UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, February 27, 2023

Serbia, Kosovo leaders to meet about plan to relations on normal footing (RFE)
Borrell to meet Kurti and Vucic separately, followed by joint meeting (KSP)
Opposition parties say Kurti will sign Association (Koha)
Chollet talks to Kurti and Vucic ahead of Brussels meeting (media)
PSD to hold action in front of govt building before Brussels meeting (media)
Serbia won’t budge on Kosovo independence ahead of Brussels meet (Euractiv)
Kosovo media, and regulators, failing on privacy protection (BIRN)
Kosovo to probe football match fixing claims after French arrests (BIRN)

Serbia, Kosovo leaders to meet about plan to relations on normal footing (RFE)

The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo are due to hold talks today in Brussels, where an agreement to normalize relations between the two Balkan nations will be at the top of the agenda.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell is set to host the meeting between Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who have been discussing the agreement for months under a diplomatic push by the EU and the United States.

The text of the deal has not been published by either government or the European Union. But the EU has said it includes mutual recognition of official documents, increased financial aid, and other measures to improve the lives of people in both Serbia and Kosovo.

The document does not explicitly mention mutual recognition or membership of Kosovo in the United Nations, which Kosovo insists on. Vucic has said that the plan stipulates that Serbia wouldn’t object to Kosovo’s inclusion in international organizations, though it wouldn’t have to formally recognize its statehood.

A senior EU official who spoke to reporters last week said there is “a lot of substance” in the EU plan, which he said would “greatly relax the atmosphere and remove” many obstacles. He added that the result could restart the "locomotive" of European integration.

The EU does not expect leaders to continue debating the plan but is open to discussions on its implementation, according to a senior EU official quoted by Reuters on February 24.

"We expect the two leaders to endorse the proposal," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

Kurti received a joint letter from French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni ahead of the meeting.

It invites Pristina and Belgrade to implement without conditions the agreements reached so far within the framework of the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, including the one on the formation of an association of municipalities with a Serbian majority.

Kurti has argued that such an association would give Belgrade an outsize influence in Kosovo, which has an ethnic Albanian majority, while Serbia says it is needed to protect the rights of Serbs.

Vucic also received a letter from the three European leaders, according to Serbia’s Beta news agency, but the content of the letter is not known.

Kosovo declared independence in 2008 in a move endorsed by the United States, the United Kingdom, and most major European powers but rejected by Serbia and Russia.

Recent tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, including Pristina's plans to implement a car license renewal scheme coupled with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, have revived fears of war breaking out in the region.

Following recent rounds of diplomacy, Kurti and Vucic signaled qualified support for the plan but they also complained about specific aspects of it.

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

Borrell to meet Kurti and Vucic separately, followed by joint meeting (KSP)

EU High Representative Josep Borrell will meet Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti today at 15:00 and then meet Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic at 16:16, the news website reports. After the separate meetings, Borrell will hold a joint meeting with the two leaders. The focus of the meetings will be on the EU proposal for the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia. Borrell is scheduled to give a press conference after the meetings.

Opposition parties say Kurti will sign Association (Koha)

The two biggest opposition parties in Kosovo, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), are accusing Prime Minister Albin Kurti that the agreement which he is expected to sign in Brussels does not include recognition from Serbia. The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) meanwhile argues that the government needs to accept the French-German proposal.

PDK deputy leader, Vlora Citaku, said in a Facebook post on Sunday that what Kurti is negotiating with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic is not centered on recognition. “Tomorrow an agreement will be signed whereby the parties will pledge to implement all agreements reached so far. An agreement with the Association at the center, and recognition is not even in the outskirts. A new status quo. This plan has not fallen from the sky. It is a product of the Prime Minister’s negotiations,” Citaku argued.

LDK deputy leader, Shqipe Mjekiqi, said on Sunday that this party insists that any agreement that is signed must be centered on recognition. “Tomorrow’s decision will be a crucial point to see what move the Kurti government will make because initially it said that dialogue is not a priority and that it needs to include mutual recognition and that there can be no Association, but then moved to an agreement that is not even a final agreement and it does not include recognition and it can have the Association as its part – whatever the governments will agree upon for the Association,” she argued.

Chollet talks to Kurti and Vucic ahead of Brussels meeting (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on Friday that he had a great call with Counselor to the U.S. State Department Derek Chollet and that he confirmed Kosovo’s support for the EU proposal as a good basis for further talks toward normalization of Kosova–Serbia relations. “Full normalisation requires mutual recognition as the agreement’s center piece, and also respect for minority rights, in both countries,” Kurti tweeted.

Chollet said in a Twitter post that the U.S. supports a constructive meeting [between Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic] that affirms both parties’ commitment to the EU proposal. “I shared that now is the time to discuss the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities. Both Kosovo and Serbia should implement the agreements they have already signed on to through the Dialogue process, including making progress towards establishing the ASM,” Chollet tweeted.

After a call with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Chollet tweeted: “Spoke with President Vucic today to express strong U.S. support for the February 27 meeting with EU HR/VP Borrell in Brussels. Welcomed Serbia’s continued commitment to constructive engagement on the EU proposal for securing peace and stability in the region.”

PSD to hold action in front of govt building before Brussels meeting (media)

The Social Democratic Party of Kosovo (PSD) will hold a symbolic action today in front of the Kosovo government building in Pristina two hours before the meeting of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Brussels.

Serbia won’t budge on Kosovo independence ahead of Brussels meet (Euractiv)

Serbia will not agree to recognise Kosovo as a state, nor will it allow it to join the UN, said Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic ahead of what she expects to be “difficult” talks on the normalisation of relations with Pristina in Brussels on Monday.

President Aleksandar Vucic, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, the EU’s Special Envoy for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak and the EU’s Chief Diplomat Josep Borrell will take part in high-level talks in Brussels on Monday. A press conference will be held afterwards.

“It will not be an easy day, but Serbia’s red lines are clear. We will not recognise the so-called state of Kosovo, nor will we agree for it to join the United Nations”, Brnabic said.

While the EU proposal on the normalisation of relations which the EU views as necessary for both countries to enter the bloc in the future is expected to be the main topic of discussion, Brnabic reiterated her hopes that the Serbian municipalities association will be formed after the Brussels meeting.

Brnabic also said she could not comment on a letter from French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that was sent over the weekend, as it was addressed to the presidency’s office, not hers.

Kosovo Media, and Regulators, Failing on Privacy Protection (BIRN)

Media in Kosovo often publish the personal data of individuals in a race for clicks that ignores standards on ethics.

When Indeksonline, an online media outlet in Kosovo, reported in January that a participant in a local reality TV show was HIV positive, dozens of other media ran with the story.

The story was wrong, and Indeksonline later retracted it and issued an apology.

But the claim is still doing the rounds on the Internet, underscoring the cavalier attitude taken by some media in Europe’s youngest state when it comes to protecting personal data.

Kosovo’s Law on Protection of Personal Data prohibits the processing of personal data pertaining to racial or ethnic origin, political preference, religious or philosophical beliefs, union membership, genetic, biometric, and health data or data concerning a person’s sexual orientation.

But this is precisely the kind of information that regularly surfaces in Kosovo media. The fault, say experts, sits not only with the media, but with the three public bodies tasked with holding them to account – the Kosovo Press Council, the Independent Media Commission, and the judiciary.

“It is not enough for these institutions to be functional,” said Flutura Kusari, senior legal advisor at the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom, a media watchdog based in Leipzig, Germany. “They also should be efficient, that is, to react quickly.”