UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, November 15, 2022

Borrell: We’re facing most serious Kosovo-Serbia crisis in last 10 years (media)
Osmani sets date for mayoral elections in four northern municipalities (media)
EU warns Serbia, Kosovo against returning to the past (AP)
Jablanovic: Now is not the right time for elections (media)
Rasic: Elections at this time can be used to increase tensions (media)
Petkovic: People will be afraid to go out and vote (RTK)
Borrell on French-German proposal: It came from me and Lajcak (media)
Bislimi travels to Brussels, will meet Lajcak (Koha)
Police, Minister deny Serb NGO director was hit by special police (media)
PDK’s Haliti: High risk of escalation in north of Kosovo (media)
Advisory note by international experts on formation of Association (Albanian Post)
PDK leader Krasniqi meets Lajcak (media)
Lajcak meets McAllister, discuss Kosovo-Serbia dialogue (Klan Kosova)
Kosovo Reduces Serb Ex-Policeman’s War Crimes Sentence (BIRN)
‘Honour-Based Abuse’: The Fight against Virginity Testing in Kosovo (BIRN)

Borrell: We’re facing most serious Kosovo-Serbia crisis in last 10 years (media)

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, said on Monday that there will be meetings between chief negotiators from Kosovo and Serbia. He said that a practical solution must be found to the issue of licence plates before November 21, when Kosovo is scheduled to start issuing fines for owners of vehicles with plates issued by Serbian authorities.

Borrell also said that the crisis between Kosovo and Serbia is the most serious one since 2013. “We will start meetings with the chief negotiators. The Kosovo side is coming tonight. I am ready to talk with the leaders too if the negotiators reach a practical solution to the issue of licence plates and before November 21 which is the last deadline. We cannot reach this date because we are in a dangerous situation. You know that the withdrawal of Serbs in the north from the police and the judiciary has created a vacuum. In this vacuum the worst can happen. My message from the [EU] Council was clear, both parties must show flexibility as we need clear progress. We have presented a proposal. And we thank both Germany and France for supporting this proposal. Kosovo Serbs need to return to Kosovo’s institutions, and the Kosovo authorities need to show flexibility on the licence plates and work on the implementation of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities without delay,” Borrell said.

Osmani sets date for mayoral elections in four northern municipalities (media)

President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, following consultations with political parties and the Central Election Commission, has set December 18 as the date for extraordinary mayoral elections in the municipalities of Mitrovica North, Zubin Potok, Leposavic and Zvecan.

“The Central Election Commission of the Republic of Kosovo is instructed to undertake all necessary actions to organise and hold elections for mayors of municipalities in Mitrovica North, Zubin Potok, Leposavic and Zvecan, in line with this decision and the law in force,” the President’s decision notes.

Osmani she will send a request to international partners to monitor the elections and ask for a large international presence in this election process.

Osmani also said that all security institutions will undertake all necessary measures so that citizens regardless of their ethnicity can feel protected, safe and to carry out their constitutional rights.

Koha Ditore reports in one of its front-page stories that the Serbian List, the biggest Serb political party that holds all the power in the north, did not respond to the President’s invitation for consultations. The paper also notes that Kosovo Serb political representatives that attended the meeting said that elections should not be held in a time of tensions in the north.

EU warns Serbia, Kosovo against returning to the past (AP)

The European Union is warning Serbia and Kosovo that they must resolve their dispute over vehicle license plates before next week or face the prospect of a return to their violent past

The European Union warned Serbia and Kosovo on Monday that they are on the edge of a precipice and must resolve their dispute over vehicle license plates before next week or face the prospect of a return to their violent past.

Long-simmering tensions between Serbia and its former province mounted in recent weeks over the Kosovo government’s decision to ban Serbia-issued license plates. On Nov. 5, 10 Serb lawmakers, 10 prosecutors and 576 police officers in Kosovo’s northern Mitrovica region resigned over the move.

After the meeting with representatives of the political parties, Kosovar President Vjosa Osmani set Dec. 18 for holding snap elections for mayors in the four municipalities in the north where posts were abandoned by the ethnic Serb minority representatives.

Osmani said she will ask for international election observers adding that authorities “will undertake all necessary measures in order that citizens, regardless of ethnicity, feel protected, safe and carry out their constitutional rights.”

Read more at: https://abcn.ws/3twtDNG

Jablanovic: Now is not the right time for elections (media)

Aleksandar Jablanovic, leader of the Kosovo Serb Party, after meeting President Vjosa Osmani on Monday, could not confirm if his party will take part in the extraordinary mayoral elections in the north on December 18. He argued that the situation in the north is complicated, and that the organisation of elections there needs to be coordinated with the government of Serbia. “We need to have clear and close coordination with the government of the Republic of Serbia. These elections come at a specific moment which can be very unpredictable,” he told reporters after the meeting. “The situation is complicated. Whether or not we will take part in these elections depends from many circumstances, but primarily it depends on the mood in our community and the position of Belgrade … Now is not the time for elections. What I can tell you as a person coming from north Kosovo is that the mood of the majority of people in the north, Serbs, is that there should not be elections now.”

Rasic: Elections at this time can be used to increase tensions (media)

Nenad Rasic, political representative of Kosovo Serbs and leader of the Progressive Democratic Party, said after the meeting between President Vjosa Osmani and political parties, that holding mayoral elections in the north at this time can be used to increase tensions, conflicts, and incidents or even the escalation of some undesired actions and violence.

Rasic also commented on the issue of licence plates and called on Prime Minister Albin Kurti to postpone the decision on licence plates for ten months. “I ask the Prime Minister and all those in the decision-making chain to postpone the deadline when fines are supposed to be issued … for ten months so that we can find space to talk about elections in the north or any other tactical solution or long-term strategy. If we cannot find some understanding, I am afraid that we won’t be able to talk about election results either,” he said.

Petkovic: People will be afraid to go out and vote (RTK)

Slavisa Petkovic, leader of the Serb Democratic Alliance, said in an interview with RTK that he does not know if the time is right to hold elections in the north give the problems that have happened there. He argued that because of tensions surrounding the issue of licence plates, it will be difficult for citizens to find the courage to take part in the elections. He asked who will provide security for the citizens there “because I still haven’t seen a solution that the state leaders will use to emerge from this situation”.

Petkovic said that over 70 percent of Serbs live south of Mitrovica and in other regions of Kosovo. “No one has asked us [Serbs] who live in the south what we think about the situation in Kosovo, although we keep insisting that we should be included in the process,” he said. “Serbs in the south are dissatisfied with the government of Kosovo, the Serbian List and Vucic”.

Borrell on French-German proposal: It came from me and Lajcak (media)

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, talked about the French-German proposal for an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, saying that it came from him and EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak, and that it has the support of France and Germany.

“The proposal we presented, and I am happy to say that France and Germany supported the proposal, the so-called French-German proposal, is a proposal that came from me and Lajcak. A European proposal. We want to emerge from the position of crisis management. In the last two-three years I have dealt with crisis management, licence plates and other issues. This is not the way to resolve problems. We want a more structured approach. Deeper issues in order to prevent crisis. These are the first steps of a new approach. I want to say that both sides, I would not say they agree, but they don’t refuse the proposal. And this is very good,” he said on Monday.

Borrell said the current crisis between Kosovo and Serbia is about the licence plates and that he hopes clashes will be avoided. “I cannot go into the details of the proposal. There are two pages, but I can say that they present a way toward a solution that does not depend on daily crisis,” he added.

Borrell also said that it is clear that both Kosovo and Serbia need to implement the agreements they already reached in Brussels.

Bislimi travels to Brussels, will meet Lajcak (Koha)

Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister, Besnik Bislimi, and his team travelled to Brussels on Monday where he will hold meetings in the EU-facilitated dialogue with Serbia. Bislimi will meet the EU Special Representative for the dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak. “Deputy Prime Minister, Bislimi, has travelled to Brussels, where he will attend meetings as part of the process of dialogue with Serbia,” an advisor to Bislimi told Koha on Monday.

Police, Minister deny Serb NGO director was hit by special police (media)

Kosovo Police issued a statement on Monday denying reports that Miodrag Milicevic, head of the Mitrovica North-based NGO Aktiv was physically and verbally mistreated by members of the Kosovo Police special units. Aktiv said in a press statement that the incident occurred at around 9.30, near Jarinje crossing point when Milicevic was pulled over by the members of Kosovo special police unit, singled out from the convoy, and at the moment of interrogation one of the police officers hit him in the stomach with a fist. Kosovo Police however said that after completing the border procedures, Milicevic continued “without any problems” toward the Republic of Serbia. Police also said that “there was no incident or mistreatment”.

Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Affairs, Xhelal Svecla, too said on Monday evening that there was no problem, incident and let alone violence against Milicevic. “From my frequent visits there [Jarinje border crossing] and my meetings with all police officers, I am confident in the exemplary conduct of police officers, but nevertheless I have asked for a report from the border police officers and also an investigation by the Kosovo Police Inspectorate about these allegations, and our citizens will be informed about the results in record time,” he said.

Svecla also said that according to the police statement, Milicevic crossed the Jarinje border point and that there was no problem. “In order to confirm this, our police officers have contacted the border officers of Serbia who said that the same person did not present any concern or problem as he crossed the border … I want to assure all citizens that all members of the Kosovo Police are in the service of providing security for all, without any differences. Our institutions respect the rights of all communities that live and operate in Kosovo, by guaranteeing them security, well-being, and equality,” Svecla added.

PDK’s Haliti: High risk of escalation in north of Kosovo (media)

MP from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Xhavit Haliti said in an interview with ATV on Monday that there is a high risk of the situation escalating in the north of Kosovo. He argued that when the time comes to issue fines for owners of vehicles with licence plates issued by Serbian authorities, Serbs will set on fire premises of Kosovo institutions in the north as a response. “The day when the fines start being issued, they [Serbs] have a project as a response. The risk is that Kosovo’s institutions will be set on fire. They will burn the buildings of the customs, police, judiciary, and the municipal offices,” Haliti was quoted as saying.

According to Haliti, Serbia is trying to convince the European Union that Kosovo is against its Serb citizens in the north. “Serbia’s battle is to convince the EU that the state institutions of Kosovo are against the Serbs, that they don’t accept any suggestion coming from the international community, and so that they can follow their own options,” he said.

Advisory note by international experts on formation of Association (Albanian Post)

The news website claims to have secured a nine-page document, called an advisory note, by international legal experts explaining in detail the way forward in the formation of the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities.

Read the advisory note at: https://bit.ly/3TwoaB2

PDK leader Krasniqi meets Lajcak (media)

Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Memli Krasniqi met on Monday in Brussels with the EU Special Representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak. “We talked about the latest developments in the northern part of Kosovo, a situation that requires responsible political actions. I stressed to Lajcak the position for a final agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, centered on mutual recognition and which guarantees Kosovo’s membership in the United Nations. Kosovo’s Euro-Atlantic integration is the only way forward and the Democratic Party of Kosovo and I remain deeply committed to this,” Krasniqi said after the meeting.

Lajcak meets McAllister, discuss Kosovo-Serbia dialogue (Klan Kosova)

EU Special Representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, met on Monday with the head of the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee, David McAllister. They discussed the latest developments in the Western Balkans. Lajcak tweeted after the meeting: “Good to meet with David McAllister today. I briefed him on the latest developments in the Western Balkans, in particular in the EU-facilitated Dialogue and he updated me on the work of the European Parliament. We also discussed my upcoming address to European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee.”

Kosovo Reduces Serb Ex-Policeman’s War Crimes Sentence (BIRN)

The Kosovo Court of Appeals on Monday reduced by five years the sentence handed down to Goran Stanisic for war crimes against ethnic Albanian civilians in the town of Lipjan/Lipljan during the Kosovo war in 1999.

“The Court of Appeal sentenced the accused, G.S., for the criminal offence of which he was found guilty, to imprisonment for a duration of 15 years,” the verdict said.

The time he has already spent in detention will be counted against his sentence.

Stanisic, who was a reservist policeman with the Serbian Interior Ministry, was initially sentenced to 20 years in prison in October 2021 at Pristina Basic Court.

He was found guilty of involvement in the murders of 13 civilians.

The court found that he committed his crimes on April 15-16, 1999, during a large-scale attack by Serbian military, paramilitary and reservist police forces on the Albanian civilian population in the villages of Sllovi and Terboc in the Lipjan/Lipljan municipality.

Presiding judge Valon Kurtaj said that he “participated in deportations, murder and violence against the Albanian civilian population”.