UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, January 9, 2023

Albanian Language Media:

Prime Minister Kurti to visit Austria this week (RTK)
Sweden’s EU Presidency has started consultations for Kosovo’s bid (RFE)
Schmitt: In Balkans only one country causes problems, Serbia (Der Standard/Koha)
Analysts: Serbia is trying to refuse European plan; Kosovo to clarify its position (EO)
Reka: Some wrongly hope that peace can be reached with Vucic (Nacionale)
Serb reporter: Wounded in Strpce are misused by Vucic and Serbian List (Klan)

Serbian Language Media:

Thousands protest over armed attack on two Serb youngsters in Strpce (N1)
Reactions to armed attack on two Serb youngsters near Strpce (RTV, Tanjug, Kosovo Online)
Serb young man beaten while returning from midnight Christmas liturgy in Klokot (N1)
SOC: Patriarch will visit Pec Patriarchate in line with his program and discretion (Radio kontakt plus)
Pristina extends house arrest of Pantic for two more months (Tanjug)
A rally held in North Mitrovica against Serbia List and Serbian President (KoSSev)
Vukasin Obradovic to his Albanian friends: Do what Suroi did in ’99 (KoSSev)
Brnabic: We will request additional guarantees for Serbs in Kosovo (N1, RTS)
US State Department: Chollet due in Belgrade on Thursday (BETA, N1)

Opinion:

Kosovo Crisis has Underlined NATO’s Unclear Mandate in Region (BIRN)

International:

Wider Europe Briefing: Will Kosovo And Serbia Finally Make A Deal? Plus, The Nitty-Gritty Of EU Enlargement (RFE)
The Guardian view on problems in the western Balkans: Europe should do more
Roma Tell Long-Neglected Stories of Kosovo War’s Enduring Impact (BIRN)

Albanian Language Media

Prime Minister Kurti to visit Austria this week (RTK)

The office of the Austrian Federal Chancellor, Karl Nehammer, has confirmed the visit of the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti on Thursday.

Prime Minister Kurti will be welcomed by the Federal Chancellor, Nehammer with military honors. A press conference is planned after a joint working meeting.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, during his visit to Vienna, will give a speech invited by the Austrian Institute for European and Security Policy and the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. He will speak about "Kosovo, the Western Balkans and the European Union," reports the news website.

Sweden’s EU Presidency has started consultations for Kosovo’s bid (RFE)

Sweden’s presidency of the European Union has started consultations with member states about Kosovo’s request for membership in the European Union, and at this point does not want to preempt the results of these consultations. This was confirmed by Sweden’s Ambassador to Brussels, Lars Danielsson, who personally started the consultations.

Danielsson said this during a meeting with reporters in Brussels as he presented Sweden’s priorities during its EU presidency. “We are consulting with many member states to see what we will decide about the request. There are five non-recognising countries, and it is natural to consult with them first. I have met some of them already and meetings are ongoing,” he said.

“It is a procedural decision, but it also has a great political importance. I don’t want to preempt the results of the consultations, but as soon as I see consensus building among the member states on the course of action, I will notify the member states. We have two alternatives: to pass this to the Commission or not pass it to the Commission. But we are working on this file with great willingness,” Danielsson said.

Schmitt: In Balkans only one country causes problems, Serbia (Der Standard/Koha)

Swiss historian and professor at Vienna University, Oliver Jens Schmitt, criticised the European Union for lack of pressure on Serbia, which in his opinion, continues to remain a negative and destructive factor. According to Schmitt, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is different from his predecessors toward whom the EU could exert pressure more easily because they were discredited by arguably criminal activities.

In an interview for Der Standard, Schmitt accused Serbia for the escalating situation in Kosovo and added that the crisis in the north of Kosovo cannot be seen outside the context of the Russian attack on Ukraine.

Schmitt said that it is clear that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has never changed, he remains what he has been: a propaganda minister of Slobodan Vucic. In his opinion, Vucic is using the discourse of the past by calling Kurti “a terrorist scum”.

Read full interview at: https://bit.ly/3VYsHgC

Analysts: Serbia is trying to refuse European plan; Kosovo to clarify its position (EO)

Political commentators in Pristina argue that tensions in the north of Kosovo caused by the barricades erected by criminal groups and the withdrawal of Serbs from Kosovo’s institutions are part of Serbia’s scenario, the news website notes. For about a month, the north of Kosovo was blocked by the barricades, and Kosovo and Serbia seemed at war with one another. Analysts argue that Serbia’s objective is to refuse the French-German plan, also known as the European plan.

Ibrahim Gashi, professor at Pristina University, said in an interview with the news website that with the barricades Serbia tried to obstruct the consolidation of Kosovo. “The recent developments there [in the north], the withdrawal of Serbs from the institutions, has realised one part of Serbia’s scenario to derail the consolidation of the state of Kosovo. Perhaps, one can argue that we rushed into the agreement for the licence plates and by announcing elections without consuming all possibilities to bring them back. Now this situation suits Serbia more. I don’t want to believe we are heading in that direction, but the return of a frozen conflict there, suits Serbia more, and Kosovo’s political and administrative authorities don’t have access there,” he said.

Commenting on the Kosovo government’s decision to convert illegal plates to legal plates, Gashi said that the government should have stepped up security measures for Serbs that were willing to convert their plates.

Gazmir Raci, political commentator, told the news website that Kosovo has managed to return the proposal on the table and that now it is up to Serbia to say whether it is in favour or against the plan. “Kosovo has reached its objective in the dialogue, because it has returned the French-German proposal to the table. It is now known that through the barricades, Serbia tried to sabotage the start of talks about the plan, but it failed to do so. It removed the barricades the same way it erected them and now it must return to the table and give a final answer whether it supports the plan or not, because it cannot keep playing games. On the one hand, the Serbian Foreign Minister says they are against the plan, while the President says they have yet to give a final answer. Serbia has problems in its foreign policy, both in terms of the French-German plan and in relations with Russia,” he argued.

According to Raci, the French-German plan is good for both parties because it reduces tensions and provides a temporary solution to the problem, “so that Kosovo can move toward membership in NATO and EU, and Serbia can move faster toward membership in the EU … I don’t see any pressure, but rather an engagement by the international community for the parties to return to the table of talks as they agreed in December”.

Reka: Some wrongly hope that peace can be reached with Vucic (Nacionale)

Blerim Reka, Head of Mission at Consulate General of Kosovo in New York, said in a Facebook post today that “as expected, KFOR sent a negative response to the latest war-inciting provocation by the President of Serbia”. “However, it seems that not all internationals learned from the history of the Balkans. In fact they are repeating yesterday’s mistake. Three decades ago, they were wrong to believe that ‘peace cannot be achieved without Milosevic’, whereas today some still wrongly hope that ‘peace can be achieved with Vucic,” Reka wrote.

Serb reporter: Wounded in Strpce are misused by Vucic and Serbian List (Klan)

Zeljko Velkovic, a reporter with the independent TV station Nova, said that the Serb youths wounded in Kosovo, as well as their parents, are being misused by politicians and the media. He said that the protest in Strpce on Sunday showed that the Serbian List “inherited the tradition” of the Serbian Progressive Party to bring people to rallies with buses in organised fashion. “They were brought with buses from all over Kosovo. They were obliged to do this; they received messages that they needed to get on certain buses and go to that rally,” he said. “There is no doubt that the two youths in Kosovo were misused primarily by politicians who misused their videos and pictures. We have President Vucic on ‘Pink’, and after him a video showing an 11-year-old boy in the hospital, wounded and shaking with fear. We see his face the whole time and we also see him waving three fingers. Both boys are victims, in addition to tensions caused by Belgrade and Pristina, also by our politicians. And unfortunately by our media too.”

Velkovic also said that the media forget how they need to report when a child who has been attacked is in question and they forget that their faces must not be shown. He also said that the protest in Strpce was in fact an anti-rally of the protest that was held in Mitrovica against the Serbian List and Vucic.

Serbian Language Media

Thousands protest over armed attack on two Serb youngsters in Strpce (N1)

Several thousand people gathered in Strpce on Sunday to protest over the attack on Stefan and Milos Stojanovic, two local Serbs, 11 and 21 years old, who were wounded on Friday when Albanian, a member of Kosovo Security Forces (KSF), opened fire on them from a moving vehicle.

The protesters demand that the safety of Serb children in Kosovo and Metohija is ensured, with the Strpce Municipal Mayor, Dalibor Jevtic, saying that the incident represents a final warning, but that Serbs will persevere regardless of all the challenges they are facing.

Those gathered carried banners saying “We will not forgive you for the children!“, “Stefan, the heart of a Serb hero“, “A shot at Stefan and Milos is a shot at the heart of Serbia!“, “Europe, what are our children to blame for?!“, “Our children are not intended for (Albin) Kurti’s bullet!” .

Among the participants was the leader of the Serbian List (SL), Goran Rakic, as well as top party officials Igor Simic and Slavko Simic.

“Today, we are sending a message from this place that they will not scare us. Each of us is Stefan and Milos, and the message to those who want to expel us is that they failed“, Jevtic said, as reported by RTS.

He stressed that the international community must demand from Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to stop the attacks on Serb children.

Rakic said that the protesters gathered by the “heroic wounds of Stefan and Milos from Strpce, but also Stefan from Klokot”. “The terror of the dictatorial regime of Albin Kurti continues“, Rakic said, adding that “Kurti is mistaken if he thinks that Serbs removed the barricades because they are afraid”.

Among the speakers was also Stojan Marinkovic, the principal of the school the young boy Stefan attended. “We are sending a message that we believe in freedom and the right to life and that only in peace can we build a better future for all of us“, he said.

Reactions to armed attack on two Serb youngsters near Strpce (RTV, Tanjug, Kosovo Online)

The wounding of two Serbs, 11- and 21-years old Stefan and Milos Stojanovic, shot at by an Albanian, member of KSF, from a moving vehicle, in the village Gotovusa, near Strpce on Friday, sparked numerous reactions and received wide coverage in the Serbian media. Kosovo police arrested the suspect, and he was rendered one-month detention. The two wounded youngsters, as reported by the media, were out of life-danger. Media reported later in the day that Milos Stojanovic was discharged from hospital in Gracanica and sent for home treatment. The younger boy is still in the hospital for further medical observation and treatment, the media say.

Serbian List in its reaction said that instead of celebrating Christmas, Serbs fear for the lives of their children. It added “it was regrettable that representatives of the international community undertook nothing to prevent such brutal, unprovoked attacks on Serbs, and even persistently avoid to say it was attempted murder of the boys of Serb ethnicity”.

Strpce Mayor Dalibor Jevtic said the attack was not an isolated case, adding it did not happen by chance. He also said he told this to international representatives he spoke with, in the aftermath of the incident.

Serbian List President Goran Rakic urged responsible bodies, international community foremost and KFOR to step up their presence and help Serbs not by statements and condemnations but by demonstrating on the ground that they truly care to protect the Serbs and other non-majority communities living here.

Serbian Assembly member from Kosovo, Ljubomir Maric in his reaction said “the torture against Serbs as a consequence of repression policy of Albin Kurti, Vjosa Osmani and Dzelal Svecla continues. It has become normal to terrorise Serbian children now (…)”, he said, adding if these were the freedoms and democracy imposed by part of the Western countries upon Serbs.

Former Mitrovica North municipal councillor from Civic Initiative Freedom, Democracy, Justice (SDP) Marko Jaksic said “the only responsible for attacks against Serbs on Christmas holidays are Albin Kurti, Vjosa Osmani and Dzelal Svecla and the rest of the regime in Kosovo generating hatred against Serbs for months”, he said, adding that benevolent attitude of “KFOR, EU Office, EULEX, US Embassy in Kosovo, German Embassy in Kosovo and others contributed to that”.

Raska-Prizren Eparchy Bishop Teodosije visited the wounded youngsters, and spoke with doctors and medical personnel in Gracanica about their condition. He extended words of consolation and encouragement, along with a hope that Christmas joy would oust the pain.

Office for Kosovo and Metohija Director Petar Petkovic said by wounding Serbian boys Pristina sent a message that Serbs are not welcome, adding that this attempted murder was a stain on the face of the international community. He also said Pristina didn’t allow him to visit the boys, who were in Gracanica hospital for medical treatment.

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said shooting at an 11-year-old boy and 21-year-old his relative, just because they were Serbs depicts the true Kosovo face. She also posted on Twitter a video of a young boy in visible state of shock and distress, saying people should look at it, adding “that this image is a true face of Kosovo”.

Serbian Minister of Labor, Employment, Social and Veterans’ Affairs Nikola Selakovic said the attack on Serbian children at Sara Mountain didn’t happen by chance, adding that attacks on Serbs from Strpce, to Velika Hoca and arrests in northern Kosovo demonstrate true intentions of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti “to restrain the Serbs and then expel them”.

International organisations and missions in Kosovo also condemned the shooting incident on Friday.

“EULEX condemns today’s senseless attack against a young man and a boy in Strpce/Shterpce and wish them a speedy recovery (…)” EULEX head Lars-Gunnar Wigemark said in a post on Twitter.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo also “condemned in the strongest terms the drive-by shooting near Strpce/Shterpce earlier today, in which two people were injured (…)”, and welcomed swift action of Kosovo police to arrest the suspect.

German Ambassador in Pristina Jorn Rohde condemned the incident. “I condemn the attack on two young boys near Strpce today and I wish them a speedy recovery”, he said and welcomed the swift reaction of Kosovo police.

Montenegro Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic on behalf of the Montenegrin Government and personally “in the strongest terms condemned the wounding of an innocent boy and young man in Kosovo. I urge all our neighbours to refrain from any violence”, he said, adding that the solution to every problem is in dialogue and agreement.

Montenegrin Minister of Justice Marko Kovac “in the strongest terms condemned all acts of violence against the Serbs in Klokot and Gotovusa village. We appeal to institutions and international partners to ensure enjoyment of fundamental human rights for all citizens, and perpetrators of those unscrupulous attacks be found and sanctioned”.

The EU condemned the incident. “The EU firmly condemns the shooting of a child and a young man in Kosovo. Important that authorities will fully investigate this despicable crime and justice is exerted. We wish the injured swift and full recovery”, Peter Stano said in a post on Twitter.

The EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi also reacted. “I am shocked by the attack on two children in Shtërpcë today. There can be no justification for any violence. I wish them a fast recovery! I trust that full investigation will be carried out by the authorities of #Kosovo”, he wrote on Twitter.

EU Rapporteur for Serbia, Vladimir Bilcik “condemned the shooting of Stefan and Milos carrying a Christmas tree in Kosovo today in the strongest possible terms. I wish them a full recovery. Hatred and violence must be confronted head on. The perpetrator must be brought to justice immediately. There can be no impunity”, he said.

Serb young man beaten while returning from midnight Christmas liturgy in Klokot (N1)

The Office for Kosovo and Metohija said in a statement that a group of Albanians beat up Serb Stefan Tomic (18) from Klokot at around 2:30 a.m. while he and his brother were returning from the midnight Christmas liturgy in the Church of St. Peter and Paul in Klokot, N1 reports.

The young man was on his way to his aunt’s house after attending service in the church when he was attacked by a group of Albanians, some of whom he recognized as security guards at a local restaurant, the statement said. Stefan suffered injuries to his eye, arm, abdomen and legs, and he sought medical help at a health facility in Vitina.

Office for Kosovo and Metohija Director, Petar Petkovic, spoke with the Tomic family and told them they can count on the support of the state of Serbia, N1 adds.

SOC: Patriarch will visit Pec Patriarchate in line with his program and discretion (Radio kontakt plus)

Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) said the Patriarch Porfirije “will visit Pec Patriarchate, priesthood and its faithful people in Raska-Prizren Eparchy in line with his program and discretion, which are not related to any political context or any personality from political sphere”, Radio kontakt plus reports.

SOC added that Patriarch Porfirije in line with previously agreed program will serve Christmas liturgy at Saint Sava Temple in Belgrade.

SOC made those remarks following some media reports that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti agreed “to permit” visit of Patriarch Porfirije to Pec Patriarchate “as per request” of Nenad Rasic, Minister of Communities and Returns for the Orthodox Christmas.

Pristina authorities previously banned Patriarch Porfirije from entering Kosovo on December 26.

Pristina extends house arrest of Pantic for two more months (Tanjug)

A basic court in Pristina has extended for two more months the house arrest of Dejan Pantic, former Kosovo police officer, Tanjug news agency reports.

In a statement, the court said a preliminary proceedings judge had granted a request by the special prosecutor's office that Pantic's house arrest be extended until March 9.

Pantic was arrested at the Jarinje administrative crossing on December 10 and transferred to house arrest in the closing days of last year. Pristina has charged him with involvement in an alleged attack on the Mitrovica North office of its central electoral commission.

A rally held in North Mitrovica against Serbia List and Serbian President (KoSSev)

KoSSev portal reported Sunday that approximately 200 people gathered on the promenade in North Mitrovica, in front of the premises of Serbian List, to protest as they said against the policies of SL and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic when it comes to Kosovo Serbs.

They accused them of failing to represent the interests of the Serb people, nepotism, and SL officials of wealth accumulation.

They also made demands to Kosovo authorities, international community, and Belgrade, asking for 100% involvement of local Serbs in decision-making when it comes to their own fate, the immediate withdrawal of the Kosovo police from the north, the release of arrested Serbs, and the suspension of negotiations until these demands are met.

They expressed solidarity with the Serbs south of the Ibar, with the injured Serb youth, sending messages against partition.

Opinion

Kosovo Crisis has Underlined NATO’s Unclear Mandate in Region (BIRN)

The crisis in northern Kosovo and KFORs uncertain answer have revealed the ambiguity of NATO and Western policy in the Balkans.

International

Wider Europe Briefing: Will Kosovo And Serbia Finally Make A Deal? Plus, The Nitty-Gritty Of EU Enlargement (RFE)

Brief #1: Serbia-Kosovo: Is A New Agreement Imminent?

What You Need To Know: The situation in Kosovo threatened to boil over at the end of 2022, with roadblocks set up by ethnic Serbs in the northern part of the country. The protesting Serbs were outraged over the arrest of a former Serbian police officer, Dejan Pantic, in Kosovo.

After pressure from both the United States and the European Union, Pantic was eventually placed under house arrest in order to defuse the tension. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic then promptly promised, on December 29, that all barriers and roadblocks would be removed.

The flare-up was similar to one in November following the walkout of hundreds of ethnic Serb police officers, judges, and prosecutors protesting the decision by Pristina to ban Belgrade-issued licence plates inside Kosovo.

This latest crisis even reached the higher echelons of NATO, with Serbia at one point fielding a request to the military organisation's KFOR peacekeeping mission for permission to deploy its troops in Kosovo. The international force, which has been present in Kosovo since 1999, ignored the call and stated publicly that it had sufficient capabilities to enforce its UN mandate. The mission then helped in removing the barricades, with the last one dismantled on January 5.