens are allowed to access to some kind of application on the DIK website so anyone could check whether his signature is on the lists of those who allegedly supported the presidential candidates.

According to Calovic Markovic, earlier, there were cases where the citizens did not know that their signatures were on these lists, and there were enough allegations that this documentation was falsifying. The electoral system would become so porous and will allow the abuse of state funds.

 

fYROM

 

FM Dimitrov meets EU foreign policy chief Mogherini in Brussels (MIA)

 

Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov held a meeting on Wednesday in Brussels with Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the EC, MIA reports from Brussels.

The interlocutors discussed the stability of the region and the European integration path of Macedonia, Dimitrov's office said.

"Macedonia got back on the European track, both by implementing its domestic reform agenda and by investing in building bridges and friendship with the neighbors. Macedonia today is a chance, and joint obligations as well with the EU to show that not only we can end a crisis, but we can also make an irrevocable achievement - the Republic of Macedonia to finally leave the waiting room and to start accession talks with the EU," Dimitrov told MIA after the meeting.

 

Osmani: I expect the most positive report, a clear and unconditional recommendation from the EC for Macedonia (Meta)

 

Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs, Bujar Osmani expects the most positive report for Macedonia from the European Commission, which will be followed by a clear and unconditional recommendation for the start of Macedonia’s EU accession talks. He said at a government conference, that this will be the best confirmation that Macedonia is back on the European track.

 

“Of course, this does not mean that the reforms will come to a stop after the report, on the contrary, the reform process will continue, and finally, we expect all this effort to result in a decision from the EU Council regarding the start of the negotiations in June, and, according to the Enlargement Strategy, to join in 2025 for full membership in the European Union”, Osmani said before the presentation of the “3-6-9” plan to ambassadors from EU member states in Macedonia.

 

In the official hall of the Government, Deputy Prime Minister Bujar Osmani, Minister of Defense Radmila Sekerinska, Minister of Interior Oliver Spasovski, Minister of Justice Bilen Saliji and Minister of Information Society and Administration Damjan Mancevski, held a presentation on the status of the implementation of the “3-6-9 ” plan in front of ambassadors.

 

Parties have a week to find solution for language law amendments (MIA)

 

As political parties failed to reach an agreement for the 35,000 amendments to the Law on the Use of Languages, Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi said he was prepared to schedule another session for a straightforward vote on the Law on Use of Languages, by passing the discussion on the 35,000 amendments filed by VMRO-DPMNE, adding that the Parliament should not be held hostage by anyone. He has given parties a week to find a solution, because the options he had at disposal as Speaker have been exhausted.

Despite misunderstandings over the treatment of the law amendments, Xhaferi says the ruling coalition is not in jeopardy.

VMRO-DPMNE says they were asked to withdraw the amendments, a proposal they rejected, while SDSM claims they favor a solution that complies with the Rules of Procedures.

 

Albania

 

DP summons leadership, harsh debates expected (ADN)

 

Democratic Party (DP) will summon its leadership today.  The news was made public by the headquarters and the main object of this meeting is to define the new date when the National Council of this party will be gathered. The meeting will be held at 17:00 in the premises of the Democratic headquarters. This meeting is expected to generate a lot of debates between the DP Leader, Lulzim Basha and his critics within the party.

Meanwhile, at the same time some of the veteran democrats as Astrit Patozi and Ritvan Bode already started a meeting with the democrats against Basha's platform. They object the leadership and his platform.

 

Talks on Sea Border with Greece, Rama Meeting with Meta (ADN)

 

President Ilir Meta refused recently to provide the authorization for further talks with Greece to resolve the sea border disagreement, demanding further information on what and how the government will negotiate. This situation “forced” Prime Minister Edi Rama to go to Presidency and discus on this issue.  He was seen on Wednesday entering in this institution to have a meeting with the President.

 

Earlier, Meta refused to give the plenipotence to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ditmir Bushati for negotiation with Greece. According to him the request doesn't clearly define the object of negotiations for which the authorization is requested.

The negotiations for the delimitation of continental shelf, as they are known, were reopened last year between the left-wing government of Albania and the Greek authorities, along with talks on other unresolved issues between the two neighboring countries.

 

Balkans countries should collaborate for EU integration-says Ruci (ADN)

 

Albania's European integration was the highlight of a meeting between Speaker of Parliament Gramoz Ruci and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, Ivan Korcok. Speaker Ruci defined the process of integration of the Western Balkans as essential for promoting regional collaboration and stability, while stressing the constructive and pro-active role of Albania in the region, in the interest of good neighborly relations and regional cooperation

 

He expressed the confidence that Albania's concrete achievements in terms of fulfilling its membership obligations will be the basis for evaluation by EU member states for opening negotiations.

 

Meantime minister Korcok said that the Western Balkan countries should overcome the past and strengthen their political and economic co-operation that will enable them to resolve outstanding issues in order to consolidate the progress towards EU membership.

 

 

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

 

Pristina has abandoned negotiations, says Serbian FM (Sputnik)

 

The decision of the so-called Kosovo government not to implement an agreement on the ZSO is in fact Pristina's decision to abandon the Brussels dialogue. Serbian First Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic told this to Russia's Sputnik on Thursday, referring to the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO) in Kosovo. Dacic warned that the entire negotiation process between Belgrade and Pristina "could now return to zero."

"If Albanian leaders unscrupulously and without any sanction refuse to implement the essential part of the (Brussels) agreement that we've reached, Belgrade can now consider putting out of effect all the agreements that we have reached in Brussels," he said.

Due to the possible breakdown of the multi-year negotiation process, the head of Serbian diplomacy was also addressing the international community:

"We call on the European Union and the United States to urgently influence Pristina to fulfill its obligations assumed from the Brussels Agreement as there is the greatest danger to date that the negotiation process might definitely end. Belgrade would have absolutely no responsibility for that," Dacic concluded.

Kosovo's interim institutions in Pristina on Wednesday rejected an agreement on the start of the drafting of the statute for ZSO's establishment, which was reached at a recent meeting in Brussels, in the presence of senior EU officials. The Kosovo government also concluded on Wednesday that "no Pristina official has the mandate to make decisions outside the constitutional framework."

 

Western Balkan security tops agenda as EU interior ministers meet in Brussels (DW)

 

EU ministers are to discuss new security initiatives with the Western Balkans in what is seen as the first step towards EU accession. Brussels has said it hopes the Western Balkan states will join the bloc by 2025.

European interior ministers convene in Brussels on Thursday to discuss how the bloc will coordinate it latest security and migration policies with Western Balkan states.

The meeting comes on the back of the European Commission's strategy for the Western Balkans, published last month, which formally outlined the EU's hope that the remaining non-member states in the region will be ready to join the bloc by 2025. These include Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania.

Security is one of the six flagship initiatives in the Commission's strategy.

According to Brussels, notable areas include organized crime and terrorism, including radicalization leading to violent extremism, the challenge of foreign terrorist fighters and the trafficking of firearms and explosives.

All the security recommendations drafted on Thursday are expected to be formalized into policy goals at the upcoming EU-Western Balkans summit in Sofia on May 17.

 

A new EU migration policy

 

Ministers are also expected to outline the EU's next steps in migration policy.

According to Brussels, last year saw a 60-percent drop in illegal border crossings into Europe, compared to 2016.

Member states are expected to agree on further strengthening the EU's external borders and speeding up returns. They will also agree on whether to continue extending support to so-called transit countries, such as Turkey and Libya.

Migration will also feed into the EU's Western Balkan strategy. During the 2015-16 migrant crisis, it is estimated that over 1 million migrants crossed the Balkan route into Western Europe, before Macedonia, Croatia and Slovenia announced in March 2016 that they were shutting their borders.

This will be Thomas de Maiziere's last EU summit as German interior minister. Christian Social Union head Horst Seehofer will take over the role from next week as part of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's new Cabinet.

 

Can President Trump Solve The Macedonian Conundrum? (dailycaller.com)

 

This year marks the 115^th anniversary of the first modern day Macedonian state, heroically established in 1903 in Krusevo. However, Macedonia’s future is in serious jeopardy, due to the remarkable shortsightedness of its government, as well as the escalating belligerence of Greece.

 

In response, over this past weekend more than 100,000 people gathered peacefully in 16 cities around the world, including in Skopje, Macedonia. They assembled under the banner “WeAreMacedonia – Enough is Enough” and sought unconditional international recognition and use of Macedonia’s rightful name, the Republic of Macedonia. They also articulated the following clear message: Macedonians want to become members of NATO (and perhaps the EU), but not at the cost of Macedonia’s name, Macedonian identity or the Macedonian language. Accordingly, Macedonia must immediately withdraw from the UN-led “name negotiations” with Greece.

 

Since its independence in 1991, Macedonia has been an upstanding member of the international community and one of the most loyal and committed allies of the United States. Every time the U.S. and the international community have called upon Macedonia for help – in Afghanistan, Iraq or Kosovo — Macedonia has stood shoulder to shoulder with its allies to combat violent extremism and terrorism. Yet, the Republic of Macedonia remains the only country in the world deprived of its right of self-determination. For over a century, Macedonians have been fighting against Greece’s cultural and ethnic genocide to strip the Macedonian community of its rightful name, identity, and heritage.

 

In 1993, the United Nations perpetrated an overt injustice by imposing unprecedented additional conditions for Macedonia’s UN membership, notwithstanding the fact that Republic of Macedonia had fulfilled the criteria laid out in Article 4 of the UN Charter. This created the Macedonian Conundrum. Despite the fact that 137 nations – including the U.S. — have already recognized Macedonia by its constitutional name, Greece remarkably continues to deny official recognition to the state of Macedonia, its ethnicity or its identity. And it continues to persecute, threaten and deny fundamental human rights of its citizens who have a Macedonian ethnic identity.

 

The need for Macedonian-Greek dialogue is quite clear. However, the UN led discussions have proven futile – due to Greece’s intransigence, absurd and demeaning demands, and flagrant and continuing breaches of bilateral agreements and international law. Over twenty years ago, Greece agreed to allow Macedonian accession to the EU and NATO if Macedonia proceeded under a temporary and provisional reference, “The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.” Unfortunately, yet unsurprisingly, Greece reneged on this promise and has faced no repercussions within the UN, EU or NATO to date. In 2011, the International Court of Justice ruled that Greece blatantly violated international law by vetoing Macedonia’s NATO membership in 2008, and yet no one is holding Greece responsible.

 

In order to resolve this Macedonian Conundrum, the more than half-a-million-strong Macedonian-American community and the WeAreMacedonia global movement respectfully ask President Trump and Secretary Tillerson to instruct U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, and our ambassadors to all NATO and EU countries to push for implementation of the following measures in order to effect a swift, just and successful resolution to this dispute:

 

• Urge the United Nations Security Council to withdraw Resolution 817;
• End the 25 year UN/EU/NATO policy of referring to Macedonia as “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and recognize the country by its rightful name, the Republic of Macedonia;
• Declare the 1995 UN Interim Accord null and void given the 2011 ICJ ruling; and
• Dissolve the office of the special envoy on the Macedonia naming dispute, Matthew Nimetz.

 

Until all of these measures are enacted, there will be little real potential for justice for the Macedonian people.

 

As the embodiment of fundamental international norms such as self-determination and human rights, and inspired by the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” — the United States has an obligation to transcend national politics and speak out against the injustices being perpetrated against Macedonia and the Macedonian people. We urge the Trump Administration to take immediate action on this matter and reaffirm the strong friendship between the U.S. and Macedonia. We believe that appropriate resolution of this issue is crucial to stability in the Balkans.