• Osmani: Cooperation with allies to overcome common challenges (RTK)
• Osmani to meet parties today for consultations on election date in north (Koha)
• Interior Minister Svecla visited Jarinje border crossing on Saturday (media)
• Rohde: It's absurd to risk a violent confrontation over license plates (media)
• Kosovo Customs replaces the resigned customs officers (RTK)
• New graffiti in the north, Police are investigating the case (media)
• Opposition asks govt to commit to negotiating text of final agreement (media)
• La Repubblica: ‘Shadows’ of Wagner at Kosovo borders (media)
• Kurti discusses energy and environmental issues with AFD in Paris (media)
• Borell to hold informal meeting with diplomats of EU countries (Albanian Post)
• Kosovo becomes part of the UN Conference on Climate Change (RTK)
• Kurti heads to Austria for the Vienna Economic Forum (media)
• “Longer mutual recognition is postponed, Vucic will destabilise region” (media)
• PDK leader Krasniqi to visit Brussels and Washington (media)
• In Kosovo and Albania, Personal Data Up for Grabs (BIRN)

Osmani: Cooperation with allies to overcome common challenges (RTK)

The President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani used her participation in the "Peace Forum" in Paris for meetings with leaders from different countries around the world.

"Conversations with leaders from different countries of the world, new allies and friends of Kosovo, during the Peace Forum in Paris," she wrote on Facebook.

Meanwhile, in a post on "Twitter", the president emphasized that she has talked with colleagues from Estonia, Liberia, Hungary and North Macedonia. "Cooperation with friends and allies is of great importance because we want to overcome common challenges in Europe and beyond," Osmani wrote.

Osmani to meet parties today for consultations on election date in north (Koha)

President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, will host a meeting today with representatives of political parties and consult on setting a date for extraordinary elections in the four northern municipalities after the resignations of mayors there. The news website contacted Osmani’s office about the time of the meeting but received no response.

Interior Minister Svecla visited Jarinje border crossing on Saturday (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Affairs, Xhelal Svecla, visited the Jarinje border crossing on Saturday. “I visited the Jarinje border crossing, the border police station and the police station in Koshtova of Vllahi today, where I met police officers and customs officers on duty,” Svecla said a Facebook post. He also said that the determination of officers to guarantee the rule of law in every corner of Kosovo “is a guarantee for security in the country”.

Rohde: It's absurd to risk a violent confrontation over license plates (media)

The German ambassador to Kosovo Jorn Rohde tweeted that political will is urgently needed to de-tension the situation and compromises based on the Brussels agreements.

"Political will is urgently needed for de-escalation and compromises based on the Brussels agreements! It is absurd to risk a violent confrontation over license plates while Russia is waging a brutal war against Ukraine with already countless victims," Rohde wrote.

Urgently needed is political will for deescalation and compromises based on Brussels agreements! Absurd to risk violent confrontation about licence plates while a brutal war is being waged against UKR by Russia with already countless victims,” Rohde wrote.

Kosovo Customs replaces the resigned customs officers (RTK)

The eleven customs officers resigned from the Kosovo Customs who were engaged at the border points in Jarinje and Bernjak, have already been replaced. Kosovo Customs has announced that it has sufficient staff to meet current staffing requirements.

"Kosovo Customs made the staff allocation based on needs. And, in this situation, normally we have responded and allocated additional staff immediately to those points so that we are not left without supervision or without customs controls," the spokesperson of the Kosovo Customs, Adratik Stavileci told Radio Kosovo.

New graffiti in the north, Police are investigating the case (media)

Kosovo Police said in a statement on Sunday that they are investigating the case of the appearance of new graffiti on walls and streets in the north of Kosovo, in the Serbian language. "From 21.11 it is everyone's duty to resist at every step! North Brigade", the graffiti read.

The last time a graffiti was placed by the "Northern Brigade" was at the end of August. "Don't worry, we are here - Northern Brigade" and "NATO go home!" “This is Serbia. The Northern Brigade is growing day by day."

"On 13.11.2022 at night, in the area of ​​the regional directorate of Mitrovica North, some graffiti with different inscriptions in the Serbian language were encountered. The Kosovo Police, with its units, has undertaken the necessary police actions, for investigation and further proceedings, regarding the graffiti written on some walls and streets," a police spokesman told Koha.

From November 1, citizens in Kosovo who are caught with illegal number plates issued by Serbia with acronyms of the cities of Kosovo are receiving reprimands. While from November 21, they are expected to be fined €150.

Opposition asks govt to commit to negotiating text of final agreement (media)

The opposition parties have assessed the French-German plan as a good basis for moving forward in the dialogue process for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia. They asked the government to use the momentum, and at the same time bring the position on this plan to the Assembly for discussion.

The chairman of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Memli Krasniqi has requested that the coordination of the USA and the EU to send the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia to a new level should be taken seriously.

"Prime Minister Kurti, but also President Osmani, should take this situation seriously and express their request and commitment to discuss the French-German plan,” he said, adding that the good thing is that it is not a take-it-or-leave-it request, “but to express Kosovo's readiness to engage and negotiate for the text which should result in a final text with the inclusion of as many of Kosovo's state aspirations as possible, because the final agreement which should result in mutual recognition is important," said Krasniqi.

Avdullah Hoti, MP of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) has asked the government to bring the formal debate on the dialogue to the Assembly, criticizing it for non-transparency. He said that Kosovo has never had an opposition more supportive of dialogue than now.

"If the Government considers that this proposal is a good basis to move more easily towards the full normalization of relations between the two states and mutual recognition, the Assembly and the public should be informed in order to ensure political and social consensus. Moreover, informing the Assembly is not at the government's discretion, but is the government's constitutional obligation to the Assembly regardless of what the government thinks about this proposal".

La Repubblica: ‘Shadows’ of Wagner at Kosovo borders (media)

Most news websites covered an article by Italian daily La Repubblica which notes that Russia is behind the conflict between Kosovo and Serbia. According to the article, Serbia is using the Wagner mercenaries to incite conflict in the north. “Although the Wagner group operates in the Republic of Central Africa, it seems that the main goal of Russian Federation is penetration through ‘instructors’ and ‘007’ in northern Kosovo, where it seems that the conflict is becoming more and more hotter,” the Italian daily notes.

Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Affairs, Xhelal Svecla, told the daily that “we have evidence that during the protest of Serbs against vehicle plates there were Russian elements”.

According to La Repubblica, support for Moscow in northern Kosovo by Serbian minority is not a secret. “In Mitrovica North there are posters writing “Putin Kosovo” and furthermore it is worth mentioning the presence of Russian government three years ago which at that time had a very active and effective office in northern Kosovo, according to locals,” the daily reported.

Kurti discusses energy and environmental issues with AFD in Paris (media)

Prime Minister Albin Kurti, met during his visit to Paris the director for Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia, at the French Development Agency - AFD, Cyrille Bellier, and Vladimir Deliryn from the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France.

"Discussing the commitment of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo for the socio-economic development of the country, Prime Minister Kurti emphasized that Kosovo is the center of the EMENA region and, in addition to its geographical position and institutional stability, Kosovo has great potential in the region," it is said in the notification of the government.

The meeting also discussed social and economic challenges that are specific to Kosovo, including energy and environmental issues. "Mr. Bellier spoke about the objectives of the AFD in the region and about further actions to address the specific challenges of Kosovo. They talked about the commitment of the French Development Agency in the Western Balkans region and the joint efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals," the announcement continues.

According to the communique, this meeting in Paris preceded an important visit of the AFD to Kosovo, this week.

Borell to hold informal meeting with diplomats of EU countries (Albanian Post)

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy Josep Borell will report on Monday at the Council of Foreign Affairs of the European Union, to the heads of European diplomacy in an informal meeting about the talks he had with the Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti and the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic, in the meetings held within the framework of the Paris Forum.

The ministerial debate will focus mainly on the relations between Kosovo and Serbia. The fact that it will be informal means that the conclusions of the discussion will not be published, but it is expected that Borell will convey the essence of these talks in a press conference.

Other problems of the countries of the region will also be discussed. The ministerial meeting is also a preparation for the EU-Western Balkans summit planned for December 6 in Tirana.

Kosovo becomes part of the UN Conference on Climate Change (RTK)

For the first time, Kosovo will participate in the United Nations Climate Change Conference. The news was announced by the Minister of Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure, Liburn Aliu.

"At the invitation of the German Government and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany, Mrs. Anna Baerbock, we will participate in the Conference of Members (COP27), in which case we will hold bilateral meetings regarding possible financing for adaptation to climate change and implementation of the Paris Agreement," Aliu wrote.

Kosovo remains the only country without direct access to multilateral UN funds, therefore according to Minister Aliu, on November 18, in the spaces of the German Pavilion in Egypt, Kosovo's agenda which has to do with investment needs in adapting to climate change and decarbonisation goals will be presented.

"The final goal of our participation is to become a member of the Convention on Climate Change of the United Nations (UNFCCC), therefore Kosovo will have the opportunity to negotiate and have access to funds for climate change," Minister Aliu underlined on Facebook.

Kurti heads to Austria for the Vienna Economic Forum (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo traveled to Austria on Sunday to participate in the Vienna Economic Forum, the Prime Minister's Office announced. The forum is scheduled to begin on Monday, November 14.

“Longer mutual recognition is postponed, Vucic will destabilise region” (media)

U.S. expert on the Western Balkans, Janusz Bugajski, said on Sunday that the EU and the USA must not postpone the issue of mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia. In a comment made on the post of the German ambassador, Jorn Rohde, he said that the more mutual recognition is postponed, the more Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will destabilize the region.

“We saw where calls for "de-escalation" led to with Putin. The longer the EU and US delay in pushing through Serbia-Kosovo mutual recognition, the more Vucic will destabilize the region,” Bugajski wrote.

PDK leader Krasniqi to visit Brussels and Washington (media)

Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Memli Krasniqi said in a Facebook post that he will visit Brussels and Washington, where he will senior officials of the European Union and the U.S. “Difficult times call for coordination and cooperation with true, reliable, and strategic partners. With friends who wish good for Kosovo, our people and keep always doors open for us!” Krasniqi wrote.

In Kosovo and Albania, Personal Data Up for Grabs (BIRN)

Public institutions in Kosovo and Albania are failing to protect the personal data of the people.

For Donika [not her real name], 2022 brought stressful days and sleepless nights. “I was under surveillance all the time,” said the 24-year-old from Pristina, the capital of Kosovo.

It all began a year earlier, when Kosovo readied for a snap Valentine’s Day election and Donika’s personal data was hacked from the website of the Central Election Commission, where she was registered to vote. Next, her stalker went after details about her work and salary via the Tax Administration. Then he approached her.

“Personally I was shocked,” Donika told BIRN. “I was surprised how they managed to get access to my personal data through institutions.”

“He started harassing me every day. It has been very stressful for me and I didn’t feel safe either in the street or at work.”

Donika is far from alone in suffering such an assault, either in Kosovo or neighbouring Albania; in December last year, a list containing the personal data of hundreds of thousands of Albanian citizens, including employment and salary details as well as ID numbers, began circulating online, wreaking havoc.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3EcNtCG