Headlines - 27.08.2018

• Thaci and Vucic seek internationals’ help to reach final agreement (Epoka)
• Hahn: Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia should be supported (Zeri)
• Kurz: Kosovo - Serbia agreement, main precondition for EU membership (Epoka)
• Veseli: Kosovo’s territorial integrity is inviolable (RTK)
• Pacolli: There is no division of Kosovo (RTK)
• “Border adjustments” undoes independence and incites conflicts (Koha)
• “Kosovo must be careful from hasty options with long-term consequences” (Koha)
• Lekaj: Calls for a vote of confidence are not serious (Epoka)
• Haradinaj at an informal meeting of Balkans Prime Ministers (RTK)
• Gashi: Special court is not filing indictments due to political reasons (media)
• US Senator McCain, supporter of Kosovo’s independence, dies aged 81 (media)
• Kosovo citizens start signing online petition against partition (media)

Thaci and Vucic seek internationals’ help to reach final agreement (Epoka)

The presidents of Kosovo and Serbia, Hashim Thaci and Aleksandar Vucic, said at Alpbach panel discussion in Austria that the final agreement for normalization of the relations between Kosovo and Serbia cannot be reached without the support of the international community. Speaking about the agreement, Thaci said Kosovo and Serbia would not be neither the first nor the last to correct their border for the sake of peace. “We are completely aware that stability and peace in the Western Balkans have to be preserved at any cost. This is the reason why we want to assure neighboring countries, EU member countries and other countries of the world not to fear some potential peaceful agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, even if such agreement involves correction of the border,” Thaci said at a joint press conference. He added that without this agreement, the countries would be blocking one another on further advancing towards the EU membership and the region would continue to suffer from instability. “The damages of not reaching an agreement would have been high however the benefits in case of reaching the agreement would have been much higher not only for Kosovo and Serbia but for the region, EU and further. Therefore, we have decided to discuss every possibility to find a creative solution and to reach a mutually acceptable solution,” Thaci said. Vucic on the other hand that the problems have to be solved for the sake of both populations and the region. “I hope to reach a sustainable agreement even though I am still very pessimistic because I see difficulties that we are facing an d I am not certain if people in Belgrade and Serbia would support any kind of agreement, but we will do the best we can to resolve this matter,” Vucic said.

 

Hahn: Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia should be supported (Zeri)

EU Commissioner, Johannes Hahn, said on Saturday that the European Union will not accept as members states that have unresolved political disputes. During a joint press conference of Balkans leaders at the European Forum Alpbach, Hahn said: “if you see what has been achieved and what has been adopted since February, I think this is proof of what can be done if there is a clear European perspective and clear criteria. One of the criteria is that we won’t accept countries that have unresolved political disputes. We have already seen positive results from this approach as was the case of the agreement between Skopje and Athens, then Skopje and Sofia, but also between Pristina and Podgorica on the border issue. We also heard yesterday about developments related to dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, and this is something we should support. We must trust those who discusses these issues”.

 

Kurz: Kosovo - Serbia agreement, main precondition for EU membership (Epoka)

The President of Kosovo Hashim Thaci, held on Sunday a joint meeting with the Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurts, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Johannes Hahn and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic. Chancellor Kurz, who was the host of the meeting said Austria, during its presiding mandate at the EU has as priority policies of enlargement, good neighborly relations, security and migration. Kurz encouraged the two presidents to continue with their efforts to reach an agreement, stressing that it is the main precondition for the membership of the two countries in EU. Commenting this meeting, Austria’s President Alexander Van der Bellen, said “I consider that it is fair to say that something happened last night. I had the feeling that I was a participant of a historic event.”

 

Veseli: Kosovo’s territorial integrity is inviolable (RTK)

Kadri Veseli, President of the Assembly of Kosovo, told RTK the epilogue of the discussions between Kosovo and Serbia will be recognition of Kosovo by Serbia and the seat at the United Nations. Veseli also believes that Kosovo will defend its territorial integrity, without division or territorial exchange. ‘Kosovo’s position is very clear, recognition of Kosovo state as a sovereign country, seat at the United Nations and there is no dilemma on this. We are committed to move in the peace process, process of communication and Euro-Atlantic integration as an independent and sovereign state,” Veseli said.

 

Pacolli: There is no division of Kosovo (RTK)

Kosovo’s Principal Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Behxhet Pacolli, denied possibility of division of Kosovo. “I see that many citizens are currently concerned about a so-called “division’ of Kosovo. Our country is divided enough. There is not a single possibility for further division of our territory. I think, and I hope that no Albanian leader would be as naïve,” Pacolli wrote on his Facebook account.

 

“Border adjustments” undoes independence and incites conflicts (Koha)

The paper reports on its front page that representatives of ruling parties and the opposition believe that President Hashim Thaci’s initiative for “border adjustments” is a dangerous idea and according to them it would undo Kosovo’s independence and trigger new conflicts. Bilall Sherifi, MP from NISMA, a party in the ruling coalition, argued in a Facebook post that Thaci’s idea poses a threat to peace and security in the Balkans. “Thaci did not say which part of Kosovo will be given to Serbia according to his secret agreements with Belgrade. Despite great opposition to the idea that threatens Kosovo’s territorial integrity, Thaci not only refused to back down from this position but he insists on keeping the idea alive,” Sherifi wrote. Vetevendosje leader, Albin Kurti, too took to Facebook to say that there are attempts to sacrifice Kosovo for Serbia’s European integration and for rescuing Thaci from the special court.

 

“Kosovo must be careful from hasty options with long-term consequences” (Koha)

The paper’s Brussels-based correspondent, Augustin Palokaj, writes in an opinion piece that “Serbia seems to have achieved one objective with its approach: to create the impression that Kosovo’s independence, without Belgrade’s consent, was a wrong, unstable and not a final solution. Now it [Serbia] is finding support even with one part of the Trump administration, which is obsessed to prove that every action by previous U.S. administrations was wrong and needs to be improved now. Even the messages from the opponent of Kosovo’s independence, Bolton, that the agreement on ‘border adjustments’ must not be obstructed, goes in this direction. These are the grave consequences of the dialogue in Brussels, which in addition to other damages, has also created divisions in Kosovo and in the positions of one part of the international community, which coordinated Kosovo’s path toward freedom and independence”.

 

Lekaj: Calls for a vote of confidence are not serious (Epoka)

Kosovo’s Minister for Infrastructures, for the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Pal Lekaj, told the paper that he does not fear the calls of the opposition political parties for the motion of no confidence. According to him this has become a refrain of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) from the first day Ramush Haradinaj became the Prime Minister. He said if opposition had the majority at the Assembly, then the government would have withdrawn. Speaking about the dialogue process, Lekaj said that Haradinaj’s government does not accept new compromises in this process. “Therefore, AAK considers that any compromise that exceeds Ahtisaari’s Package is harmful.”

 

Haradinaj at an informal meeting of Balkans Prime Ministers (RTK)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Ramush Haradinaj will participate today at an informal meeting of the Prime Ministers of Western Balkans for regional economic integration. The meeting will take place in Durres, Albania, at 10:00 hours.

 

Gashi: Special court is not filing indictments due to political reasons (media)

Pristina-based attorney, Tome Gashi, told Ekonomia Online on Sunday that the special court is not filing indictments specifically due to political reasons, because previous prosecutors have already stated that they have sufficient evidence to file indictments. Gashi also criticized some members of the Kosovo Assembly who called for the dissolution of the specialist chambers, saying that they were “trying to protect themselves”.

 

US Senator McCain, supporter of Kosovo’s independence, dies aged 81 (media)

All print and local media report on the passing away of US Senator John McCain, highlighting that he was a supporter of Kosovo’s independence. Kosovo President, Hashim Thaci, wrote in a Twitter post: “the people of Kosovo and I join the family, friends of Senator John McCain, as well as the entire American nation, in mourning his passing. One of his last foreign trips was in 2017 in Kosovo, when I bestowed him our highest order of merit. He was one of the last true heroes of our era”. The US Ambassador to Kosovo, Greg Delawie, tweeted “we mourn the loss of Sen John McCain, American patriot and good friend of Kosovo and the Balkans”.

 

Kosovo citizens start signing online petition against partition (media)

Several news websites report that a Pristina-based attorney has launched a petition against Kosovo’s ethnic division and the exchange of territories between Kosovo and Serbia. The petition, which calls on Serbia to recognize Kosovo’s independence and argues that President Thaci has no legal mandate to negotiate with Belgrade, will be sent to EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and Commissioner Johannes Hahn.