UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, September 8, 2022

Pahor meets Osmani: We have different positions on the Association (Albanian Post)
Kurti: With Slovenia, we share same values and views on peace and security in region (media)
Osmani to Serbian List: I am not only the president, but I am also supreme commander of the army, in which there are also Serbs (Klan)
SRSG Ziadeh meets Albanian PM Rama, encourages regional cooperation (media)
Erdogan hopes for a quick agreement between Kosovo and Serbia on license plates (RTK)
Hill would like to see Kosovo part of the "Open Balkans" (N1, media)
Donika Gervalla and Faton Peci elected leaders of Guxo List (media)
Minister Haxhiu: We are preparing the lawsuit for crimes against Serbia (Paparaci)
Citaku: Kurti does not want to govern, he wants to rule (media)
Amid Dialogue With Serbia, Kosovo's NATO Membership Hangs in the Balance (Newsweek)
War hangover in divided nation is a warning for Europe (Bloomberg)

Pahor meets Osmani: We have different positions on the Association (Albanian Post)

The President of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, visited Kosovo on Wednesday. He was received by President Vjosa Osmani, who received an invitation from the host to participate in the Brdo-Brijuni Summit held on September 12.

At the joint press conference, Pahor said that Kosovo and Slovenia have common positions and the same points of view on most of the problematic issues in the region and the world. However, according to him, the positions of Kosovo and Slovenia differ in a single case - that of the Association of Municipalities with a Serb majority. According to Pahor, Kosovo, regardless of its constitutional right, must implement the Association of Municipalities with a Serb majority.

"The agreements reached must be implemented, thus the trust between Kosovo and Serbia will be strengthened. I also told Osmani to find a solution to reach this agreement, as long as we have no alternative, nor proposals from the parties, the agreement reached before is valid," said Pahor in a joint press conference with the president of Kosovo , Vjosa Osmani.

Furthermore, Pahor announced that at the 11th Summit of Brdo-Brioni, on September 12, they will talk about topics such as enabling the negotiations as soon as possible for the states that have the status of candidates for membership in the European Union. One of the topics of this summit, according to the Slovenian president, will be the need to fulfill the request for visa liberalization for the citizens of Kosovo.

"Another topic is the energy crisis that awaits us during the winter, I think that the goal is for us to tell the European Union not to forget the Western Balkans and to make more efforts than it did for the crisis with COVID-19," further said.

To Pahor, a major problem over the years has been considered the deadlock in dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia. However, he expressed his satisfaction that a partial result was reached between the two countries, within the dialogue on the issue of entry-exit documents. He further announced that the leaders of the Western Balkans should ignore the rhetoric that incites conflicts.

"We must be aware that we, the leaders in this region and around, are obliged to overlook the statements that break the degree of trust. It is not just about Belgrade and Pristina, we are also dealing with other problems," he added.

For Pahor, the statement of the president of Serbia, Aleksnadër Vucic, that Russia has not violated the integrity of Serbia, as it has not recognized the independence of Kosovo, while Slovenia has done so, is tendentious.

"Slovenia and Serbia have different stances regarding Kosovo, we have recognised this country, Serbia has not, I think that this statement was tendentious, but what it is, is a repetition of what exists. However, I also said at the Belgrade conference that the European perspective should not be endangered, and its security should not be threatened," he said.

Kurti: With Slovenia, we share same values and views on peace and security in region (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti met on Wednesday with the President of Slovenia Borut Pahor.

“Pleasure and honor to welcome President Borut Pahor to Kosova for his last visit here in this function. I emphasized the friendship, partnership and alliance between our two countries. With Slovenia, we share the same values and views on peace and security in the region and beyond," Kurti wrote on Twitter.

Osmani to Serbian List: I am not only the president, but I am also supreme commander of the army, in which there are also Serbs (Klan)

The President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani has responded to the Serbian List, which stated that her announcement about visiting the north represents a provocation.

Osmani said that the Serbian List is the least representative of the interests of Kosovo Serbs, and added that she is not only the president of the country, but also the supreme commander.

"I am not only the president of Kosovo, of all citizens without distinction, but I am also the supreme commander of the Kosovo Army, which includes Albanians, Serbs, Turks and other communities," Osmani said.

She further said that these days Serbian citizens in Kosovo are being threatened and feared by illegal Serbian structures.

"They are not afraid of me, but of the leaders of the criminal organizations, who have blocked them and are holding them hostage, in order to create tensions in the style of Putin."

"Therefore, once again I invite all Serb citizens in Kosovo not to fall prey to the propaganda, which has its source in Russia and in the people who belong to Milosevic's past," Osmani said.

Further, she said that the purpose of the Serbian List is tension and violence, and added that to all those who target tension and violence, the response of Kosovo's institutions is the rule of law.

SRSG Ziadeh meets Albanian PM Rama, encourages regional cooperation (media)

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of UNMIK Caroline Ziadeh with the Prime Minister of Albania Edi Rama on September 7.

SRSG Ziadeh commended and encouraged Albania's constructive participation in regional dialogue to maintain good neighborly relations and stability in the Western Balkans.

The SRSG and Prime Minister Rama also discussed the Pristina-Belgrade dialogue and initiatives for regional cooperation.

The Head of UNMIK re-emphasized that Belgrade and Pristina must address outstanding issues in good faith within the framework of the EU-facilitated Dialogue, capitalizing on the engagement and hard-won gains over the past 11 years.

She also reiterated the Mission's continued support for the people of Kosovo, focusing on building better inter-ethnic relations at all levels.

Erdogan hopes for a quick agreement between Kosovo and Serbia on license plates (RTK)

The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed hope that Kosovo and Serbia will soon reach an agreement on car license plates.

"We emphasize that we are ready to offer all our support, however we can. The Balkans can no longer tolerate this kind of problem," Erdogan said on Wednesday, during a meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucicin Belgrade.

Vucic said that in the meeting with Erdogan, they discussed greater military cooperation. He has repeated that Serbia wants to buy the Turkish "Bajraktar" drone.

"We are on the same page and I hope we can achieve something like that next year. We are ready to pay more money than we agreed to in the past and offer hundreds of millions of euros," Vucic said. He has also asked the Turkish president to help in providing electricity from Azerbaijan to Serbia.

"I have asked him to help us in this matter and provide us with space for sending 100 megawatts of energy from Azerbaijan to our territory, because something like this would ease our situation in the winter months," said the Serbian president.

The Turkish president Erdogan said on Wednesday that he does not consider the "provocative" policies of the West towards Russia to be right.

Hill would like to see Kosovo part of the "Open Balkans" (N1, media)

The U.S. ambassador in Belgrade Chistropher Hill has said that he would like to see Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of the "Open Balkans" initiative.

During a speech at an Atlantic Council event, he said that it is not true that Serbia wants to dominate the region through this initiative, "N1" portal reported on Wednesday.

"I am not sure that it is a valid criticism to say that the 'Open Balkans' is Serbia's attempt to dominate others. This was said decades ago in the EU about Germany," said Hill. "I would like to see Kosovo in it. It depends on them. I would very much like to see Bosnia in it too, and that also depends on it.”

The diplomat has long-standing ties with Kosovo. He was the U.S. special envoy for Kosovo during the war.

Asked why the U.S. is supporting the "Open Balkans", Ambassador Hill mentioned several reasons, but focused on the current relations between Albania and Serbia.

"First of all, it is an open initiative. I mean, anyone who wants to join, and by the way, that includes Kosovo, is welcome. Second, it supports EU standards, in terms of the rule of law, in terms of regulations. They really want to do something. And for that I give them a lot of credit. I would say that Serbia's relations with Albania are so good that they have probably never been in history," Hill said.

Donika Gervalla and Faton Peci elected leaders of Guxo List (media)

Faton Peci and Donika Gervalla have been elected leaders of Guxo List, media report. They were voted in with 373 votes in favor, 23 against and three abstentions.

Guxo List MP, Haxhi Avdyli announced that this model has been adopted by several German parties and that it will be led by a woman and a man.

"The 'Guxo' party has always known how to surprise with its opinions, political actions even today in this assembly, the 'Guxo' party will surprise with the way of party leadership - we will give a new model of political party leadership and a model unseen until today in the political scene of Kosovo. From this assembly, we will come out with a decision-making leadership and we will not have a leader, but we will have two leaders, one female and one male," Avdyli said.

Minister Haxhiu: We are preparing the lawsuit for crimes against Serbia (Paparaci)

Kosovo’s Minister of Justice Albulena Haxhiu has stated that the Kurti government is preparing the lawsuit against Serbia for crimes committed in Kosovo. She further said that the lawsuit for crimes against Serbia is under the competence of the Prime Minister's office.

"I cannot give details, because this is within the competence of the Prime Minister's office. But it is being worked on in this direction. The crime institute was also formed. War crimes cannot be amnestied, and this has nothing to do with the ongoing dialogue with Serbia," Haxhiu said.

Citaku: Kurti does not want to govern, he wants to rule (media)

Vlora Citaku, deputy leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) spoke on Wednesday about how the Prime Minister of Kosovo is approaching the problem of strikes. She said that Kurti does not want to govern but to rule.

"The prime minister is treating the strikers the same as the veterans, the media and the opposition political parties. The Prime Minister does not want to govern, he wants to rule, because governance requires dialogue, governance implies compromise," Citaku told T7 broadcaster.

"Albin Kurti is keeping the school doors closed with his stubbornness and his refusal to meet with the trade unionists and reach an agreement. This stubbornness of the prime minister has left our children without going to school," Citaku said.

Amid Dialogue With Serbia, Kosovo's NATO Membership Hangs in the Balance (Newsweek)

NATO forces remain critical to the stability of the Balkans more than 23 years after the military alliance launched a campaign to prevent genocide there, Kosovar officials say.

NATO forces have played a crucial role in ensuring that simmering tensions in recent months between Kosovo and Serbia do not spill into open conflict. On July 31, shots were fired in northern Kosovo, where ethnic Serbs protested against Kosovo's new border policies. Serbia views Kosovo as a rogue province. Kosovo declared itself independent in February 2008.

The visit of Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic to Kosovo this week is seen as a possible easing of tensions in the short term. However, Serbia's geopolitical alignment with Russia could lead to further conflict in the future.