• COVID-19: 76 new cases, three deaths (media)
• Kosovo, Serbia to hold new meeting in Brussels today (media)
• Lajcak: We will discuss mutual financial claims on Thursday (media)
• “Thaci trying to block Brussels dialogue through opposing Association” (Koha)
• Selmanaj: We are obliged to form the Association (T7)
• LVV calls Thaci's position on Association 'hypocrisy' (Koha)
• Djuric rebuts Hoti: Association will be discussed tomorrow (RTK)
• Mustafa: If AAK conditions President post, we’ll go to elections (media)
• Krasniqi: PDK backed Hoti in U.S., hoping he’ll bring mutual recognition (media)
• Trajkovic: Washington agreement, a political earthquake for Vucic (N1, RTK)
• KLA associations claim they received more documents (media)
• Israel’s deal with Kosovo and Serbia is window-dressing by Trump and Netanyahu (Times Now)

Kosovo Media Highlights

COVID-19:  76 new cases, three deaths (media)

Kosovo's National Institute for Public Health announced that 538 samples were tested for coronavirus during a 24-hour period, of which 76 resulted positive.

Meanwhile, 165 recoveries and three deaths were recorded over the same timeframe.

The highest number of new infections (12) is in the municipality of Pristina.

Kosovo, Serbia to hold new meeting in Brussels today (media)

Kosovo and Serbia delegations will hold their new meeting in Brussels today. The meeting will be mediated by the EU Special Envoy for the Dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak. The latter said that the two sides will discuss financial claims and arrangements for non-majority communities. Lajcak also said that Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic have agreed for the delegations to discuss these topics.

Lajcak: We will discuss mutual financial claims on Thursday (media)

The EU Special Envoy for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue Miroslav Lajcak said that Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hoti and Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic agreed for the negotiators of both countries to discuss mutual financial claims and arrangements for non-majority community.

“President Vucic and Prime Minister Hoti agreed their negotiators will follow up on settlement of mutual financial claims and arrangements for non-majority community. Both topics are very complex. That is why we will discuss financial claims tomorrow and arrangements for non-majority community in coming days,” Lajcak wrote on his Twitter account.

The meeting will be held at the level of experts, and Kosovo will be represented by the state coordinator for dialogue Seknder Hyseni, while Serbia, by the Director of the Office for Kosovo at Serbian government, Marko Djuric.

“Thaci trying to block Brussels dialogue through opposing Association” (Koha)

President of Kosovo Hashim Thaci has asked the Assembly to adopt a resolution preventing Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti to discuss in Brussels internal issues, namely the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, Koha Ditore writes on the front page.

Koha reports that seven years after he himself signed the agreement on establishment of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, Thaci is now warning about a grave danger from such a mechanism.

In a statement issued yesterday Thaci said that no one has a mandate to speak on behalf of Kosovo on already closed topics and that "opening of the topics on the rights of communities and the Association of Serbian Municipalities in the Brussels dialogue, is a grave and a very dangerous mistake made by the Government of Kosovo."

Thaci warned that such talks would represent a blow to the statehood and a violation of the sovereignty of Kosovo. "The discussion tomorrow in Brussels, on the subject of the Association, is the beginning of the installation of the Republika Srpska inside the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. Whereas, the discussion on Kosovo’s properties with Serbia is contrary to the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo, and is a violation of the sovereignty of our state."

Selmanaj: We are obliged to form the Association (T7)

Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister Driton Selmanaj said in an interview with T7 on Tuesday that Kosovo and Serbia will have to meet their obligations following mutual recognition.

“We have agreed to agree on everything. We will go from mutual recognition and we will assume our obligations. The Association must be formed, because we are obliged to do so. The agreement was signed in 2013 and then in 2015 and we are obliged to implement it,” he said. “The Association will be formed; some prefer to give it a Serbian name, by calling it Zajednica”.

LVV calls Thaci's position on Association 'hypocrisy' (Koha)

The Vetevendosje Movement has reacted to President Hashim Thaci's position against the Association of Serb-majority municipalities saying that his change of opinion on the matter is 'hypocrisy' and recalled that the Assembly has already passed a resolution that Thaci is seeking now back in March.

"If the 'Zajednica' presents a threat to the Republic of Kosovo, which is very true, then President Thaci should do at least three things: distance himself and take responsibility for agreement of April 2013 which is the foundation of the 'Zajednica' he signed as prime minister; take responsibility for the 'Zajednica' of August 2015 signed by Prime Minister Isa Mustafa accompanied by no other than Hashim Thaci as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister when he guaranteed that it was in line with the Constitution and later turned out it violated at least 23 of its articles; and, give accountability for his signature on the letter where the KSF [Kosovo Security Force] is not permitted to go to the north of the country," LVV said.

The party added that Thaci is only pretending to oppose the Association "only to remain for a little while longer on the political scene."

Djuric rebuts Hoti: Association will be discussed tomorrow (RTK)

A few hours after Prime Minister Hoti said that the Association for Serb-majority Municipalities will not be discussed in Brussels, Marko Djuric, Director of the Office for Kosovo at Serbian government rebutted him. Responding to the tweet of the EU Special Envoy for Prishtina-Belgrade dialogue Miroslav Lajcak, Djuric wrote:

“Thank you for hosting the meeting. First topic on the agenda tomorrow will be the Community of Serb majority municipalities. At least for the Serbian side. The one agreed under EU facilitation 7 and a half years ago. This one,” Djuric tweeted.

Mustafa: If AAK conditions President post, we’ll go to elections (media)

Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) leader Isa Mustafa said on Tuesday that the post of Kosovo President cannot be resolved without consulting with opposition parties, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and the Vetevendosje Movement. Mustafa said it would be easier to cooperate with the PDK on the matter, as Kurti’s Vetevendosje wants new elections and does not leave room to address other issues.

Mustafa said he has indirectly discussed the issue with PDK leader Kadri Veseli but that no concrete names have been proposed for the post so far. “The only name that has been mentioned so far is Mr. Haradinaj [Ramush]; he was proposed by the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo but was not discussed by other parties”. Mustafa said that if the AAK conditions the ruling coalition with the post of President, “we will go to new elections”. 

Krasniqi: PDK backed Hoti in U.S., hoping he’ll bring mutual recognition (media)

Memli Krasniqi, Vice President of the Kosovo Assembly from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), said in a debate in Dukagjini TV on Tuesday that a possible shared management of the Gazivoda Lake would be dangerous if there is no mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia. “Without mutual recognition, anything that is negotiated with Serbia can be dangerous,” he said.

“This [shared management of Gazivoda] would open new property-related problems within Kosovo, and the main concern is Trepca of course.”

Krasniqi also said that the PDK supported Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti’s visit to Washington hoping that he would secure Kosovo’s recognition by Serbia.

Trajkovic: Washington agreement, a political earthquake for Vucic (N1, RTK)

Serb politician from Kosovo Rada Trajkovic assessed that the 4 September agreement reached in Washington represents a major political earthquake for the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic.

She told N1 TV that signing the agreement in Washington, in a way brings Vucic in conflict with Russia and China.

“He accepted the obligations of the American state in order to prolong his political life, which means a chair has already been removed. The agreement on gas, Russia, are also advantages, and Vucic also accepted another chair there, to slowly devalue another strategic partner. It is a major political earthquake for Vucic,” Trajkovic said.

According to her, the Washington agreement put Vucic at position of breaking relations with ‘his Chinese brother XI Jinping.’ 

KLA associations claim they received more documents (media)

Representatives of the Kosovo Liberation Army War Veterans’ Association said they received another anonymous delivery containing documents relating to the work of Specialist Chambers.

At a press conference yesterday, chairman Hysni Gucati said an unidentified person dropped off to their offices a batch of documents which he said contain witness testimonies but do not disclose their identities. He said the person that delivered the files was not the same as the one that brought the first ones.

Meanwhile, deputy chairman of KLA war veterans Nasim Haradinaj published on his social media security camera footage which he claimed show the moment the anonymous messenger dropped files to their offices.

Haradinaj is also quoted by Telegrafi to have said that they will not be handing over the recently obtained documents to specialist prosecutors without the Kosovo Police being present.

Israel’s deal with Kosovo and Serbia is window-dressing by Trump and Netanyahu (Times Now)

The deal already has attracted strong opposition within Israel and Serbia, and from both countries’ key partners, namely the EU, Russia and Turkey.

The recent package deal between Israel and Kosovo and Serbia is a fine example of diplomatic window-dressing by the US, intended to shore up Donald Trump’s sagging poll numbers. As announced, Serbia will move its embassy to Jerusalem. The deal also stipulates that Kosovo and Israel will recognize each other and that Pristina will open an embassy in Jerusalem. If it does so, Kosovo will become the first Muslim-majority country with diplomatic representation in Jerusalem. Also, no European country currently operates an embassy in Jerusalem.

See at: https://bit.ly/3kr7gmg