LOCAL PRESS

 

Brnabic: Government reshuffle necessary (Beta/RTS/Tanjug/Novosti)

 

“I think the reshuffle is necessary, I will now say that completely openly. I want it to begin and to end as soon as possible in order to avoid jeopardizing government efficiency in any way,” Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic told reporters. As the result of unruly conduct of certain government members, “I have asked President Vucic to meet me as soon as he returns from Brussels to discuss this matter and to consult him about personal solutions, as he is the president of the largest party in the government,” she said. Brnabic told journalist that she thinks there are those in the government who are overly frustrated, who are not team players, and who engage in self-promotion. “They do too much self-promotion and push personal agendas, instead of that of the government,” said Brnabic, adding that the citizens have had enough of that and that it might seem that they are there because of the government, instead of the other way around.

According to the prime minister, the government is here only because of the citizens, and they should not worry about who likes or dislikes whom in the government, and who is fighting with whom. Asked who she had in mind, Brnabic replied that she had said enough, and that her first criterion when selecting members of the government was to have team players who subordinate everything to the common goal.

Belgrade media remind that, as far as the public squabbles between the ministers go, the foremost in this were Minister of Construction, Transportation and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic and Minister of Labor Zoran Djordjevic, and this about the passing of the law on gender equality, and then Mihajlovic and Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin. Goran Vesic is mentioned as replacement for Mihajlovic.

The press has also on several occasions wrote of disagreements between Brnabic and the Minister for European Integration Jadranka Joksimovic. Also, one of the options is for Sinisa Mali to replace Finance Minister Dusan Vujovic or Economy Minister Goran Knezevic. Zoran Radojicic or Aja Jung could replace Culture Minister Vladan Vukosavljevic.

 

Talks in Brussels without progress (RTS)

 

The Head of the Belgrade negotiating team Marko Djuric has stated in Brussels that the Belgrade delegation insisted on the issue of the formation of the Community of Serb Municipalities, but that Pristina was not ready to discuss that. The EU is calling both sides to strengthen efforts on implementing the agreed, because progress in normalization of relations is the key element on their EU paths. EU High Representative Federica Mogherini will host the meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo President Hashim Thaci.

 

 

Berlin continues diplomatic offensive regarding Kosovo (Danas)

 

Angela Merkel’s high official for foreign policy Jan Heker should visit Serbia this week in order to present Berlin’s stand on resolving the Kosovo issue, Danas unofficially learns from diplomatic circles. According to these sources, Heker has recently visited Belgrade on two occasions, but official Belgrade didn’t wish to either confirm or deny these speculations for Danas. These sources claim that the “German stand on Kosovo doesn’t represent anything new – Berlin continues to insist on a legally-binding agreement between Belgrade and Pristina and wants this document to be signed by the end of the year, and Serbia is not required to recognize independence of Kosovo but, instead, to enable Kosovo to receive a seat in the UN, first in the observer status, after the Palestine model.

Danas unofficially learns from Serbian political sources that Vucic will address the public via the RTS news from New York.

 

Shala: It is Pristina’s duty to form ZSO (Beta)

 

The Kosovo president's adviser Blerim Shala said on 20 March that it was Pristina’s duty to set up the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO), and that the Belgrade and Pristina delegations had agreed that the Constitutional Court of Kosovo should rule on the matter first.

In a debate organized in Belgrade by the Forum for Ethnic Relations and the Open Society Foundation, called Diplomatic Dialogue - Status and Prospects of Brussels Dialogue, Shala said that a working group should be set up soon to create a statute for the ZSO. The presidential aide said that the final decision on the ZSO would be made in Brussels, as it’s a political matter. “The ZSO will be made. The Constitutional Court told Kosovo politicians that it was their international duty to establish it,” Shala said, speaking fluent Serbian at the conference.

Shala said that Aleksandar Vucic and Hashim Thaci were expected to meet in Brussels on 23 March to discuss the agreements that had been reached, but not yet implemented, including those on the ZSO and energy. Shala said to Beta that it was good that the two presidents would meet, and that he expected presidential meetings to become regular, so as to define further steps in view of the EU enlargement strategy for the Western Balkans. He said that Belgrade and Pristina would have to reach a solution in two years. He recalled that the technical talks between the two sides were under way, and that the two presidents were expected to recapitulate the agreements made so far.

 

Kozarev: Pristina’s untruth on abolishment of 381 dialing code (Tanjug)

 

On the occasion of Pristina’s claims on the abolishment of the 381 dialing code, Deputy Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Dusan Kozarev has stated: “Pristina, as usually, intentionally is trying to create, with wrong interpretation of the agreement on telecommunications, confusion and discomposure with the Serb population in the province, There is a clearly formulated plan that defines what and when is occurring in the context of telecommunications, so that any claim on the abolishment of the 381 dialing code for users in Kosovo and Metohija is a most common lie,” Kozarev wrote in the statement of the Office.

“Nothing will change for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija either in the fixed or mobile telephony, and Pristina can wish what it wants,” said Kozarev.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Dodik says RS should return RS army in case international community continues insisting on establishment of Kosovo army (Nezavisne)

 

Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik stated that if the international community continues to ask for establishment of Kosovo Army, then it will be necessary to realize the idea on returning the RS Army as well. “The Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) contribute nothing to the RS,” Dodik added. Member of the Commission for Defense and Security of B&H Parliament Dusanka Majkic told the daily that Dodik’s idea is not unrealistic, having in mind the provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA). Majkic reminded that the Armed Forces of B&H were established under great pressure of the international community “but are not the Dayton category. According to the DPA, only entities can have the army. RS institutions must consider re-establishment of the RS Army because the Armed Forces of B&H is big failure”. Majkic assessed that political unity of political parties from the RS will have to be achieved before launching this matter. Majkic also said that there are various documents at the state level in B&H according to which the goal is to modernize the Armed Forces of B&H and participate in NATO exercises. “The stance of the RS is clear – we do not want to join the NATO. Sarajevo is abusing the Armed Force of B&H in this case as well. Those Armed Forces serve no purpose except to spend BAM 270 million of budget each year”, Majkic said.

 

Dzaferovic on changes to Election Law: HR presented certain ideas (TV1)

 

Deputy speaker of the B&H House of Representatives (HoR) and SDA Vice President Sefik Dzaferovic, asked to comment on High Representative (HR) Valentin Inzko’s proposals regarding the amendments to the Election Law of B&H, confirmed that the HR presented certain ideas that emerged at the meeting that the European Commission and the US Embassy to B&H held with representatives of political parties. “Those were just ideas. As far as the B&H Presidency is concerned, we think the existing method of election of the Presidency members should not be changed until the ‘Sejdic-Finci’ and other rulings of the European Court of Human Rights have been implemented. After all, it was recommended by the EU Foreign Affairs Council as well,” Dzaferovic explained. “As far as the Federation of B&H House of Peoples is concerned, at least one representative of each constituent people, if elected, should be delegated from each canton,” he said, adding that the 1991 population census must be taken into account during the distribution of seats until the implementation of the Annex VII of the Dayton Peace Accords (DPA) has been completed. Dzaferovic stressed that the issue of Mostar should also be solved in a way that the city remains united, without domination of any constituent people over the others.

 

SDP and DF to discuss unification of left-wing parties amid conflict (BHT1)

 

SDP and DF will hold a meeting today, to discuss unification of left-wing parties. Even before reaching an agreement, SDP and DF ended up in conflict due to nomination of DF leader Zeljko Komsic for a Croat member of B&H Presidency and DF’s request for closure of SDP as a condition for unification. SDP leader Nermin Niksic stated that his party does not support unilateral DF’s decision on nomination of the candidate for B&H Presidency and called on DF to withdraw nomination of Komsic, to discuss the election process within the bloc. DF Vice President Dzenan Djonlagic said that Komsic’s nomination is not directed against SDP, but against the concept HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic and Croat People’s Assembly advocate. Meanwhile, Covic noted that left-wing parties have dominantly Bosniak structure. Civic Alliance (‘Civic Alliance’, GS) has called for calming down the tensions, while Our Party said that SDP and DF have finally woken up. Our Party Vice President Edin Forto said that the parties in the bloc should determine nominations of candidates together, not individually.

Member of Our Party Presidency Damir Marjanovic stated that he fears that it is too late to reach an agreement on joint participation of the left-wing parties at the October elections, but there is still a possibility that they might find a non-partisan candidate for the member of the Presidency of B&H they can all support. He pointed out that great ambitions and vanity still represent a big problem amongst the leadership. Meanwhile GS stated: “We should all put an effort into finding a compromise that will result in victory of progressive forces in the upcoming elections. Insisting on personal interests could result in a horror-scenario in which the Dodik-Covic duo would have the lost and confused SDA as a partner for division of the country,” reads the statement issued by GS.

 

Both candidates of ruling coalition will be from SNSD (Nezavisne/TV1)

 

SNSD Spokesperson Radovan Kovacevic stated on Tuesday that the SNSD-DNS-SP coalition remains united and it plans to participate in the general elections in October together. However, Kovacevic said that candidates for both the RS President and the member of the Presidency of B&H from the RS will come from SNSD. Also, he said he expects a final agreement of the coalition partners to be signed within next ten days. “Candidates for the RS President and the member of the Presidency of B&H will be from SNSD,” said Kovacevic and confirmed that the coalition partners held a meeting on Tuesday and harmonized these stances.

However, DNS leader Marko Pavic denied this information saying that nothing has been agreed yet. “If they says so, I do not mind but I cannot confirm that. We will complete the process of negotiations next week and the parties’ bodies will convene in the meantime,” Pavic was quoted as saying.

 

Visit of B&H CEC President Hadziabdic to Russia raises issue of Russia’s possible influence on election process in B&H (TV1)

 

The official visit of President of the B&H Central Election Commission (CEC) Irena Hadziabdic to Russia has raised the issue of the possibility that Russian IT experts might interfere with the election process in B&H. The B&H CEC dismissed these allegations and published on its official website that the Russian Federation has paid for the costs of Hadziabdic’s stay in Moscow. SDP B&H MP in the B&H House of Representatives (HoR) Sasa Magazinovic urged the B&H CEC to explain what this is all about and who is going to interfere with the election process in B&H, particularly at the time when technical amendments to the Election Law of B&H are being adopted with the aim to prevent irregularities. DF MP in the B&H HoR Damir Becirovic stressed that B&H should look up to EU member states and not Russia when it comes to the election process.

 

Cavara hosts another meeting on crisis in ruling coalition, SDA reps fail to attend it (TV1)

 

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina President Marinko Cavara member of HDZ B&H hosted another meeting with representatives of the executive and legislative authorities in the Federation of B&H, which took place in Sarajevo on Tuesday. The meeting was supposed to be dedicated to the crisis in the work of the ruling coalition in the Federation of B&H, but representatives of SDA failed to attend it. Therefore, the meeting could not result in any concrete agreement. SBB B&H delegate in the Bosniak Caucus of the Federation of B&H House of Peoples (FB&H HoP) Fuad Hadzimehmedovic assessed that it was quite irresponsible of representatives of SDA not to attend this meeting without an explanation. In his opinion, SDA is obviously spreading the crisis within its own structures to the institutions of the Federation of B&H. Federation of B&H Prime Minister Fadil Novalic told reporters that there is no need for this meeting because SDA is organizing a major meeting on Saturday. On this occasion, SDA will present its views on the situation within the party as well as in B&H, he noted. Following the meeting with Cavara, participants said that it is not certain that ministers from HDZ B&H and SBB B&H will attend the extraordinary session of the Federation of B&H government, which will take place on Wednesday. They concluded that the Federation of B&H has to move from standstill and that sessions of the Federation of B&H Government and Parliament have to be held on a regular basis. Cavara stated that there is no alternative to talks, and added that too many extraordinary sessions look like introduction of extraordinary situation. Federation of B&H Vice-President Melika Mahmutbegovic (SDA) said that SDA’s representatives did not attend the meeting, due to justified reasons, adding that they asked for rescheduling of the meeting. According to Mahmutbegovic, it is unnecessary to hold unproductive meetings.

 

RS Assembly team adopts reply to motion disputing 9 January as RS Day (ATV)

 

A team of the RS Assembly, tasked to prepare an answer and take part in defense, related to a motion of 10 delegates in the RS Council of People for constitutional review of the Law on the RS Day, held a session on Tuesday. Although members of the team harmonized their stances on this issue, they did not present it to the public. Addressing media, Head of the team Rajko Kuzmanovic stated that the team concluded that the request is unconstitutional and thus, should be dismissed in the Constitutional Court. Members of the team stated that they expect from B&H Constitutional Court to acknowledge their stance and dismiss the request. According to announcements, the team will present their official standpoint on this issue at a next session scheduled to take place in seven days. The official standpoint of the team is expected to be delivered to the Commission for Constitutional Affairs of the RS Assembly for confirmation, in eight days. The reporter noted that arguments of members of the team on this issue are already known to the public, i.e. no article of the law denies rights of the other two constituent peoples and no article of the law represents an attack on religious and ethnic freedoms.

 

B&H CoM passes proposal of amendments to Law on OSA, Law on Criminal Procedure removed from agenda (ATV)

 

B&H Council of Ministers (CoM) adopted changes to the Law on B&H Intelligence-Security Agency (OSA) on Tuesday, but the CoM failed to adopt changes to the Law on Criminal Procedure of B&H. ATV reported that in this way, hundreds of investigations in B&H Prosecutor’s Office are on standby, after another failed attempt to adopt changes to the aforementioned law. B&H Constitutional Court (CC) declared provisions of the Law on Criminal Procedure of B&H unconstitutional eight months ago and if the changes are not adopted by Thursday, the CC may put the provisions out of force. The CC declared unconstitutional provisions of the Law on the OSA which limit endless period for monitoring and wiretapping. The CoM adopted a proposal which limits the period for monitoring and wiretapping to four years, with the possibility of extension for additional four years, if necessary. The reporter noted that if the CC puts the provisions out of force on Thursday, all cases that rely on the disputable articles of the Law on Criminal Procedure of B&H may be jeopardized.

The CoM actually did not discuss a proposal of B&H Minister of Justice Josip Grubesa on changes to the Law on Criminal Procedure of B&H on Tuesday, due to the fact that Ministers from SDA rejected to put this issue on the agenda.

 

‘Night Wolves’ arrive in B&H (N1)

 

Members of the Russian motorcycle club 'Night Wolves' have begun their tour called the 'Russian Balkans'. They were expected to enter Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) from Serbia through the border crossing 'Pavlovica most' in Bijeljina on Tuesday evenig. Members of the Russian motorcycle club 'Night Wolves' are supposed to visit Banja Luka, Brcko and Doboj, where they should stay until 22 March, when they will go back to Serbia. Members of the 'Night Wolves' found themselves in the spotlight immediately after it was announced that they will visit B&H, but also because of the claims that they pose a threat to the security of B&H, which is why two members of the motorcycle club were banned from entering B&H. According to representatives of the B&H Service for Foreigners' Affairs, leaders of the motorcycle club 'Night Wolves' from Russia and Serbia, Alexander Zaldostanov and Sasa Savic, were banned from entering because they pose a threat to the security of B&H. Maric reported that between ten and twenty members of the motorcycle club 'Night Wolves', including six Russian nationals, entered B&H via the border crossing 'Pavlovica most' and that they came to B&H in vans and personal vehicles and not on bikes. B&H Minister of Security Dragan Mektic said that one cannot say that the 'Night Wolves' are a threat in the true sense of the word, but that their statements and actions could possibly lead to the worsening of tensions in B&H, especially if they send certain political messages. Mektic stated on Tuesday that he has no power to ban entrance of any individual in B&H, and added that it is being done by law enforcement agencies. He said that media wrongly interpreted that he made a decision to ban entrance to B&H to the leader of ‘Night Wolves’, and added that he does not want to comment it. Mektic noted that everyone who meets condition can enter B&H, but added that every foreigner who arrives is obliged to respect legal order of B&H. The US Embassy to B&H said that such visits have a negative impact on the stability in B&H, while the Russian Embassy to B&H said that one is unnecessarily raising tensions and that the bikers are coming to B&H to visit monasteries, cultural and religious institutions. Representative of 'Night Wolves' and head of Russian federation of motorcycle tourism Evgeni Strogov said that the goal of their “pilgrimage is to spread spiritual and cultural connection among peoples and friends in Serbia and the RS.” Also, representatives of this group said that they do not represent the security threat for B&H, adding they are surprised with politicization of their tour. RS President Milorad Dodik told that bikers from this motorcycle club do not pose a threat, but the Islamic State, para-jamaats and training of terrorists. Dodik said that he knows that B&H intelligence services issued an order for surveillance over every member of this motorcycle club, while certain individuals were banned from entering B&H due to the alleged threat to security. The RS President said that the arrival of bikers should not be disputed, because there is no single indication that they could pose the security threat, adding that these bikers represent themselves in the public, they collect sympathies in cities that they pass through and not a single case of crime committed by them was ever registered when they passed through the RS. Dodik said that security-political situation in the RS is stable, despite the pressures, adding that allegations presented by B&H Security Minister Dragan Mektic are on the same trace of anti-Serb and anti-Russian hysteria, stressing that it is no accident that he started spreading these lies upon his return from the UK.

 

Slovenia has no grounds or reasons to sue Croatia (Hina)

 

Croatian Foreign and European Affairs Minister Marija Pejcinovic Buric reiterated in Brussels Croatia's position that the border dispute with Slovenia was not the issue of the European acquis communautaire and Slovenia had neither grounds nor reasons to initiate proceedings against Croatia at the Court of Justice of the European Union "for allegedly breaching EU law." "There are neither grounds nor reasons for such a suit. We, like everyone else, are now waiting to see what the European Commission will say, but the fact remains that this is a bilateral border issue and not an issue of the European acquis communautaire and there are no grounds for a lawsuit. We are once again calling on Slovenia to handle this through dialogue because we are confident that dialogue can resolve this issue," the Croatian minister said. The European Commission on Friday confirmed receipt of a letter from the Slovenian government proposing the filing of a lawsuit against Croatia for its non-compliance with an international arbitration ruling on the Croatian-Slovenian border dispute. Slovenia plans to sue Croatia in line with Article 259 due to its non-compliance with the border arbitration ruling. The EC now has three months to respond to Slovenia's proposal. If it accepts it, it takes over the lawsuit. If the EC does not accept the proposal or does not respond to it, the member state which plans to file the lawsuit may do so before the Court of Justice of the EU. In formulating its position, the EC may call on the two sides to state their positions on the subject of the dispute. Lawsuits between EU member states are very rare and of the six such cases launched so far, only one was successful.

 

Markovic: Excellent cooperation with Djukanovic (RTCG)

 

Prime Minister Dusko Markovic claims that he has excellent long-term cooperation with DPS leader Milo Djukanovic, and that there is no fear of possible interference in the government’s scope of competence, if Djukanovic wins the presidential election. Markovic added that Djukanovic had an undisputed authority, but said that he himself also had authority. “During my term of office, Djukanovic never suggested things to me unless I asked for some kind of consultation from him,” said Markovic. He says that DPS seriously considered who could be its presidential candidate to respond to the new moment and the challenges that Montenegro is facing with. “We have been thinking for a long time, talking and made the decision that Djukanovic should be the candidate, which he accepted,” said PM. Markovic believes that Djukanovic will win the election in the first round. He also adds that he would have no problems to co-operate with the president who would come from the opposition. Commenting on the fact that one of DF leaders Milan Knezevic started serving his prison sentence, Markovic said that anyone who violates the law must be held responsible. Asked whether the authorities have the same arrays towards political opponents having in mind the case of Svetozar Marovic, PM reiterated that Marovic was not available to the Montenegrin authorities.

 

Zaev: Our integration into NATO is not directed against Russia (Meta)

 

Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said that Macedonia’s aspiration to integrate into NATO does not mean opposing Russia and that membership is a long-term aspiration of Macedonian citizens. According to Zaev, membership in NATO is important for the stability and security of Macedonia and the region. Commenting on the statement made by the Russian Foreign Ministry, Zaev said that Macedonia, as one of its strategic goals wants to strengthen the cooperation with the Russian Federation. “Our integration into NATO does not mean opposing the promotion of cooperation with the Russian Federation, because Macedonia in its strategic goals intends to strengthen and promote cooperation with the Russian Federation, primarily in economics, culture, education, and in all other respects”, said the Macedonian Prime Minister. He said that the country’s commitment to NATO was from 25 years ago. “I would like to point out that as early as 1993 with a joint declaration in Parliament, Macedonia has established its strategic priorities, among which is NATO integration. Indeed, it is an expression of the vast majority – over 75% of our citizens are for integration into NATO. Integration into NATO is very important for the stability and security of Macedonia, but also for the entire region,” said Zaev.

 

Dimitrov: Skopje sent draft agreement on name row settlement to Athens (MIA)

 

A representative of Macedonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has submitted today the country’s draft agreement on settling the name dispute to official Athens, FM Nikola Dimitrov told a press conference on Tuesday. Macedonia has also received the Greek draft agreement, Dimitrov said, notifying that there were differences between the two documents without revealing details.

Both drafts will be discussed during the visit of Greek FM Nikos Kotzias to Skopje announced for this Thursday, Dimitrov said. ‘The Greek draft agreement is being analyzed at the moment. As matters get complicated when we communicate via media, I will only say that there are differences and that we hope, if we (both sides) work together on one goal, to successfully iron them,’ Dimitrov said. So the Skopje-Athens communication is now entering a stage of exchange of written documents, he said. ‘The goal is to find a substantial, dignified solution to ironing the differences over the name, which will make a distinction between our country Macedonia and the region Macedonia in Greece,’ the FM said. He believes that the solution is possible if the other side also wishes for the differences to be surpassed. ‘We are ready to move forward. We have settled the open issue with Bulgaria under the (friendship) treaty, and we also wish for the dispute with Greece to be resolved. It is a high time for the region to grow up and move forward,’ Dimitrov said. I am looking forward to meeting my Greek counterpart Kotzias, who will arrive to Macedonia this Thursday.

 

What does Macedonia's draft-agreement contain (MIA)

 

Greece's draft-agreement containing proposals for resolving the name issue has been delivered to the government before being reviewed for the first time in Skopje alongside the draft-agreement of the Macedonian government already sent to the Greek administration, said Prime Minister Zoran Zaev. Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, he said that draft-agreements were considered helpful tools in the negotiating process, however, the key element would be a draft-international treaty that should be put forward by the UN name talks envoy, Matthew Nimetz.

"We cannot make bilateral deals or some kind of documents. The process is UN-brokered. All the rest are tools that could be of help. They even don't have to be incorporated in what would be a final draft of an international agreement or treaty with Greece. From this point of view, it is something that hasn't been considered or discussed, and it will be reviewed for the first time in the meeting here, in Skopje. We will be able to inform about the details then. I'm confident that the executive government, as a prime minister myself, the foreign minister, and all other political stakeholders, the institutions and also the media, will closely follow the process but with a sense of responsibility in order to succeed," the Macedonian PM noted. He elaborated the content of the Macedonian draft-agreement after being asked by a journalist. "Our draft-agreement contains several international formulations of such international agreements, because formulations on the name, use, scope, identity issues, codes, etc, are still being considered in the negotiations. Thus, they are established in various forms, the same as those proposed by Greece. It involves technical aspects of the wording of the agreement. But, in the end, I believe it is the UN that has the most experience with such agreements, because we expect the final agreement to come from there," stated Premier Zaev.

 

UN: Nimetz will meet with FMs Dimitrov and Kotzias on 30 March in Vienna (MIA)

 

The United Nations press service has confirmed that the foreign ministers of Macedonia and Greece will meet UN envoy Matthew Nimetz in Vienna on 30 March. Earlier, the foreign ministries of the two countries informed the public about the meeting. "Mr. Matthew Nimetz, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General, will meet jointly with H.E. Mr. Nikos Kotzias, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece, and H.E. Mr. Nikola Dimitrov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, in Vienna on 30 March 2018. The meeting is part of United Nations’ ongoing efforts to assist the sides in finding a mutually acceptable solution to the “name” issue," reads the press release. The fresh round of talks with Nimetz will be preceded by a meeting of Dimitrov and Kotzias on Thursday in Skopje during Kotzias' official visit to Macedonia.

 

Rama meetings with Mogherini and Fleckenstein (ADN)

 

Prime Minister, Edi Rama, had some meetings on Tuesday during his visit in Brussels, with the EU Foreign Policy and Security Policy Chief, Federica Mogherini and with the Reporter for Albania at the European Parliament, Knut Fleckenstein. Without giving further details from these meetings, Rama said that they were just friendly ones. "Several friendly meetings before the hearing with the group "Friends of Albania in the European Parliament," said the PM. Earlier Rama held a meeting with Commissioner Johannes Hahn and Belgium PM, Charles Michel who expressed support for the integration of Albania.

 

Opening of accession negotiations, Mogherini optimistic for Albania (ADN)

 

EU Foreign and Security Policy Chief, Federica Mogherini, was optimistic on Tuesday for the opening of the accession negotiations with Albania. Speaking at the "Friends of Albania" project, organized in Brussels, she said that is optimistic about Albania negotiations accession, to be started in June by the European Council and also appreciated the reforms realized so far.

"I've seen over the years that being European for Albanians goes beyond the Eurovision festival. We need this energy and political institutions that say 'we should be in Europe'. Albania knows how to do incredible things. We worked together and we have achieved results not only in the region. We are on the right track. Reforms made so far are extraordinary, but I would focus on foreign policy reform and judicial one," said Mogherini. She added by saying that the EU needs energy and Albania in it, because it has to do with union of the whole continent.

 

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

 

Statement following the working level meeting within the EU facilitated Dialogue (EEAS, 21 March 2018)

 

Bruxelles - Statement by the Spokesperson following the working level meeting within the EU facilitated Dialogue

The Chief Negotiators from Belgrade and Pristina, Mr Marko Djurić and Mr Avni Arifi, together with their respective teams, met in Brussels from the 19 to the 21 March. They followed up on their previous discussions on the outstanding implementation of various agreements reached between the two sides within the EU facilitated Dialogue, in particular the agreements on the Association/Community of Serb majority municipalities, Energy, the Mitrovica Bridge, IBM and Freedom of Movement.

While the discussions were thorough, no further progress was achieved. The EU calls on both sides to intensify their efforts on the implementation work, recalling that progress in the normalisation of relations is a key element on their respective European paths.