• COVID – 19: 15 deaths, 875 new cases (media)
• Prishtina Mayor proposes Kosovo-wide lockdown for one week (media)
• OSCE trains Kosovo teachers on stress management during COVID-19 (media)
• PM Hoti on video conference with French President Macron (media)
• Kurti: Situation will change radically after the new elections (Kallxo)
• Haliti: PDK should join the government; PDK to propose new President (RTK)
• Lajcak: Kosovo – Serbia agreement must be acceptable for EU and region (KTV)
• Pacolli calls on Rama to lead national effort against Dick Marty report (media)
• “Prosecutor filed indictment against Nasim Haradinaj and Hysni Gucati” (media)
• CEC will ask President’s Office to decide on Nenad Rikalo (media)

COVID – 19: 15 deaths, 875 new cases (media)

875 new cases of COVID – 19 and 15 deaths from the virus have been recorded in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 2,004 samples were tested. The highest number of new cases is from the municipality of Prishtina (349). 702 persons have recovered from the virus during this time. There are 12,906 active cases of coronavirus in Kosovo.

Prishtina Mayor proposes Kosovo-wide lockdown for one week (media)

Prishtina Mayor Shpend Ahmeti said on Thursday evening that the best solution could be a Kosovo-wide lockdown for seven days. “We should go into a total lockdown for one week or not play games with these measures,” he said in an interview with Klan Kosova.

According to Ahmeti, Kosovo has not passed the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic. “They are calling it the second wave, but there cannot be a second wave without the first wave coming to an end first. The first wave is not over yet and now we have a further spread and Prishtina has the highest number of cases. What I have said is: inaccurate measurements! Prishtina has 12,000 tests in two weeks, which means that we are not comparing the number of cases,” he said.

Ahmeti also said that Prishtina best respected the restrictive measures since the outbreak of the virus. “I have never called for measures not to be respected. We will continue to respect the measures,” he added.

OSCE trains Kosovo teachers on stress management during COVID-19 (media)

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo concluded on Thursday the first phase of its project "Mental Health of Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic." The project, implemented in co-operation with Education and Management in Kosovo (EDUMEN-K), a non-governmental organization specialized in providing support to the education sector, included training for teachers on how to alleviate mental health issues among students as a consequence of school closures and isolation due to public health measures.

According to research conducted by the University of Pristina on the effects of COVID-19 in education, 65.4% of students reported moderate stress levels due to the lockdown in the spring, whereas 26.9% reported high-stress levels. The Association of Psychiatrists also stated that COVID-19 might have long-term negative effects on human psychology in Kosovo.

Read full press release here: https://bit.ly/3pHphQB

PM Hoti on video conference with French President Macron (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti held a video conference with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday. A press release issued by Hoti’s office after the meeting noted that Macron thanked Hoti and Ambassador Gashi for their support to France following the terror attack in Paris. Hoti said he highly appreciates France’s precious contribution in the state-building process and the strengthening of democratic institutions in the Republic of Kosovo.

Hoti briefed Macron on recent developments with the Specialised Chambers that resulted in the resignation of Kosovo President Hashim Thaci. He assured Macron that the government of the Republic of Kosovo will meet all its obligations and responsibilities and will cooperate with the international community, while the parliamentary parties are ready to find a solution in line with the laws and the Constitution.

The press release further notes that Macron welcomed the dignified approach, the maturity and high political culture of the citizens and institutions of the Republic of Kosovo, following the recent actions by the Specialist Chambers.

Hoti and Macron also talked about the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, and a final agreement on mutual recognition in the existing borders. The two leaders agreed to organise another high-level meeting about the course of the dialogue, according to the format of the Paris Summit.

On the process of visa liberalisation, Hoti and Macron agreed that in the coming days, as part of mechanisms for verification, to hold expert-level meetings that would be followed by a political meeting between the interior ministers of both countries.

Macron also accepted Hoti’s invitation to visit Kosovo.

Kurti: Situation will change radically after the new elections (Kallxo)

Vetevendosje Movement (VV) leader and former Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said in an extensive interview with the news website on Thursday that the situation in Kosovo will change radically after the new parliamentary elections.

Kurti said the Hoti-led government is illegitimate and that it cannot defend itself let alone defend the Kosovo Liberation Army or the indictees in The Hague following the confirmed indictments by the Specialist Chambers. “It is a minority government and it is becoming smaller every day. This is a government that depends on every MP from the Serbian List. This is why I cannot be optimistic that they will be at the required level of duty [to protect the KLA],” he said.

Kurti called for the coordination of the individual defenses of indictees at The Hague. He argued that if every attorney tries to save his own client this will be detrimental to Kosovo’s statehood, justice in Kosovo and the Kosovo Liberation Army. He said he was concerned by the orientation of the indictments and also by the individual defenses.

Kurti argued that “all international claims should be dealt with in local courts in cooperation with international courts because we have declared our independence”.

Kurti said the Specialist Chambers are an artificial creation. “I have the greatest ambitions for the state of Kosovo, and I want justice to be delivered by the local courts. I was not against The Hague Tribunal because it dealt with the whole region, but against an international court specific only for Kosovo, when the court was installed with the imposition of former President [Hashim Thaci] at the time Minister of Foreign Affairs and the hands of his party’s MPs were forced,” he added.

Kurti said that he believes that as Prime Minister of Kosovo he could have initiated a dialogue with Brussels about the Specialist Chambers, “because there is an absolute lack of transparency”. He also opposed the phrase “joint criminal enterprise” in the confirmed indictments against some of the leaders of the former Kosovo Liberation Army and argued that the approach of the prosecution is problematic and very biased.

Asked if developments with the Specialist Chambers could lead to a coalition between the Vetevendosje Movement and the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Kurti said “I believe the main factor for capturing the state of Kosovo is the leadership of the PDK and without reforms in the opposition in the PDK, any coalition is not a coalition … I don’t see the PDK as a partner”.

Kurti said “the situation will change radically after the next elections, because we [Vetevendosje] will not only be first but will also make up the majority. The situation is such because Kosovo is a captured state. Otherwise there would be no sense in a democratic country to have in the opposition two of the most voted people in the Republic … This shows that there is no democracy in this country and that Kosovo remains a captured state.”

Kurti said he was optimistic and that several public polls show that the Vetevendosje Movement would win over 50 percent of votes in a new election.

Kurti also argued that “with this illegitimate government and with this Assembly, whose will was deformed, a new President cannot be elected”. “This weak government hit rock bottom after the U.S. elections because it was apparent that they were trying to make up for their lack of legitimacy with meetings and support from abroad … They are in the mercy of gravity and gravity is merciless,” he added.

Asked if Vetevendosje would support AAK leader Ramush Haradinaj’s candidacy for President, Kurti said: “we believe we need to elect a President that is an expression of the unity of the people. Mr. Haradinaj is too party-prone to become President. We had party-prone Presidents before too, but they did not fare well.”

Kurti said the Vetevendosje Movement does not have a candidate for Kosovo President. “No. We don’t have a candidate. We want new elections and a new government, and we can agree on the President after new elections. We need to find someone above the parties … We cannot have a biased President. We must have an unbiased President above the parties,” he added.

Haliti: PDK should join the government; PDK to propose new President (RTK)

Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) deputy leader, Xhavit Haliti, said in an interview with RTK on Thursday that the PDK should join the current government and that there are no conditions for new elections. “I think the PDK should be ready to join the government. But the LDK too should be ready to accept the PDK,” he said.

Haliti said that if the two parties reach an agreement then the government must serve its full mandate. “If the agreement is reached, it’s not a problem who becomes minister,” he said.

Haliti said he believes that the PDK should get the post of Kosovo President. “I believe the PDK should propose the candidate for President and then discuss it with other parties, with the Vetevendosje Movement too,” he added.

Lajcak: Kosovo – Serbia agreement must be acceptable for EU and region (KTV)

The European Union Special Representative for the Prishtina – Belgrade Dialogue said on Thursday that the EU will make sure that the dialogue does not slip into discussions on partition or territorial exchange. During an online debate organised by John Hopkins University, Lajcak however said he was not certain that the parties will reach a comprehensive and legally binding agreement.

“Kosovo says that the process must conclude with mutual recognition, whereas Serbia asks what it will benefit from the process. In this respect, the role of the EU is not only to take notes. The agreement must be acceptable for EU countries and the region. There will not be a take it or leave it agreement, but we will make sure that the text signed by the parties is in line with EU values,” he said.

Lajcak said Kosovo and Serbia have so far agreed on missing persons and IDPs and that negotiations are ongoing on financial and property issues.

The EU Special Representative also talked about the importance of restoring cooperation between the EU and the United States. “There have been questions in the last two years about the U.S. approach, but with the new administration we hope that standards will be restored that bring benefits to the Western Balkans. When I visited the region, I told the parties why you put yourself in a position to choose between the EU and the U.S. this must not happen. We are always ready to cooperate,” he added.

Lajcak said Kosovo’s recognition by the five non-recognising EU member states will depend on the outcome of the dialogue with Serbia.

Lajcak also said that the confirmed indictments against Thaci and the others have not impacted the dialogue because the process is led by the government.

Pacolli calls on Rama to lead national effort against Dick Marty report (media)

New Kosovo Alliance (AKR) leader Behgjet Pacolli called on Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to lead a nation-wide effort to oppose by diplomatic means Dick Marty’s report, several news websites reported on Thursday.

Pacolli said in his letter that the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Albania must jointly lead an information and diplomatic campaign against the impunity of Serbia’s war crimes in Kosovo.

Pacolli argued that Dick Marty’s report was a result of misinformation and a political campaign sponsored by Russia and Serbia to attack Kosovo’s independence and the Kosovo Liberation Army. “The indictment against President Thaci and the others did not include any part from Dick Marty’s report, so the report was refuted by a judicial institution and this shows that the report was a political tool by Russia and Serbia to attack Kosovo,” he wrote.

Pacolli called for diplomatic efforts led by Albania to oppose “the fabricated Dick Marty report in the Council of Europe, and would also address demands to investigate Serbia’s war crimes in Kosovo, most notably the concealing of bodies of missing persons”.

“Our nation, history and fight for liberation and independence is under attack. We need to respond together and unified. We cannot agree for a Court created by the Kosovo Assembly to offer amnesty for Serbia’s war crimes in Kosovo and to change the historical narration of our country according to the language and mindset of Serbian prosecutors,” Pacolli said.

“Prosecutor filed indictment against Nasim Haradinaj and Hysni Gucati” (media)

Prishtina-based attorney, Tome Gashi, said in an interview with Kanal 10 that the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office has submitted an indictment against heads of the KLA War Veterans Organisation, Hysni Gucati and Nasim Haradinaj. Some news websites later reported that the Specialist Prosecutor’s Office has submitted the indictment.

CEC will ask President’s Office to decide on Nenad Rikalo (media)

The Central Election Commission (CEC) will ask the Office of the President of Kosovo to undertake legal and constitutional steps following Nenad Rikalo’s appointment as deputy director of the Serbian government’s office for Kosovo. Rikalo is the Serbian List’s representative in the CEC, and members of the commission have called for his dismissal and replacement.