Albanian Language Media:

• An Explanatory Note on the Kosovo-Serbia agreement (Albanian Post)
• SPO raids apartment of Thaci’s former advisor, Artan Behrami (Koha)
• Palokaj: No sign that measures against Kosovo will be lifted (KTV)
• Rasic comments on decision for free registration of vehicles into RKS plates (media)
• Haradinaj: NATO membership guarantees more security and peace in the region (media)
• “I will get the Kosovo passport as soon as possible” (RFE)

Serbian Language Media:

• Hill: The proposals "on the table" for some time, Belgrade and Pristina should reach an agreement as soon as possible (Tanjug)
• Clinical Hospital Center Kosovska Mitrovica: The hospital pharmacy almost empty, patients sent to central Serbia (Beta, NMagazin, Politika, N1)
• Issuance of documents overshadowed by high-level politics (KoSSev)
• Brnabic on elections: If we lose, we will be a responsible opposition (N1, Beta)
• International law professor Milanovic: We don't know what exactly it means when they ask for de facto recognition (NMagazin, Beta)
• Momcilo Trajkovic: The Serbian List does not have the support of the people (KIM radio)

Opinion:

• Glenny: Same problems 20 years later (N1)

International:

• Leaked – Serbia signs lithium exploitation agreement with European Commission (balkangreenenergynews.com)

     

Albanian Language Media  

 

An Explanatory Note on the Kosovo-Serbia agreement (Albanian Post)

The news website published today an Explanatory Note from an unnamed international source about the Kosovo-Serbia agreement. Below is the full note:

The European Union Council conclusions of 23 March 2023 are clear:

The European Council welcomes the Agreement on the path to normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia and its Implementation Annex, reached in the EU-facilitated dialogue led by the High Representative, as an integral part of their respective European paths, and calls on both parties to implement expediently and in good faith their respective obligations”.

The main takeaway is that the parties have accepted the Agreement on the path to normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia and Its Implementation Annex. And these agreements are an integral part of Kosovo’s and Serbia’s European paths.

No one is pressuring anyone to sign anything.

Having Serbia sign the agreements would be a very positive development. However, Serbia’s reluctance to sign does not absolve it from the obligations of the agreements.

Kosovo’s insistence on having Serbia sign does not absolve Kosovo from its obligations.

From the latest public statements of key European leaders and EU officials, it is clear that to advance further in its European path, Kosovo needs to deliver on the instruments of self-management for the Kosovo Serb community. For Serbia to advance further in its European path, it needs to deliver on the modalities concerning de-facto recognition.

It is up to the parties to decide whether they are committed to their respective EU integrations. 

Provoking crisis, increasing tensions, and other scenarios from the 2023 playbook will not change the EU’s insistence on implementing the agreements as an integral part of Kosovo’s and Serbia’s respective European paths.

SPO raids apartment of Thaci’s former advisor, Artan Behrami (Koha)

The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office confirmed to the news website today that it has raided the apartment of Artan Behrami, former advisor to former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci. “The Specialist Prosecutor’s Office is conducting continuous operations in Kosovo. The operations are supported by the Kosovo Police and the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX),” the SPO said.

Adil Behramaj, another former advisor to Thaci whose house was raided by the SPO in February this year, reacted to today’s raid saying that “it is a continuation of the hunt against the freedom of speech and an attempt to silence every critical voice. This approach is truly unprecedented. It is unbelievable how persecution is being seen as justice by this prosecution, which doesn’t even care about human rights!”

Koha also notes that on Monday the SPO raided the residences of two other former advisors of Thaci, Blerim Shala and Bashkim Smakaj. An attorney told the media that in Smakaj’s house, the SPO confiscated material, which according to the court, is related to the obstruction of the administration of justice.

Palokaj: No sign that measures against Kosovo will be lifted (KTV)

Brussels-based correspondent Augustin Palokaj said in an interview with the TV station on Monday that there are no signs that the European Union will lift the measures against Kosovo. “There is no sign, especially from the European Commission and the European External Action Service, that the measures could be lifted, because they insist that they were specific, with outlined reasons and that they related to the measures for de-escalation in the north. They also mention the holding of local elections,” he said.

Palokaj said that regardless of what they say when they visit the region, EU High Representative Josep Borrell and his envoy Miroslav Lajcak give their assessment on whether Kosovo has implemented the measures. “At least before the member states they have not started an initiative to lift the measures,” he said.

According to Palokaj, there will be no sanctions against Serbia even after the end of investigations about the attack against the Kosovo Police in Banjska. “I am not sure that there is readiness to shed light on Serbia’s role in the attack in Banjska, because in that event very harsh measures would have to be taken against Serbia, those measures would be way harsher than those against Kosovo,” he argued. “There are investigations by the services of several NATO member states, but both NATO and EU, it depends on the contribution of the intelligence services of member states, and some member states are not interested in sanctioning Serbia. But what happened [in Banjska] was a hard blow also for the image of NATO and KFOR”.

Rasic comments on decision for free registration of vehicles into RKS plates (media)

Kosovo’s Minister for Communities and Returns, Nenad Rasic, commented today on the government’s decision to provide free registration for vehicles from illegal plates to RKS plates, saying that the decision after many requests from the citizens, mainly in the north of Kosovo, and that it is another proof of pragmatism and work in line with the needs of the citizens.

Haradinaj: NATO membership guarantees more security and peace in the region (media)

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, after meeting the president of the Pan-Albanian Federation Ilmi Berisha today, said that they discussed general political developments in Kosovo and the region. “I reiterated the need for their continued support for Kosovo both in economic development and other important topics that await us in the future, especially with regard to the process of membership in NATO, as an urgent need that guarantees greater security and peace in the region,” Haradinaj said in a Facebook post.

“I will get the Kosovo passport as soon as possible” (RFE)

According to data from the Ministry of Interior Affairs, there is growing interest in Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo to get the Kosovo passport. The interest is especially apparent in the northern municipalities. In the period January 1, 2023, to July 30, 2023, the number of requests for the Kosovo passport in the municipality of Leposavic has increased by 97 percent compared to the same period from last year. A growing interest of over 50 percent has been recorded in the municipalities of Mitrovica North and Zubin Potok. 

Some members of the Kosovo Serb community said in interviews with the news website that they want to get a Kosovo passport so that they can travel without visas in the Schengen zone starting from January 1 next year. One of the reasons, they say, is that they are excluded from the visa-free travel regime of Serbia, namely they cannot travel to the Schengen zone with passports issued by Serbia.

Jelena from Gracanica, a Serb-majority municipality near Pristina, said she will get a Kosovo passport this week so she can travel freely. The 25-year-old said this will be her first passport. “I didn’t need it until now, because I could not travel without a visa and I didn’t have the patience to wait in line in front of embassies,” she said.

In April this year, the European Parliament adopted visa liberalisation for Kosovo, and this raised the value of the Kosovo passport for some members of the Serb community. Among them is Vlada from Gracanica, who said that he got a Kosovo passport around 20 days ago and that he has already planned a trip to Portugal in January next year.

Serbs in the north too “have nothing against” the Kosovo passport

Mirjana from Mitrovica North, one of the four Serb-majority municipalities in the north of Kosovo, does not have a Kosovo passport but says she plans to get one. “To be honest, if this (the Kosovo passport) makes it easier to travel, then why not? We all know what the citizens of Kosovo are faced with when it comes to travel. Those citizens have passports issued by the Coordinating Administration,” she said.

The news website notes that Serbs from Kosovo are entitled to have Serbian passports. Serbia got visa liberalisation in 2009. But following a request by the European Union, it had to form a Coordinating Administration that issues passports for people with addresses in Kosovo. The visa-free regime does not include these passports, and that is why Serbs from Kosovo with Serbian passports cannot travel without visas in the Schengen zone. In April this year, the EC said that visa liberalisation for Kosovo is valid only for holders of Kosovo passports and not for citizens that have passports issued by the Coordinating Administration, which operates under the Serbian Ministry of Interior Affairs.

This is why Aleksandra from Mitrovica North plans to get a Kosovo passport so she can travel freely starting from January 1 next year. “I think I need to get it as soon as possible,” she said.

     

Serbian Language Media

  Hill: The proposals "on the table" for some time, Belgrade and Pristina should reach an agreement as soon as possible (Tanjug)

The US ambassador in Belgrade, Christopher Hill, said today that the proposal for the normalization of relations "has been on the table for some time" and that Belgrade and Pristina should reach an agreement on the normalization of relations as soon as possible, reported Tanjug.

"You see, a lot is happening in the world, and I think that in terms of dialogue, the agreement should be as Lajcak said - as soon as possible. We know that the elements of the agreement have been on the table for some time. They have to do with the Community of Serbian municipalities, have to do with the larger scale of internalization that Kosovo is looking for," said Hill.

"So, everything is pretty clear. These elements have been discussed for a long time, but they were particularly emphasized during the Ohrid meeting. It's really time to accelerate and move forward," Hill told reporters when asked if the US and the EU had set the ultimate deadline for reaching an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina.

Clinical Hospital Center Kosovska Mitrovica: The hospital pharmacy almost empty, patients sent to central Serbia (Beta, NMagazin, Politika, N1)

The deputy director of the Kosovska Mitrovica Clinical and Hospital Center (KBC), Dragisa Milovic, said, on the occasion of almost five months since Pristina banned the import of goods with a declaration from Serbia, that due to the shortage of various medicines, patients are being sent to central Serbia for treatment, reported NMagazin.

Milovic told today's Politika daily that only the most urgent operations are performed in CHC, because the hospital pharmacy is "almost empty".

"It's been five months now that we've been appealing to Kosovo institutions, representatives of the international community, embassy offices in Pristina, Quint countries, and the World Health Organization, but there's been no response," said Milovic.

He stated that patients' lives are at risk, because the CHC does not have antibiotics, cytostatics, and that private pharmacies in North Mitrovica are almost empty.

As a positive example, Milovic pointed out that 18 Italian carabinieri, members of KFOR, voluntarily donated blood last week in the CHC, as well as that they brought orthopedic aids.

Issuance of documents overshadowed by high-level politics (KoSSev)

Five months have passed since new Albanian mayors forcibly entered three Serb-majority municipalities in the north. Between the displaced bodies of the Republic of Serbia, which Pristina and the Western countries that recognized Kosovo consider illegal, and the new local governments formed without the participation of Serbs, which Pristina itself agrees are illegitimate, residents are the ones who are suffering. It has become increasingly difficult for them to obtain documents within both systems. We researched how citizens in Leposavic, Zubin Potok, and Zvecan have been tackling this issue for the past five months.

The withdrawal from Kosovo institutions and the boycott of elections resulted in local institutions in the north of Kosovo having virtually no representatives from the Serbian community.

In North Mitrovica, at the local elections held in the second attempt on April 23, Erden Atić won the elections, while Ilir Peca did the same in Zvecan, Izmir Zeqiri in Zubin Potok, and Lulzim Hetemi in Leposavic.

The North Mitrovica municipal building is the only one that is not located on the same premises as the municipal authority operating within the system of the Republic of Serbia, and its mayor took the oath before the other three – peacefully and without incidents. At the same time, Kosovo flags were displayed on this municipal building.

Six days later, the other mayors also took their oaths, but outside the municipal premises, in Cabra – Zubin Potok municipality, Boljetin – Zvecan municipality and Bistrica – Leposavic municipality.

Read more at:https://tinyurl.com/zwsnejt6

Brnabic on elections: If we lose, we will be a responsible opposition (N1, Beta)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said Tuesday that the December 17 elections will be held because it is important to the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), of which she is an official, “to once again check the will of the people and check whether it has that stability”, reported N1.

“If we do not, the SNS will extend congratulations, we will be a responsible opposition. I don’t think this will happen. I’m pretty sure our people will vote for results and for a plan and program for the future,” Brnabic told the pro-government Happy TV.

Commenting on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s visit to Belgrade, Brnabic said it is a big honor for Serbia that she decided to stay in Belgrade overnight, and explained that, on her four-day tour of the Western Balkans, Von der Leyen is staying in Serbia the longest, reported N1.

International law professor Milanovic: We don't know what exactly it means when they ask for de facto recognition (NMagazin, Beta)

Professor of international law at the University of Reading, Marko Milanovic, said today that the public does not know exactly what the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's request for Serbia to deliver "de facto" recognition of Kosovo means, and whether Brussels now asks Aleksandar Vucic for something more than what was in the agreements that have been reached so far, reported NMagazin portal. 

That wording was presented before only by the leaders of Germany, France, and Italy in their joint statement, and Milanovic told N1 that the "de facto" recognition could be a legally binding comprehensive agreement, which in fact is an international treaty that would have to be ratified in the parliaments of Serbia and Kosovo.

"That would be a 'de facto' recognition and would send a clear signal to other countries that Serbia renounced Kosovo in every real sense, just not in the nominal sense," explained the professor.

However, he pointed out that it seems unrealistic to him that Vucic and Albin Kurti can conclude such an agreement in the short or medium term.

The professor of international law explained that Von der Leyen presented at the same time an offer to join the EU and an ultimatum that, as he said, "if we want it, we have to do what is asked of us'', but the big question is what exactly is asked of us.

He explains that "de facto" recognition does not have a clearly defined meaning in international law and international relations.

He says that sometimes this can only mean the establishment of some kind of diplomatic or quasi-diplomatic relations, that is, the opening of missions that will not be at the embassy level.

He noted that ''the Ohrid Agreement mandated Kosovo and Serbia to establish permanent missions on the territory of each country'', but that this does not imply tacit recognition - and that is a permanent diplomatic mission at the embassy level.

Speaking about allegations that in all previous agreements there are provisions that give an occasion for interpretations that Serbia has already "de facto" recognized Kosovo, the guest of the show "Iza vesti" (Behind News) pointed out that this would not have been discussed a hundred times if that was the case.

"Has Serbia unequivocally said that it considers Kosovo to be a sovereign state - it has not. What Kosovo needs is a clear signal that Serbia no longer claims a great right to sovereignty and that this paves the way for Kosovo to establish diplomatic relations with countries that do not recognize it and to open the path to membership in the UN. This agreement does not contain that, if it did, various countries would recognize it," explained professor Milanovic. 

"If all they ask is that Serbia open a diplomatic mission in Pristina, which will not be called embassy, Vucic can deliver that. There is already a liaison office. The second thing is to stop talking about the United Nations. But that is not enough for Kosovo. It cannot enter the UN without a decision of the Security Council, and that's where Russia and China sit," Milanovic recalled.

Momcilo Trajkovic: The Serbian List does not have the support of the people (KIM radio)

President of the Serbian National Forum, Momcilo Trajkovic said in the new episode of the podcast "Aequitas" that due to lack of political options, Serbs choose the worst among the three parties, reported KiM radio.

He recalled that there are three factors responsible for solving the problems in Kosovo. 

"These are the Serbian and Kosovo governments, as well as the international community."

In the "Aequitas" podcast, Trajkovic spoke about the upcoming elections in the North of Kosovo, as well as about the alternative to the Serbian List.

"First of all, I will start with the international community, which is here to supervise in this phase and to monitor, to guide. There is Pristina, which also has the greatest responsibility, because this is happening in the territory where it has power. And in the end, Belgrade, which is also the producer of the crisis, instead of influencing, so that the crisis does not occur, to stabilize the situation here and to enter some normal social flows that are dignified to the people who live here," Trajkovic points out.

He states that the Serbian List does not have the support of the people, and that the support is, in fact, primarily the desire for these people to live better and reminds that the Serbian List was created in agreement with Vucic and Thaci.

"If it wasn't for that agreement, Serbian List would not have had such success and would have had a completely different position than it had. Therefore, Kosovo politics and international politics allowed the Serbian List to be established and to have the position it has today," says Trajkovic.

When asked how to achieve normal elections and political plurality in the Serbian community, Trajkovic replied that in Kosovo it is an open question of a political environment and an atmosphere that does not exist but needs to be created in the whole of Kosovo.

The "Aequitas" podcast is recorded in the Barabar Center in Pristina and is part of the project "Strengthening the social dialogue in Kosovo", which is conducted by the NGO CASA in cooperation with the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society (KFOS).

   

Opinion 

  Glenny: Same problems 20 years later (N1)

British journalist Misha Glenny told N1 that the problems he thought were resolved 20 years ago were still present in the Western Balkans.

Glenny covered the breakup of Yugoslavia and the fall of the Milosevic regime extensively in the 1990s.

He said that he left the region in 2004 to cover events in other parts of the world and started following developments here in the past 4 years, adding that it’s slightly depressing to come back to see the same problems in a changed but fundamentally same format. He said he was optimistic because of the fact that there have been no serious conflicts in the region since the year 2000. He expressed hope that the disputes between Serbia and Kosovo would be resolved and that solutions for other problems would follow.

According to Glenny, the fundamentally important thing is for Serbia to become a member of the European Union. He said he is not 100 percent sure that will happen but added that things can improve.

He said that he thought a solution was close 6 months ago but that things got worse. Look at Kosovo, Ukraine, Armenia, Israel and Gaza and you see that Kosovo is the easiest to solve.

He thinks that the Banjska armed incident is absurd but that it could bring the two sides – Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic – closer together enough to reach a compromise.

A debate is ongoing in Western Europe and the US about the nature of Vucic’s structure of power and Kurti’s position and I think there is no consensus, he said.

       

International 

Leaked – Serbia signs lithium exploitation agreement with European Commission (balkangreenenergynews.com)

The Government of Serbia and the European Commission have signed a letter of intent to initiate a strategic partnership for batteries and critical raw materials including lithium, Serbian media outlet Demostat reported, citing a statement from the European Commission. The news broke a month after the event and caused outrage among environmental activists and locals from areas in Serbia that are affected by lithium exploration. Mining projects are facing opposition even in the EU.

Read more at:https://tinyurl.com/3w3xej75