• Kurti calls on diaspora to get vaccinated upon arrival in Kosovo (media)
• COVID-19: 13 new cases, no deaths (media)
• Constitutional Court decides on payment for electricity in the north (media)
• ERO warns crisis through April, KEDS, KOSTT cannot do billing in north (EO)
• Albania to provide electricity to Kosovo for New Year's (media)
• Residents fire up generators as Kosovo energy crisis escalates (Reuters)
• Record of remittances in Kosovo in 2021 (Radio Free Europe)
• Court orders retrial of Kosovo Serb MP sentenced for ‘ethnic hatred’ (BIRN)
• Kurti received the Minister of National Defense of Turkey, Hulusi Akar (media)
• IOC threatens Malaysia and Serbia with event hosting ban (inisdethegames.biz)

Kurti calls on diaspora to get vaccinated upon arrival in Kosovo (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in a video message for the diaspora who are arriving for visits to Kosovo these days that there will be restricted activities and organisations that because of new variants of COVID-19. “As Prime Minister, it is my primary duty to protect the lives and health of our people. This is my duty not only for the residents of Kosovo but also for you who are visiting here,” he said.

Kurti also called on the diaspora who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 to do so upon their arrival in Kosovo. “If you are not vaccinated there, you can certainly do so upon entering Kosovo. So that all of us together can fully respect the anti-COVID measures,” he added.

COVID-19: 13 new cases, no deaths (media)

13 new cases with COVID-19 were confirmed in the last 24 hours in Kosovo, the Ministry of Health said in a statement. Six persons recovered from the virus during this time. There are 350 active cases with COVID-19 in Kosovo.

Constitutional Court decides on payment for electricity in the north (media)

Constitutional Court of Kosovo has concluded the review of the case brought forward by Blerta Deliu-Kodra from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and 12 other MPs seeking assessment of the recommendations on the payment of 11 million euros for electricity spent in the north of Kosovo.

The Court clarified that the subject of its review only included the contested Act of the Assembly of 6 May 2021, through which Kosovo's Transmission System and Market Operator (KOSTT) was authorised to cover electricity bills in four northern municipalities of Kosovo, using revenues from its own budget, funds which will be subsequently compensated “from dividends or any other possible mechanism” and that involving the Government of Kosovo being obliged to ensure the entire process of including consumers of the four municipalities in the electricity billing system.

The Court found that the difference in the treatment of electricity consumers in the four municipalities of Kosovo, is “prescribed by law”, that the difference in the treatment of electricity consumers in the four municipalities of Kosovo, pursues a “legitimate aim”, that the difference in the treatment of electricity consumers in the four municipalities is “proportionate”, and finally, that the issuance of the contested Act of the Assembly, has resulted in a difference in treatment of electricity consumers who do not live in the four Kosovo municipalities but that nevertheless, this difference in treatment contains an “objective and reasonable justification” and, consequently, does not result into discrimination and is proportionate, “and therefore, was not issued in non-compliance with Articles 24 and 55 of the Constitution in conjunction with Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights.”

Read the ruling here: https://bit.ly/32BpH4a

Albania to provide electricity to Kosovo for New Year's (media)

Albania will be providing electricity to Kosovo on 31 December and 1 January to ease the crisis, said Albania's Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku.

The support will not carry financial repercussions but Kosovo will be asked to return the favour. "After an agreement we had with the management of the Kosovo Energy Corporation we managed to provide 3600 MWh for December 31 and 4080 for January 1, a total of 7680 MWh in the form of depositing, so without any financial effect for Kosovo, by requesting Kosovo to return the same to Albania during the summer season," Balluku said.

ERO warns of energy crisis lasting through April, KEDS, KOSTT cannot do billing in the north (EO)

Ymer Fejzullahu, Chairman of the Board of the Kosovo's Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) told members of the Assembly committee on economy, industry, entrepreneurship and trade that electricity prices are not expected to fall in the next few months.

“It is estimated that energy prices will not fall until April and therefore we think that this crisis will continue,” he said.

On the issue of billing of consumers in the north of Kosovo, Fejzullahu said this is something that is difficult to be carried out by the Transmission System and Market Operator (KOSTT) or the Kosovo Energy Distribution Services (KEDS) and that therefore they have considered licensing of a new operator, such as Serbia’s Elektroserver, when conditions for such a move are in place. “Elektroserver is a process related to the Brussels agreement,” he said.

Residents fire up generators as Kosovo energy crisis escalates (Reuters)

As Kosovo endures its worst energy crisis in a decade, Xhelal Gashi is considering closing down his bakery in Pristina because he is struggling to cover fuel costs for a generator since authorities introduced power cuts.

"I usually pay around 300 euros ($339.84) for my electricity bill but now I am spending 100-110 euros per day to buy diesel for the generator," said Gashi, speaking from his bakery where he employs 10 staff.Many businesses and households in Kosovo have brought out portable power generators since the country's power distribution company, Kosovo Energy Distribution Systems (KEDS), announced last week that it would introduce two-hour-long power cuts until further notice.

Countries across Europe are facing rocketing gas and power prices, due in part to a surge in demand amid economic recovery from the pandemic. This is made worse in Kosovo where low domestic production, due to technical faults and cold weather knocking out some production at ailing power plants, is forcing the country to import much more energy than normal.

Read more at: https://reut.rs/32xRgvd

Record of remittances in Kosovo in 2021 (Radio Free Europe)

2021 is the year when Kosovo has marked the highest amount of remittances. According to data from the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, from January to October of this year, the value of remittances in Kosovo has reached €955 million or €160 million more compared to 2020.

In addition to remittances, the expenditures of non-residents in Kosovo, most of which are from the diaspora, amounted to €1.33 billion, which represents an increase of 151 percent compared to the same period from last year.

According to the Governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Fehmi Mehmeti, the increase occurred after during the summer season a large number of citizens living and working abroad have spent their holidays in Kosovo.

In 2019, the diaspora had canceled visits to Kosovo due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The easing of measures against coronavirus, both in Kosovo and abroad, made 2021 a successful year, given the mass arrival of the diaspora during the summer. With the supportive policies of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo in 2021, according to our estimates, there is an economic growth of 9.9 percent,” Mehmeti said.

Court orders retrial of Kosovo Serb MP sentenced for ‘ethnic hatred’ (BIRN)

Kosovo Supreme Court has ordered a retrial for Ivan Todosijevic, an MP of the Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista, who was sentenced to two years of imprisonment for inciting ethnic, racial or religious intolerance. Kosovo Supreme Court confirmed on Tuesday it has ordered a retrial for Ivan Todosijevic, a Kosovo Serb MP sentenced to two years in jail for inciting ethnic, racial and religious intolerance with comments relating to a massacre of Albanian civilians in Kosovo in January 1999 by Serb forces.

“The Supreme Court has approved the request of I.T. lawyer and has annulled the verdicts of Pristina Basic Court and Court of Appeals by ordering a retrial of the case in the first instance,” the court’s press release stated.

Todosijevic was elected as an MP with the Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista bloc in the February snap elections. He was sentenced by the Basic Court in December 2019 and the verdict was confirmed by the Court of Appeals in August 2021.

Two years ago, Todosijevic claimed that “the Albanian terrorists are the ones who made all this up and committed the biggest crimes in Kosovo”. As a result, he has been fired from his position as minister for administration and local government in the Kosovo government.

He made the statement about the Racak/Recak massacre at a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, which was launched to stop Slobodan Milosevic’s military campaign against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. The Racak/Recak massacre, which resulted in the murder of 45 Kosovo Albanians, was one of the incidents that sparked NATO’s intervention in the country.

Todosijevic previously dodged a jail term in October when he failed to appear to serve his prison sentence.

Kurti received the Minister of National Defense of Turkey, Hulusi Akar (media)

The support and assistance of the Republic of Turkey to Kosovo, as well as the good bilateral relations between the two countries, were highly praised in the meeting of the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti and the Minister of Defense Armend Mehaj, with the Minister of National Defense of the Republic of Turkey, Hulusi Akar.

“Turkey is a great supporter, friend and partner of Kosovo. Our countries and people have traditionally had close ties and our governments have cooperated closely since our independence,” said Kurti, emphasizing the important role that Turkey has played in Kosovo’s liberation, but also in NATO's peacekeeping forces.

He thanked the Republic of Turkey and President Erdogan for the great contribution to the affirmation of the independence of Kosovo and for the support in the recognition process.

“Emphasizing that Kosovo has a lot to learn from Turkey and the Turkish Armed Forces, the Prime Minister expressed gratitude for the excellent programs and exercises, which offer many opportunities for increasing skills for members of the Kosovo Security Force.

He expressed particular gratitude for donations to defense funds, of $ 1.3 million for 2021, as well as equipment, training and education in all areas.

As the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, we are really grateful for the generous support of the Government of the Republic of Turkey and we hope that we will continue to work to further our cooperation in this regard, said Prime Minister Kurti.

Referring to the successes of the Security Force, Prime Minister Kurti, announced that for next year the Government has allocated a budget of over 100 million euros for the Ministry of Defense, or 1.3% of Gross Domestic Product, aiming to soon reach the standard of 2% of GDP, provided by a NATO army.

Minister Akar emphasized the great efforts of the Republic of Turkey, for the Republic of Kosovo to gain the right place in the international arena. He reaffirmed the continued support for Euro-Atlantic integration and NATO, the continuous increase of the KSF capacity and the economic development of Kosovo.

I appreciate the relations between the two countries and our two peoples, which are based on a very close relationship, which we will take even further,” said Minister Akar, according to a press release issued by the Office of the Prime Minister.

IOC threatens Malaysia and Serbia with event hosting ban (inisdethegames.biz)

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has issued another warning to countries who refuse to allow athletes from certain nations to compete at major events they are hosting for political reasons.

In a letter obtained by the Jerusalem Post, the IOC referenced two recent incidents - the cancellation of the Men's World Team Squash Championship in Malaysia after their refusal to grant Israeli athletes visas and the Serbian Government preventing Kosovo from competing at the World Boxing Championships in Belgrade in October and November.

The IOC threatened to prevent these countries, and others who breach the Olympic Charter, from hosting major events if they continue with their policies.

The organisation said it would work with the National Olympic Committees in Malaysia and Serbia to reach a solution with their Governments, "failing which such countries would, unfortunately, exclude themselves from the right to host international sports events until all the necessary assurances can be obtained and respected".

IOC sports director Kit McConnell and James Macleod, the organisation's director of Olympic Solidarity and National Olympic Committee relations, urged all International Federations to be "extremely vigilant when allocating and organising international sports competitions" in the letter.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/32NjwKo