UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, June 28, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

Kurti reacts to Serbia’s banning of 'Miredita, Dobar Dan' festival (media)
Organisers of 'Miredita, dobar dan': "State incited hatred, intolerance, hostility" (RFE)
Kandic: Serbia and its institutions aligned themselves with hooligans (media)
Four sentenced to prison for involvement in Ivanovic assassination (media)
Police searching for Serb suspects over camouflaged cameras in north (media)
Man arrested for allegedly committing war crimes against civilians (media)
State Department report on international religious freedom: Kosovo (media)
Court ruling on Bureau; KLI: Another government failure for judiciary reforms (EO)
Poll: VV-Guxo 41 percent, PDK 19.6, LDK 19.2 and AAK-Nisma 6 (Albanian Post)
ECPMF reacts to MP remarks against media and civil society members (media)
AJK reacts to latest death threats against reporter Vullnet Krasniqi (media)
Police remove “provocative shirts and flags” at St. Vitus remembering (media)
Octopus Institute analysis on arrest of Albanians, one Serb, for espionage (Telegrafi)
FPÖ wants parliament to declare itself against Kosovo independence (media)

Serbian Language Media:

Memorial service served to Kosovo heroes at Gazimestan (Kosovo Online, media)
Serbian MFA: St Vitus's Day reflects our love of freedom, moral essence (Tanjug)
Petkovic: Serbia fulfilled its obligations; I do not expect anything from continuation of dialogue (RTS)
Verdict passed in case of the murder of Oliver Ivanovic, 22 years in prison for the four defendants (media)
Office for KiM: Verdict against four Serbs in Oliver Ivanovic’s case "scandalous" (Kosovo Online, media)
Serbian List: Draconian and politically staged verdict (media, social media)
Ivanovic's nephew: This verdict still does not provide answers to questions about who ordered and executed Ivanovic's murder (KoSSev)
Lawyer: Tolic underwent surgery again, I am concerned about his health condition (Kosovo Online)
Indictment against Svecla, three MPs upheld 75 months after teargas was thrown (KoSSev, media)
Serb Movements from Kosovo support the protest against lithium mines (Beta, Danas)
Radovanovic: The frozen conflict suits both Vucic and Kurti (NMagazin, Beta)

International:

Kosovo convicts four over Serb opposition politician’s murder (BIRN)
Serbian police ban culture festival with Kosovo as pressure mounts on liberal voices (AP)
Germany extends army deployments in Kosovo, Bosnia, Coast of Lebanon (RFE)
What are the takeaways from another unsuccessful round of the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue? (EWB)
Language and infrastructure barriers halt integration of Serb majority village into Kosovo society (Prishtina Insight)
Serbian authorities use high-tech surveillance to monitor opponents (BIRN)
Von der Leyen, Costa and Kallas bag EU top jobs (politico.eu)
‘Shipwreck’ and ‘carnage’: European media gawks at Biden’s debate flop against Trump (politico.eu)

Albanian Language Media

Kurti reacts to banning of 'Miredita, Dobar Dan' festival (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti reacted in a post on X today to the decision of Serbian authorities to ban the “Miredita, Dobar Dan” festival. “After refusing once again to sign the EU-facilitated, U.S.-endorsed Basic Agreement, Serbia on Thursday shut down yet another EU-sponsored initiative, ‘Mirëdita, Dobar Dan’. A cultural festival with a decade-long history of celebrating diversity and bringing together artists from Kosova and Serbia, "Miredita, Dobar Dan" was hijacked by Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Law Dacic, who deformed it, beyond recognition, into a grotesque parade of hateful and discriminatory messages. In lieu of artists, the floor was given over to groups of hooligans. Regrettably, Serbia has once again revealed its unrelenting hostility to everything that has to do with peace and reconciliation,” Kurti writes.

Organisers of 'Miredita, dobar dan': "State incited hatred, intolerance, hostility" (RFE)

The order of the Serbian Ministry of Interior Affairs to ban the “Miredita, Dobar Dan” festival violated the Constitution of Serbia, said the event’s organisers who represent the contemporary arts and cultural scene, the news website reports.

“By banning the festival, the Ministry of Interior Affairs and the Government of Serbia showed once again that the freedom to assemble is valid only for groups of hooligans, and not for the participants and those invited to attend the festival,” said organisers from the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, the Civic Initiative from Serbia, and Integra from Kosovo.

Serbian authorities banned the festival following protests by right-wing hardliners and hooligans.

The organisers of the event said that representatives of state institutions bear the main responsibility for creating a negative public atmosphere about the festival, and mentioned Minister of Culture, Nikola Selakovic, Minister of Family Care, Milica Djurdjevic-Stamenkovski, Deputy Prime Minister, Aleksandar Vulin, Mayor of Belgrade, Aleksandar Sapic and Minister of Interior Affairs, Ivica Dacic. “The representatives of state institutions were the first ones to incite hatred, intolerance and hostility, which then led to the banning of the festival,” the organisers said. They also said that the festival is not an enemy of the state but that the enemy are the hooligans “with whom the state has sided, instead of implementing its basic duties which is to secure the freedoms and rights guaranteed by law and to punish all those that violate the freedoms and rights of citizens”.

The organisers also said that a bus with participants of the festival travelling from Kosovo was stopped at the entrance of Belgrade and was not allowed to enter the Serbian capital, after which the bus had to return to Kosovo. “This ban represents a violation of the right to assemble, the right to freedom of movement and expression, but also the end of the illusion that this government wants a peaceful solution with Kosovo. It also represents the end of Serbia’s European integration,” the organisers said.

The “Miredita, Dobar Dan” festival is held once a year in Pristina and Belgrade and aims to bring the cultural scenes in Serbia and Kosovo closer, and to present Kosovo’s contemporary arts and culture scene to the audience in Serbia.

Kandic: Serbia and its institutions aligned themselves with hooligans (media)

Several news websites report that Natasa Kandic, Director of the Humanitarian Law Center in Serbia, said that by banning the “Miredita, Dobar Dan” festival “Serbia and its institutions have aligned themselves with hooligans and the darkest ethnonationalist obscurity.It is no longer possible to organise a debate on reconciliation,nor a protest against the glorification of war criminals. A black hole.”

Four sentenced to prison for involvement in Ivanovic assassination (media)

Most news websites report that the Basic Court in Pristina sentenced four people today for their involvement in the assassination of Kosovo Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic in 2018. Nedeljko Spasojevic was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for participating in a criminal group that organised the assassination. Marko Rosic was sentenced to ten years in prison for participating in an organised crime group related to the assassination. Dragisa Markovic and Zarko Jovanovic were each sentenced to four years in prison. Charges against Silvana Arsovic were dropped. Koha news website notes that several other suspects for the assassination - Zeljko Bojic, Zvonko Veselinovic, Milan Radocic and another two persons – are still at large.

Police searching for Serb suspects over camouflaged cameras in north (media)

Kosovo Police, in cooperation with the Kosovo Intelligence Agency, identified on Thursday two locations where camouflaged cameras were set up to monitor the movements of people, Kosovo’s institutions in the north of Kosovo. Police said in their report that they raided two locations and confiscated two cameras, two hard discs, radio bases, Motorolas, and a pair of binoculars. “The prosecutor has been informed and police units are searching for two Serbs suspects related to the case,” the police said.

Man arrested for allegedly committing war crimes against civilians (media)

The Special Prosecution of Kosovo said in a statement on Thursday they arrested a person who is suspected of having committed war crimes against civilians in the village of Panorc, the municipality of Malisheva. “Preliminary investigations have revealed that during the war in Kosovo, the suspect committed war crimes against the civilian population in the village of Panor,” the statement notes. Some news websites have published the name of the suspect.

State Department report on international religious freedom: Kosovo (media)

The U.S. State Department on International Religious Freedom, the part on Kosovo, notes in its executive summary:

The constitution prohibits religious discrimination and provides for freedom of religion, subject to limitations to ensure public order, health, and safety or to protect the rights of others. The law criminalises inciting discord and intolerance between religious groups and other criminal actions in which religion is a motivating factor or aggravating circumstance. The law does not provide a means for religious groups to acquire legal status.

In March, the government submitted to the national legislature proposed amendments to the law on religious freedom that would allow religious groups to gain legal status; the Assembly (national legislature) took no action on them during the year. In May, police again prevented clergy from the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) from performing a service in the contested Christ the Savior Church in Pristina. Some schools continued to deny access to Muslim girls wearing hijabs, citing government regulations. Municipal and central government officials again failed to implement earlier Constitutional Court and Supreme Court rulings recognizing the SOC’s Visoki Decani Monastery’s ownership of land near the monastery. In May, President Vjosa Osmani said that enforcing the courts’ earlier decisions regarding the disputed monastery property “could create an extremely dangerous precedent.” In October, the government deported a member of the SOC clergy to North Macedonia for unspecified violations of the Law on Foreigners. The SOC said the deportation was a “brutal, arbitrary, and extrajudicial expulsion.” In July, Prime Minister Albin Kurti posted on social media that Serbia was using ambulances to “smuggle arms into Orthodox churches in Kosovo.” The SOC said Kurti’s statements “openly incited ethnic and religious intolerance.”

In September, an armed group of ethnic Serbs attacked Kosovo Police in Banjska, Zvecan municipality, killing one police officer and injuring two others. After attacking the police, the group forcibly entered the nearby SOC Banjska Monastery and fought police from there for hours before escaping. Police reported three assailants were killed during the skirmish. The SOC condemned the attack and complained about public statements from government officials, public figures, and media alleging SOC complicity.

In February, four individuals prevented an imam from performing religious rites at the Halabak mosque in Podujeva/o municipality and assaulted one person from the congregation. In April, a group of unidentified individuals assaulted the imam of Miradi e Eperme/Gornje Dobrevo village in Fushe Kosova/Kosovo Polje after daily prayers. Jewish community representatives noted a significant increase in antisemitic language in social media following the Hamas attack in Israel in October, but the head of the community said “fake news” was sometimes the cause. The SOC stated some of the incidents targeting its property, including one during the Orthodox Easter holidays, were religiously and ethnically motivated. The SOC said police failed to act on or were unwilling to act on criminal offences “with a religious or nationalist background.” Police representatives said they treated all cases related to cultural or religious heritage with priority and in accordance with the laws in force.

The U.S. Ambassador and other embassy officials continued to advocate with government officials to adopt and enact amendments to the law on religious freedom that would allow religious groups to acquire legal status. They also urged government officials to respect religious freedom and pluralism and increase communication and cooperation with religious groups. The Ambassador, a visiting senior Department of State official, and embassy officials met with government officials to urge them to implement the Constitutional and Supreme Court decisions ordering registration of land ownership to the Visoki Decani Monastery. Embassy officials also urged the government to maintain the threatened Bektashi tekke (Sufi place of worship) in Prizren as a protected historical site. The embassy frequently issued messages in the press and on social media in support of religious freedom.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/nxebG

FPÖ wants parliament to declare itself against Kosovo independence (media)

The Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ), one of the leading political forces of the extreme right in Austria, which won the majority votes at the country level in the last elections for the European Parliament, submitted a draft resolution to the Austrian Parliament on Thursday asking for the parliament to declare itself against the independence of Kosovo.

“Kosovo was part of Serbia until in opposition with international law it seceded through NATO bombing in 1999. Until today, the majority of countries have not recognized Kosovo as an ndependent state,” the draft resolution notes, and it claims that UNSC Resolution 1244 has been violated.

Serbian Language Media

Memorial service served to Kosovo heroes at Gazimestan (Kosovo Online, media)

Memorial service was served today at Gazimestan Monument on the occasion of Saint Vitus Day to pay tribute to Kosovo heroes fallen in the Kosovo battle in 1389, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Large number of pilgrims from Kosovo, central Serbia and countries in the region attend the service, served by Raska-Prizren Eparchy Bishop Teodosije, Metropolitan Montenegrin Littoral Joanikije, Bishop of Herzegovina Dimitrije, Budimlje-Niksic Bishop Metodije and Vicar Bishop Ilarion.

Unlike last year when there was no organised service at Gazimestan, this year a large number of pilgrims participated, many of them from Montenegro, the portal added.

Increased presence of Kosovo police is visible, and they are carrying out searches at the entrance to the Gazimestan Monument. Members of KFOR and EULEX were also present.

Serbian MFA: St Vitus's Day reflects our love of freedom, moral essence (Tanjug)

Today, the Serbs celebrate St Vitus's Day, their day of national pride and unity, which reflects our love of freedom and our moral essence, the Serbian MFA said in a St Vitus's Day message on Friday.

In the message, posted on its official Instagram and X accounts, the ministry said St Vitus's Day was also a holiday "inextricably connecting us with Kosovo and Metohija, where, even today, the Serbs are drawing from the St Vitus's Day ethics the strength to survive, in spite of all the violence and disenfranchisement they are being exposed to".

"Happy St Vitus's Day," the ministry added.

Petkovic: Serbia fulfilled its obligations; I do not expect anything from continuation of dialogue (RTS)

Office for Kosovo and Metohija Director, Petar Petkovic, was forbidden by Pristina authorities to spend the biggest holiday, Vidovdan (St. Vitus Day), with the Serbian people in Kosovo. Petkovic told RTS this morning that Pristina "wants to expel the state of Serbia from the territory of Kosovo and Metohija" with such actions. He announced the continuation of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina on a technical level for next week, but that, as he said, he does not expect anything from that meeting.

Petkovic told RTS that Vidovdan represents the centre of the Serbian being, as well as the sacred name that stamped the Serbian existence, and congratulated Vidovdan to the entire Serbian people.

"I would especially like to congratulate the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, because they have always celebrated Vidovdan in their centuries-old homes, and it is with this holiday and the Kosovo vow that the Serbian people measure their past, but also build their future," said Petkovic.

He said that the Serbian people in Kosovo are where they have always been ''in their centuries-old places, next to their church, next to their monasteries and with their country, Serbia''.

"Throughout all these centuries, many world powers have tried to change that reality, but the Serbian people have survived and will survive. This is, above all, something that is part of the identity of the Serbian people and our Kosovo covenant," Petkovic emphasised.

He pointed out that for the 15th time he was banned from entering the territory of Kosovo and assessed that this violates all agreements, and that Albin Kurti thereby shows he is not interested in dialogue.

"When the main negotiator is prohibited from entering the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, and I am the one who is most directly in charge of the process of normalisation of relations between Belgrade and Pristina before the State of Serbia, it is clear to you that with such actions Pristina wants to expel the state of Serbia from the territory of Kosovo and Metohija," said Petkovic.

He pointed out that everything is clear when the entry into Kosovo and the visit to the Patriarchate of Pec is also banned to the Serbian Patriarch Porfirije.

"It would be the same as if someone forbade the pope to enter the Vatican. That's where we are today," said the director of the Office for KiM.

He pointed out that Albin Kurti continues with the anti-Serb policy of expelling the Serbian people from the territory of Kosovo and that he has been doing this especially in the last two years in the north of the province.

"With every new arrest, and the majority of these arrests are of honest people who have absolutely no criminal records, he sends exactly this message that he is only interested in the policy of ethnic cleansing of the Serbian people from the territory of Kosovo and Metohija," Petkovic said.

"Lazovic was a young man during the war, he was never in Djakovica"

Speaking about yesterday's arrest of Srdjan Lazovic, Petkovic said that he was an honest man about whom everyone in Leposavic has nothing but words of praise.

"He is being accused of some kind of alleged war crime in Djakovica. During the war, he was a young man, he was never in Djakovica, which his wife confirms. Her statements match the information we have. So, some of the photos they published in the Albanian media, where Srdjan is supposedly in that photo, is not authentic. It is not about the man who was arrested, but what does Albin Kurti care about Srdjan, whether he is guilty or not. All in a row are arrested, and that's what's actually the worst," Petkovic pointed out.

He added that Belgrade has guarantees from the EU and the USA that the Serbs who participated in the protests and barricades will not be arrested, but that it can be seen what is actually happening.

"It is clear to Lajcak and Borrell that Serbia is committed to the dialogue process"

Speaking about President Vucic's meeting with Miroslav Lajcak and Josep Borrell in Brussels, Petkovic said that it was also clear to them that Serbia had fulfilled all its obligations and that it was committed to the process of dialogue, to the normalisation of relations, and that Kurti was the one who refused to talk.

"We agreed to talk, President Aleksandar Vucic is always in favour of dialogue, although when it comes to talking, he is firm in his positions, but also firmer when it comes to arguments," pointed out Petkovic.

He noted that this time the EU made it clear that it was Kurti who was to blame for refusing to talk, even though he was sitting in the next room.

"In any case, in its statement, the EU did not say its famous phrase that both sides are responsible, but it clearly said that Kurti, that is, Pristina, is avoiding dialogue and the normalisation process," Petkovic emphasised.

Next week, the dialogue continues at the level of the main negotiators. Petkovic said that he does not expect anything.

"As always, we go prepared with our experts, with all the topics that are on the table. We are ready to discuss everything openly. We especially insist on the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities. This is crucially important for the survival of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, for the future, and we will do everything to preserve peace and stability with such an approach and to preserve the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija," Petkovic stressed.

Verdict passed in case of the murder of Oliver Ivanovic, 22 years in prison for the four defendants (media)

The verdict in the case of the murder of Oliver Ivanovic was read today in the Basic Court in Pristina, reported Kosovo Online.

Marko Rosic was sentenced to ten years in prison and a fine of 10,000 euros, Nedeljko Spasojevic to four years and six months in prison and 4,500 euros. Dragisa Markovic was acquitted of the criminal offence of revealing an official secret, while he was declared guilty of the criminal offence of complicity in the abuse of official position, as well as the use and control of weapons. He was sentenced to four years in prison and a fine of 1,500 euros. Zarko Jovanovic was sentenced to four years in prison and fined for the crime of complicity in abuse of official position, and he is also guilty of unauthorised ownership, control and possession of weapons, announced judge Valon Kurtaj. The time spent in custody and house arrest will be counted towards their sentence.

Silvana Arsovic and Rade Basara were acquitted of the indictment.

During the sentencing, the defendants were not present, only the lawyers.

Office for KiM: Verdict against four Serbs in Oliver Ivanovic’s case "scandalous" (Kosovo Online, media)

“Today’s verdict against four Serbs who Kurti’s judiciary in all possible ways attempted to bring into connection with murder of Oliver Ivanovic, has been politically motivated and instructed in order to additionally criminalise Serbian people, with the goal that Pristina conceals the true background and perpetrators of this heinous murder”, Office for Kosovo and Metohija reacted in relation to the verdict passed on four Serbs in relation to the murder case of Serb political Oliver Ivanovic, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Office for KiM said the verdict was passed without concrete evidence, under the strong political and media pressure from Pristina, while Serbs had been convicted prior to the trial, adding the indictment was changed three times.

“Why was the announcement of the verdict scheduled on Saint Vitus Day, the most important holiday for the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, if not for Pristina to create a new performance for their public and lash out on Serbs?”, the statement said.

The Office for KiM said Belgrade will continue to strive to shed the light on the murder of Oliver Ivanovic, and would never accept staged processes, political verdicts and criminalization of Serbs in the north, carried out by Pristina and Albin Kurti.

Serbian List: Draconian and politically staged verdict (media, social media)

Serbian List said today that the verdict to four Serbs accused of aiding in the murder of the Serbian politician Oliver Ivanovic was unfounded, deprived of all evidence and politically motivated, Radio KIM reported.

“Draconian, based on nothing, deprived of all evidence and politically staged verdict of Kurti’s quasi court against four Serbs, on Saint Vitus Day, is continuation of ethnic cleansing of Kosovo and Metohija, through clear and unequivocal, institutional violence which Kurti’s regime for three years already carries out against the Serbian people”, Serbian List said in a statement.

Serbian List warned that arrests and verdicts on innocent Serbs, without any grounds and evidence are not a coincidence, but rather a clear message that anyone who is a Serb can be tried and imprisoned, and that all rules, legal norms and human rights mean nothing if you are a Serb living in Kosovo.

“Three times changed indictment, staged accusations, testimonies which in no way proved the guilt of Rosic, Markovic, Nedeljkovic and Jovanovic have marked this farce, termed by Kurti’s regime as a court process. Yet, it did not prevent Kurti from showing on Saint Vitus Day how much he hates the Serbs and wishes to expel all of them”, the statement added. Serbian List also said that true perpetrators and order givers for the murder of Oliver Ivanovic remain protected by this verdict.

Ivanovic nephew: This verdict still does not provide answers to questions about who ordered and executed Ivanovic's murder (KoSSev)

After the Basic Court in Pristina convicted four Serbs to 22 years in prison over their involvement in the murder of Oliver Ivanovic, his nephew Aleksandar told N1 that the family, from one side feels sorry, vulnerable and unprotected, because for more than six years they are trying to find out who has killed and for what reasons ordered the murder of their relative and leader of Civic Initiative SDP in Mitrovica North, Oliver Ivanovic, KoSSev portal reported.

“We still do not have answer to that question. Those verdicts today did not provide the answer to that question who ordered and killed Oliver. On the other side, there is slight hope, because we again have some verdicts, part of the group is convicted, part of the group is acquitted. As I see it, by those verdicts to the part of the group, the period they spent in detention was covered. Rosic is convicted to the harshest punishment, and what is my impression, I am excluding the least possibility that those people organised themselves alone. I believe that some of influential Serbs were behind this group”, Ivanovic said.

Lawyer: Tolic underwent surgery again, I am concerned about his health condition (Kosovo Online)

Milos Delevic, defence lawyer of Vladimir Tolic arrested in connection with Banjska armed incident in September 2023, said his client underwent yet another surgery because of injuries he sustained during the clashes in Banjska, adding the first surgery was unsuccessful because of inadequate conditions for recovery, Kosovo Online portal reported.

“He was wounded on September 24, and underwent surgery quickly after that in an orthopaedic hospital department in Pristina. That first surgery was unsuccessful. Primarily, I think that here the responsibility rests upon the prison in Podujevo because they did not ensure minimal conditions for his recovery. He was alone on the floor of the prison in Podujevo, for three and a half months, moved without anyone’s help, went for a walk and carried out daily activities”, Delevic said.

Lawyer believes that Tolic injured the leg again during this period, which required additional surgery.

“He underwent a surgery three days ago at the orthopaedic department in Pristina, and the doctor is satisfied with the outcome. I will request from the director of the prison to ensure minimal conditions for his recovery”, Delevic said.

Indictment against Svecla, three MPs upheld 75 months after teargas was thrown (KoSSev, media)

Basic Court in Pristina upheld indictment against current Kosovo Interior Minister, Xhellal Svecla, and three MPs from the ranks of ruling Self-determination Movement, Drita Milaku, Salih Zyba and Fitore Pacoli-Dalipi over throwing the teargas in the Kosovo Assembly in March 2018, KoSSev portal reported. They are accused of “use of dangerous weapons or tools”, the portal added.

The court in a decision made on June 6, 2024, dismissed as ungrounded requests of defence lawyers to refute evidence and drop the indictment. The court assessed that the evidence was collected in line with the law, the indictment does not contain shortcomings that would prevent continuation of the criminal proceedings, as well as that it contains necessary elements to move onto the next stage of the proceedings, the portal added.

The additional indictment against the same persons for “obstructing official persons in carrying out official duties”, raised on July 29, 2019 in relation to March 2018 acts has reached the statute of limitations.

Serb Movements from Kosovo support the protest against lithium mines (Beta, Danas)

The Serbian National Council of Kosovo and Metohija (SNV), the National Movement of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija "Otadzbina" (Fatherland) and the Serbian National Forum from Gracanica have given their full support to the movements, parties and citizens fighting against lithium mining in western Serbia, the movement "Otadzbina'' announced.

The announcement adds that holding a protest against the lithium mine on Vidovdan (St.Vitus Day) in Loznica shows clear symbolism that the Republic of Serbia is in danger because of such mining.

"Today, Aleksandar Vucic is the main lobbyist of Rio Tinto, and he does it precisely for the reason that he would secure lithium for the needs of the EU, and a lifelong rule for himself. It is certain that along the way he also has personal interests," read the "Fatherland" movement statement.

Radovanovic: The frozen conflict suits both Vucic and Kurti (NMagazin, Beta)

The General Secretary of the Movement of Free Citizens (PSG), Aleksandar Radovanovic, announced today that the negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina in Brussels did not bring any progress and that the status quo, i.e., the frozen conflict, suits Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti.

He added that Vucic insisted on the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities (ZSO), and Kurti on the extradition of Milan Radoicic.

"Both of them have the perfect excuse to keep everything as it is and not implement anything from the Ohrid Agreement that would lead to the opening of negotiations with the European Union, i.e. moving both Serbia and Kosovo towards full membership, for which the normalisation of relations is a condition," stated Radovanović.

He added that "it was never their goal to implement any reforms, to do something for the citizens they represent, but only to confirm their own nationalist narrative that will keep them in power as long as possible.

International

Kosovo convicts four over Serb opposition politician’s murder (BIRN)

Pristina Basic Court on Friday found four men guilty of involvement in the murder of the Kosovo Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic, an opponent of the Serbian government-backed Srpska Lista party, in North Mitrovica in January 2018.

Nedeljko Spasojevic was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for abusing official duties and fined 4,500 euros for illegal weapon possession.

Marko Rosic was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment and a 10,000-euros fine for “participation in or organisation of a criminal joint enterprise” related to the murder. He was remanded in custody after the announcement of the verdict.

Dragisa Markovic was found guilty of complicity in “abuse of official duty” and sentenced to four years imprisonment, but was found not guilty of revealing confidential information.

Zarko Jovanovic was found guilty of complicity in abuse of official duty and sentenced to four years imprisonment, and fined 1,500 euros for illegal possession of weapons.

If the accused do not pay the fines, “the court will replace the sentence to imprisonment calculating 20 euros for one day of imprisonment”, Judge Valon Kurtaj explained.

The verdict can be appealed.

Silvana Arsovic, a former secretary of Ivanovic’s, was found not guilty.