Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 147 new cases, eight deaths (media)
• Health Ministry approves import of drugs against COVID-19 (media)
• Limaj: Discussions about president unnecessary (RFE, media)
• Ali Ahmeti to travel tomorrow to The Hague (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Djuric: We will offer package to establish better economic cooperation (Kosovo-online)
• Jeremic: We will talk to world differently than predecessor (Danas)
• EU believes Belgrade-Pristina talks in US will focus on economy only (RFE, N1)
• Ambassador Rosocha: Recognition of Kosovo is not condition for Serbia (CorD, Kosovo-online)
• Vucic and Botsan-Kharchenko on preparations for Putin’s visit, fight against Covid-19 (RTS)
• Online classes in Serbian schools in Kosovo (Kosovo-online)

Opinion:

• Serbia-Kosovo Deals Require Joint International Monitoring (Balkan Insight)

International:

• Serbia, Kosovo leaders gear up for tough US talks (EurActiv)

Humanitarian/Development:

• Serbia strengthens control of anti-epidemic measures; high fines for violations (N1)
• A tiny fruit with big profits: Kosovo’s blossoming raspberry industry (Prishtina Insight)

   

Albanian Language Media

  COVID-19: 147 new cases, eight deaths (media)

Kosovo’s National Institute for Public Health announced that of 534 tests carried out over the last 24-hour period, 147 have tested positive for coronavirus.

Meanwhile, eight deaths and 197 recoveries were recorded over the same time period.

The current number of active cases in Kosovo is 3276. The highest number of new cases is from the municipality of Prishtina (38).

Health Ministry approves import of drugs against COVID-19 (media)

The Minister of Health, Armend Zemaj, has approved today the proposal of the professional group of the Kosovo Agency for Medical Products and Equipment to implement special measures, and issue import license without marketing authorization for products used against pandemic COVID-19, such as: Remdesivir, Favipiravir and Hydroxychloroquine.

“Given the emergency situation created as a result of the Covid-19 virus pandemic, the KAM Professional Group, based on Article 39 paragraph 1 of Law no. 04 / L-190 on medical products and equipment has deemed it reasonable to allow the importation of Remdesivir, Favipiravir and Hydroxychloroquine medicines under special conditions, without marketing authorization, in order to speed up access to these medications provided in the clinic guide no. 9 on the management and treatment of Covid-19," is written in an announcement of the Health Ministry.

Limaj: Discussions about president unnecessary (RFE, media)

Fatmir Mimaj, leader of the Social-Democratic Initiative (NISMA) told Radio Free Europe that he expects that after the meeting of Kosovo and Serbia delegations in Washington, there will be a powerful return to the dialogue ‘which aims mutual recognition of the two countries.’

According to Limaj, the U.S. and the EU will accelerate the long-awaited agreement.

Asked about the lack of involvement of the opposition in the dialogue process, Limaj said that at the final stage, the opposition can never be against a good agreement which closes the open issues with Serbia.

Asked about the statement of the U.S. President Donald Trump that the in order to reach an agreement, the interests of both parties should balance, Limaj said he welcomed return of the U.S. in the dialogue process, adding  that without participation of both the U.S. and the EU, there was no peace in this part of the region.

“Kosovo has sufficient arguments on the table to show that we have proven maturity, and readiness to implement such balances of regional interest, just as we were extremely flexible in building our state system, the  legal and political system of Kosovo.”

Limaj added that he believes that Kosovo has already made major compromises.

“We now expect from our partners to address Mr. VUCIC and see if he is serious about the reach of comprehensive and mutual agreement, or if he is playing as Serbian politics used to, by playing one day towards east, the other towards west, dragging in this manner the process between Kosovo and Serbia,” Limaj said.

He also said that any agreement with Serbia, will require consent and wider consensus in Kosovo.

Asked if he would support Ramush Haradinaj for the President of Kosovo, Limaj said Kosovo has its President, and such discussions are early, unethical and unnecessary.

Limaj also stressed that he is in favor of a wider, more stable government.

Ali Ahmeti to travel tomorrow to The Hague (media)

North Macedonia’s recently elected Foreign Minister, Bujar Osmani, told the media today that the leader of the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) entity, will be travelling to The Hague to be interviewed by the Specialist Chambers. Osmani said that Ali Ahmeti, who is one of the leaders of the KLA, is summoned as a witness.

DUI leader confirmed a month ago that he was summoned by the Special Court.

Ahmeti is expected to testify at the Specialist Chambers on Wednesday and Thursday.    

   

Serbian Language Media

  Djuric: We will offer package to establish better economic cooperation (Kosovo-online)

Office for Kosovo and Metohija Director Marko Djuric said this morning Serbian delegation is prepared to offer in meetings with Pristina in Washington and Brussels, a serious package to establish incomparably better economic cooperation and infrastructural connection, Tanjug news agency reports.

Djuric, member of the Serbian delegation headed by Aleksandar Vucic will take part in the talks with Pristina representatives in the White House on September 4, underlining that this package would be to the mutual economic benefits.

“This is something that could create changes for the young people of all ethnicities and we are truly focused on the future. We can’t influence the past, but we can do it with the future and we must do it”, Djuric said.

Djuric added this can be good for the both sides, adding Serbia wants to talk rationally and seriously.

We would keep Serbian course, and it means opening up Serbia for better links with the US and the EU and our traditional partners, Djuric said.

He also noted it was a major opportunity to present in the White House situation related to the Visoki Decani Monastery and Pec Patriarchate and everything else that Serbian people in Kosovo are facing.

Commenting on the statement of Miroslav Lajcak who earlier said, inter alia, that solution must be based on the international law, Djuric said Serbia would firmly insist on it, since international law takes into consideration UN SC Resolution 1244 which is integral part of the international law, then on the protection of the Serbian holy shrines and enabling human rights. 

Jeremic: We will talk to world differently than predecessor (Danas)

President of Serbian opposition Peoples’ Party (NS) Vuk Jeremic told Danas daily that “the things regarding Kosovo and Metohija” would change after President Aleksandar Vucic fails to deliver what he has promised while taking the power.

“Vucic, most probably, would have no courage to sign a document that would de facto recognize Kosovo thus enabling it to become a UN member. Once the international community realizes he has no intention to do what he has promised, then it would finally be possible to talk to them in a different manner”, Jeremic said.

“Then we would tell them – are you aware that nobody in Serbia can sign it, if Milosevic did not want that whom you defeated militarily and brought down on his knees, if Vojislav Kostunica did not want either and he was the only one able to defeat Milosevic, if the two extremely pro-Western politicians Zoran Djindjic and Boris Tadic did not do it, if a dictator who had 100 percent authority and full control over the media did not do it, can’t you see that no one from Serbia would sign something like that”, Jeremic added.

He opined instead of signing the agreement by which Serbia would recognize Kosovo it is necessary to engage with the international community and Kosovo Albanians for the full normalization of living circumstances in Kosovo and the entire region.

“We would tell them that the signature on the Serbian recognition of Kosovo they didn’t get from Vucic and wouldn’t get it anyone, however, the current opposition, unlike Vucic offers true normalization and stabilization of the situation in the Balkans, not only on the Serb-Albanian relations, but also towards the Bosniaks and all others”, Jermic said.

Jeremic who was also Serbian Foreign Affairs Minister said the policy of the Peoples’ Party when it comes to the region would be reconciliation, stabilization and normalization.

Asked if he could guarantee he would bring Serbia into the EU without recognition of Kosovo,  Jeremic responded that anyone who would guarantee today that Serbia would join the EU with or without Kosovo recognition would not be telling the truth.

He assessed that the EU’s enlargement process became a rather complex issue and it does not have strong support in most of the EU member states. Jeremic also said that once his party takes over responsibility of leading the state they would do the utmost “so Serbia is transformed to look like a modern European state”. 

EU believes Belgrade-Pristina talks in US will focus on economy only (RFE, N1)

The European Union Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue Miroslav Lajcak told the 15th Bled Strategic Forum in Slovenia on Monday the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue on the normalization of relations was currently the most crucial issue in the Balkans, adding the process would intensify.

Commenting on the forthcoming meeting at White House due on September 4 between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Avdulah Hoti, Lajcak said Europe would accept the help of any third party, including the US if it offered a concrete solution.

However, he said that his colleagues from Washington only informed him about the meeting.

"We have not been consulted about the date or the content of the meeting; we have only been informed that the meeting will be held and will be strictly economic. It will not be part of the process, but only the meeting and I have no reason to doubt it," RFE quoted Lajcak as saying.

Earlier, he tweeted that the Bled Strategic Forum showed the two sides’ talks were a serious process, not a single act.

"Both sides understand that dialogue and normalization cannot be avoided. Europe has been at the forefront of that process since 2011 because both Serbia and Kosovo have a European future. It is a question of our neighbours and future members, not some PR activity", he said.

He added there were no deadlines in the negotiations, because "if you set a deadline, you already have something that can affect the process", but there were "red lines" that the EU did not want to cross.

"We have red lines. It is not right to say that whatever the two sides agree is OK with us because my mandate is to keep the process in line with international law and acceptable to the EU member states. It should ease the situation in the region", Lajcak said.

Vucic and Kosovo and Hoti are due to meet again in Brussels on September 7.

See at: https://bit.ly/3jz9dwt Ambassador Rosocha: Recognition of Kosovo is not condition for Serbia (CorD, Kosovo-online)

New Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to Serbia, Fedor Rosocha told magazine “CorD” he hopes that experienced diplomat and his compatriot Miroslav Lajcak would be able to bring Belgrade and Pristina in a position to sign comprehensive agreement on normalization of relations, which, he stressed, is not the same as recognition.

“Within the Chapter 35 there are particular criteria that should be met in relation to the normalization process with Pristina, however, recognition per se was not mentioned at all, neither in this concrete chapter nor in a whole negotiating framework. Normalization of relations, adoption of a comprehensive and sustainable agreement is not the same as recognition. Yes, Belgrade would have to normalize its relations with Pristina, this is a clear condition which you must have in mind and which would eventually only help all the people living in Kosovo, regardless of their ethnicity”, Ambassador noted.

He added that Slovakia supports dialogue and would adhere to its decision from 2007 not to recognize unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo. 

Vucic and Botsan-Kharchenko on preparations for Putin’s visit, fight against Covid-19 (RTS)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic met today with the Russian Federation Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko and discussed preparations for the visit of the Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two officials also touched upon current Serbian-Russian relations and bilateral cooperation, RTS reports citing the statement of Vucic’s press service.

They also discussed results in curbing Covid-19 pandemic in both states and Belgrade-Pristina dialogue under EU’s auspices,

Online classes in Serbian schools in Kosovo (Kosovo-online)

The Head of School Administration for Kosovo and Metohija within the Serbian Ministry of Education Jasmina Dedic said today schools in Kosovo which are following the curriculum of the Serbian Ministry of Education will start online teaching today, Kosovo-online portal reports.  

Dedic added the recommendation of the line ministry for schools in Kosovo was to start online classes today due to the bad epidemiological situation. "We will monitor the situation on the ground on a daily basis and in accordance with it move on to regular classes", she said.

In schools in Kosovo which are operating under the Kosovo Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the beginning of the school year has been postponed by two weeks due to the situation with Covid-19. According to the recommendations of the Institute of Public Health in Pristina and the Ministry of Health, the new school year in Kosovo will begin on September 14.

   

Opinion

  Serbia-Kosovo Deals Require Joint International Monitoring (Balkan Insight) By Djordje Bojovic

The EU has brokered dozens of deals between Serbia and Kosovo, but implementation is missing. It’s time to create a monitoring mechanism.

After a summer break that saw tensions rise over the construction of a road in western Kosovo that breaches the protected zone of the Visoki Decani Orthodox monastery, talks led by the United States and the European Union respectively are back on the agenda with two packed weeks ahead.

After an almost two-year hiatus, the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue under EU auspices was relaunched in June, bringing with it a new EU Special Envoy, Miroslav Lajčak.

Besides the change in protocol, the Dialogue, which has often been hailed as the EU’s main foreign policy achievement, saw an unexpected tussle between Brussels and Washington.

Ultimately, Lajčak won out, beating the US to the punch with the first revived talks after the White House’s own effort was scuppered by the announced war crimes indictment of Kosovo President Hashim Thaci.

The Dialogue resumed in late June with what were described as technical issues on the agenda, even though one could argue that everything concerning the Serbia-Kosovo talks is per se political.

The first round of discussions focused on displaced and missing-persons, as well as the rather vaguely named “economic topics”.

See at: https://bit.ly/2EYnVOn    

International

  Serbia, Kosovo leaders gear up for tough US talks (EurActiv)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić is travelling to Washington this week for talks between Belgrade and Priština in the hope of discussing the economy while Kosovo Premier Avdullah Hoti insists that mutual recognition is the only topic he can discuss with Serbian officials.

However, Vučić also says he expects the 4 September meeting in Washington to throw a surprise in the form of a demand for mutual recognition of Serbia and its former province, Kosovo. The meeting is organised by the US president’s special envoy for Belgrade-Priština dialogue, Richard Grenell.

See at: https://bit.ly/3gVsgiZ    

Humanitarian/Development

  Serbia strengthens control of anti-epidemic measures; high fines for violations (N1)

Serbian anti-epidemic Crisis Team “most vigorously condemns the violations of anti-epidemic measures seen in some local communities last weekend”, it said in a statement on Monday after its extraordinary meeting.

The Crisis Team also said it demanded an increased inspection control, adding the disrespect of the measures ahead of the start of the school year on Tuesday “is unacceptable.”

The warning was sent to all local administrations in the country, reminding them about the mandatory implementation of the anti-epidemic measures without any exception, adding the violations wouldn’t be tolerated.

The Team obliged the local authorities to sanction any disrespect in line with the law. The warning mainly referred to the organisers of events across Serbia.

The warning came after Predrag Kon, an epidemiologist and a member of the Crisis Team, was angered by videos from two local towns showing parties with people without face masks and physical distance.

People who want to report the violations of the measures can do that on www.inspektor.gov.rs website or by dialing 011/63-50-322 phone number.

See at:  https://bit.ly/31M3c9x A tiny fruit with big profits: Kosovo’s blossoming raspberry industry (Prishtina Insight)

Raspberry production in Kosovo has soared in recent years, with rural communities across the country establishing small farms for the booming export market.

Not even 100 steps away from his home, a short walk from his garden gate in the village of Dramjak near Ferizaj, Bekim Muhaxheri has set up a small raspberry farm. He tends to it religiously throughout the year in order to harvest and reap the rewards during a short one-month season between mid-June and mid-July.

For five years now, Muhaxheri has turned raspberry cultivation into a second profession, complementing his career as an English teacher. This season, he harvested 2,200 kilograms of raspberries from his ​​65-acre patch of land, earning nearly 4,000 euros. 

In fact, Muhaxheri’s second job has become so lucrative that the 49-year-old has decided to make it his full time occupation. “I managed to plant two or three hectares of raspberries and left my job as a teacher,” he told BIRN. “It is more profitable to work the land.”

Read more at: https://bit.ly/31KvX6w