LOCAL PRESS

 

Nikolic congratulated Dodik on his re-election as entity president (RTS)

The Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik received a congratulation message from the Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic on the occasion of his re-election as the entity president. With greetings, President Nikolic notes that Serbia is sincerely committed to further improving relations and cooperation between Serbia and the RS, with a view to lasting stability and development in the region, it was stated by Dodik’s cabinet. Nikolic wished Dodik successful performance of the responsible duty, as well as much success in the work and prosperity to the RS people, the media in B&H announced.

 

Mogherini mediator in Belgrade-Pristina dialogue (RTS)

There is readiness of Serbia and Kosovo to resume dialogue, and this process will be mediated in an adequate manner by the newly appointed EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, her spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic told a regular news conference. She said there would be more details on the dialogue when the time comes. This is an ongoing process aimed at facilitating a full normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, she said. Kocijancic said that it was important for the dialogue and efforts to normalize relations to continue, but did not reveal whether Mogherini would participate in the talks on energy or they would be carried out at the technical level.

 

Drecun: There is fear of EULEX affairs being relativized and hushed up (Srna)

“There is realistic fear of the corruption affairs that are linked to the EULEX Mission being relativized, i.e. hushed up, considering the numerous interests of various countries that are interwoven through this mission in Kosovo and Metohija,” the Chairperson of the Serbian parliament’s Committee for Kosovo and Metohija Milovan Drecun assessed. He told Srna that there have been reports that EULEX, over pressure from the Albanian side and political support of some center of power, violated the principles of the mission and that it is now on the EU to investigate all allegations since it is unacceptable for a mission that is supposed to supervise the judicial system to be so fundamentally corrupt, as it is claimed. “I have certain fear that this will not be clarified, and that light will not be shed on fundamental corruption in EULEX. Still, we should hope that the EU will have enough strength to shed light on the irregularities in its mission,” said Drecun. He says it would not be serious for the EU to allow this mission to leave Kosovo over the affairs. “No matter what EULEX is, it is guarantee that the law will function and this refers to those who are minorities in relation to the Albanians,” said Drecun.

 

Djuric and Janjic thank KFOR for protecting Decani Monastery (Tanjug/Politika)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric and Visoki Decani Monastery abbot Sava Janjic expressed gratitude to the KFOR Commander, Italian Major General Francesco Paolo Figliuolo for sending soldiers to increase the security around the monastery after its facilities and gates had been sprayed with threatening graffiti celebrating the Islamic State and calling for the creation of a Worldwide Caliphate. After the meeting Djuric and Janjic had with Figliuolo, Djuric told reporters said that in the political sense, the authorities in Pristina should bear the greatest responsibility for keeping the monastery secure. “Whoever wants to cooperate with the Serbs and whoever wants the support of the Serb community must treat the Serbian holy sites with respect and must protect them and treat them in the same way that all holy sites of such a category and such a ranking are treated,” Djuric said. He thanked the Italian KFOR soldiers for securing the 14^th century Serbian Orthodox Church monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005. Abbot Sava Janjic warned that it had become difficult to keep the monastery safe, especially after the threatening graffiti had been sprayed at monastery facilities and two of its gates. Janjic said it was a very serious provocation which was not an isolated case, recalling that unknown individuals had left UCK graffiti on one of the Monastery gates in April and that several attacks, even armed attacks, had been carried out on the monastery over the previous few years. “KFOR took the security risks seriously and stepped up its presence around the monastery,” Janjic said and thanked the KFOR commander and his soldiers for making great effort to preserve the security at the holy site. Janjic said that the visit by Djuric was an encouragement for the monks at the monastery and stressed that the support coming from the Serbian government was “giving them strength to persevere in their monastic life in the province.” He also expressed the hope that Kosovo’s institutions and local municipalities would understand that Visoki Decani Monastery was not a threat to the Albanian people who live in the area, but rather a holy site of great significance for all. Janjic expressed the hope of better times coming, with more peace, safety and security for the Serbs and their shrines.

 

Musliu: I will advocate implementation of referendum that envisages annexation of Kosovo (FoNet)

The future chairman of the National Council of Albanians in Serbia Jonuz Musliu listed among the main goals that the Albanian minority wishes to achieve in the following period, through the operation of the National Council, the textbooks that should be delivered from Tirana and Pristina. “There is no compromise for the Albanian flag. That is our identity,” said Musliu. Although it is not within the jurisdiction of the National Council, Musliu said he would also advocate during his mandate the implementation of the Konculj agreement and referendum by the Albanians from southern Serbia, held in 1992, which also envisages the annexation of Kosovo. “That is the main goal, that is the will of the people,” said Musliu. Asked how realistic is that idea and whether he would discuss the matter with the Serbian government, Musliu responded that the authorities in Belgrade are aware of the aspirations and demands of Albanians from southern Serbia and their relation to the central government will depend on the attitude of the authorities towards them. “Our path is towards Tirana and Pristina. It depends on all the Serbian government, how it behaves toward the Albanians so will we behave towards the Serbian government,” said Musliu.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Cavic: NDP delegates rejected SNSD immoral offers to enter government (Oslobodjenje)

Dragan Cavic, president of the National Democratic Movement (NDP), confirmed today that none of the party’s delegates in the Republika Srpska (RS) or Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) parliaments accepted the offer by Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) to enter their parliamentary majority. He says that, as was anticipated, almost all the NDP delegates were individually contacted by SNSD representatives, to enter the assembly majority to form a government. “The SNSD’s intention was to try to pull delegates from opposition parties, but as far as the NDP is concerned, they will not succeed in this,” said Cavic at a press conference in Banja Luka, adding that simultaneously the Alliance for Change, in whose composition the NDP explicitly remains, is seriously working on forming an assembly majority at the RS and B&H levels. He says that the Alliance for Change has “good chances” to form a government, and although, as he says, Milorad Dodik describes it as hypothetical, it is realistic at both the RS and B&H levels. “The fact is that the parties of the current ruling majority in RS in the elections won 39 mandates, and to reach the number of 42 required for an assembly majority, they need the mandates of the DNS, Serbian Progressive Party, and Serbian Radical Party coalition partners,” said the NDP president. He said that for the NDP, “it is shocking that the SNSD is saving itself by binding flags with the HDZ and, thus, affirming their policy of destruction of Dayton and forming a third entity,” which for the NDP is completely unacceptable, because this threatens the RS too. Cavic condemned the Central Electoral Commission’s decision to reject the request by the Alliance for Change to recount ballots for the RS president, which, he says, fuels doubts about electoral fraud. Everything that happened during this electoral process confirms, he added, that it is essential to change the electoral law.

 

Dodik: SNSD, DNS, SP will form RS government (Oslobodjenje/RTS)

Milorad Dodik, the SNSD president, said it was definitively agreed that the SNSD-DNS-SP coalition would form the new RS government, announcing that today in Brcko he would discuss the further structuring of the government with Marko Pavic, the Democratic National Alliance (DNS) leader, and Petar Djokic, head of the Socialist Party (SP). Dodik said that the question of who would lead the new composition of the government is still a topic of discussion, but considered it is realistic to expect that the mandate holder would be from the SNSD. “Because of the number of votes that we have, it is absolutely realistic to expect that our party will put forward the mandate holder for the composition of the government,” Dodik told Radio Television of Serbia, noting that he believes the SNSD has sufficiently competent people who can bear responsibility for the policy that will be jointly established. Dodik said that the SNSD has the most support and potential to form a government, although it has a lower number of seats than before. He emphasized that now the role of the DNS and SP is strengthened, and that the SNSD-DNS-SP coalition will divide authority and responsibility. “Maybe they had a previously comfortable position, because it was all a big blame party, and they could get away with a bit, but in any case we now have a majority to work together,” said Dodik. The RS President said that both the state and entity levels of government are important for him. “You can’t be successful if you aren’t adequately represented at both levels of government,” said Dodik. He said that he will cooperate with the Party of Democratic Progress (PDP) leader Mladen Ivanic, as the Serb member of the B&H Presidency, as much as necessary in the interests of the RS. “Mladen Ivanic has a role and it is not an unimportant place, because he has a very important role in management of the system of defense, but also as a part of B&H’s foreign policy, and in this part we can cooperate,” said Dodik.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

EU anti-fraud investigators should examine bribery and corruption allegations in Kosovo says S&D (EU Reporter Correspondent, 4 November 2014)

“A failure to do so could trigger a parliamentary inquiry into the allegations,” he said.

Howitt also questioned the apparent failure to apply whistleblower protection procedures, after the British official reported to have brought the allegations forward was suspended from duty.

The S&D spokesperson made his comments during an interview today (Tuesday 4 November) on Kosovo’s leading station, Radio Dukagjini, following a meeting of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee which questioned senior EU officials responsible for Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) missions and from the European External Action Service (EEAS) about the allegations.

On behalf of the S&D Group, Howitt backed proposals for the foreign affairs committee to submit further written questions about the investigation into the allegations, leaving open the possibility of a parliamentary inquiry if the committee does not receive immediate and satisfactory answers.

Howitt said: “We have a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption and the European Parliament is sending a message that any possible corrupt and criminal activity in this case must be dealt with severely.

“If allegations of corruption come forward, they have to be dealt with fully, fairly and satisfactorily and, as it stands today, I can’t say hand on heart that I believe that that has yet been done.

“EULEX has done a lot and we want it to do more, not less, but their credibility and Europe’s is at stake.

“The test for the EU is not simply about whether any corrupt act has taken place, it’s about how the allegations are dealt with, whether they’re properly investigated and whether those responsible – if evidence is found – are then prosecuted and held to account.

“If judicial proceedings take place in Kosovo itself, they should have the support of those of us in Brussels.

“In this case, I and many of my MEP colleagues feel the investigation has taken too long and that the current attention on it may only be because these issues have appeared in the media.

“I’m also concerned that there is an alleged whistleblower, who happens to be a national of my own country, the United Kingdom, and that rules for the protection of whistleblowers appear not to have been properly applied.

“Threats against independent journalists doing their job are also absolutely contrary to Europe’s commitment to free expression. If shown to have taken place, the officials responsible should have no role in Europe’s service at any level and should be dismissed.

“I’ve spoken directly today to Federica Mogherini, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, security and defence. I know that she is personally exercised by these reports and is giving high political priority to supporting the investigation and ensuring full transparency for its outcome. She has my Group’s support and I believe that is the way to maintain the confidence of the Kosovan people – a confidence which we all want.”

 

With eyes on EU, Albania hopes to draw line under Serbia drone row (Reuters, by Marc Jones and Karin Strohecker, 3 November 2014)

LONDON - Albania hopes next week's meeting with Serbia can draw a line under an on-pitch brawl between their national soccer teams and put efforts to heal fragile Balkan relations back on the right track, its foreign minister said on Monday.

Speaking to Reuters, Ditmir Bushati also said he thought Albania would be ready to join the European Union in 10 years but voiced concern at the anti-enlargement rhetoric now coming from some EU leaders.

Bushati further said that Albania was open to further opportunities to assist a U.S.-led coalition campaign against Islamic State insurgents who have overrun large parts of Iraq and Syria, causing international shock waves.

Albania's Oct. 14 Euro 2016 soccer qualification match in Belgrade had to be abandoned when fighting erupted after a remote-controlled drone trailing a flag of "Greater Albania" flew over the stadium, triggering a pitch invasion.

The incident touched off a war of words between Tirana and Belgrade, as well as attacks on bakeries owned by ethnic Albanians in Serbian towns, showing how national resentments in the region continue to lurk just below the surface.

"The events that occurred before, during and after the match were very unpleasant and we have condemned the provocations and the violence," Bushati said during a trip to London.

"But I believe it is important to look to the future and to open up a new chapter in relations between Albania and Serbia which I think would be key for democratic stability of the region and its advancement towards the European Union."

After being delayed by the fallout from the soccer match, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is now due to meet Serbian counterpart Aleksander Vucic on Nov. 10 in what will be the first visit to Serbia by an Albanian leader for 68 years.

Bushati said although Albania and Serbia had serious issues, he hoped the visit would continue some of the work on improving Balkan relations done in Berlin earlier this year and he hoped the meeting between Rama and Vucic would have "good elements".

"I believe we could find a level playing field with Serbia because there are issues of mutual importance and issues that are key for the European integration of the region."

ENTER EU IN A DECADE?

At the heart of the talks in Belgrade is the call from EU powers like Germany for greater stability and cooperation between Balkan member states on aspects like infrastructure that could benefit the region as a whole.

For Albania, this is also key if it wants to achieve its overarching aim of joining the EU as soon as possible.

"I think that Albania would be ready in a decade to join the EU but it is very important to ensure at the same time that there is a political appetite in the EU to have Albania and other western Balkans on board...," said Bushati.

"It takes two to tango."

Would-be EU joiners face resistance however as calls for a cap on immigration within the 28-nation bloc rise even in well performing economies like Britain. New European Commission chief Jean Claude Juncker meanwhile has said there should be no further enlargement over the next five years.

Bushati said that with no Balkan country likely to meet the EU criteria in that time, Juncker's statement was not necessarily an issue, but stressed it was important not to send too negative a signal. "This is not a very reassuring in terms of a public message," he said referring to Juncker's remark.

In the western Balkans, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia and Kosovo all aspire to EU membership, but they must do more to tackle organized crime and corruption to qualify, an EU report said last month.

Memories of the wars that tore apart old Yugoslavia next door to Albania two decades ago are still raw in the Balkans and there is concern about Islamic State attempts to recruit members among economically deprived and disaffected young people there.

Bushati said Albania would be interested in further steps in support of the coalition campaign of air strikes against Islamic State, having already contributed ammunition.

"The Balkans due to its geographic location is under genuine risk (from Islamic State and militant Islam) because of the routes (linking Europe with Syria), but also because of the fact security structures are not sufficient, social cohesion is as yet unformed and political stability is still fragile," he said.

"I strongly believe the EU's role in this is really instrumental," he added, explaining that Brussels needed to keep the carrot of a more prosperous life in the EU in the sight of disadvantaged citizens in Albania and elsewhere in the Balkans who might otherwise be tempted by the adventure of militancy.

Bushati said the Balkans was serving as a "gatekeeper" for limiting militant movements between Europe and the Middle East and therefore it "should be helped to have this prosperity narrative".

(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

 

Serbian Province Reshuffles Government (BIRN, 4 November 2014)

Vojvodina’s ruling Democrats successfully oversaw a rehsuffle of the provincial government with the help of a few rebel deputies who defied their parties' instructions not to support it.

The assembly of Serbia's northern province of Vojvodina approved a government reshuffle on Monday, with a majority of 63 out of the 120 deputies.

The Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians, SVM, though a member of the ruling provincial coalition, took no part in the vote.

Bojan Pajtic, the province's Prime Minister, said the main goals of his new cabinet would be to adopt laws on the province's authority and on funding, and improve the social status of residents of the province.

The reshuffle brought no change to the composition of the ruling parties, but redistributed seats between them.

Miroslav Vasin, the Democratic Party secretary for the economy, labour, employment and gender equality became the new deputy prime minister.

Branislav Bogaroski, from the League of Social Democrats of Vojvodina, LSV, became the new secretary for agriculture. Vladimir Pavlov, who until reshuffle was a member of Boris Tadic's Social Democratic Party, SDS, became the new secretary for science and technological development.

Nenad Stankovic, a non-party figure, was elected provincial secretary for energy on the proposal of the LSV.

The fact that deputies from the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians, SVM - although members of the ruling provincial coalition - did not support the reshuffle, left room for further changes.

“I am really sorry that the reshuffle... has not put an end to issues within the provincial coalition,” Bogaroski, from the LSV, remarked.

The SVM is in coalition nationally with the country's ruling Serbian Progressive Party, but the Progressives remain in opposition in the province.

Istvan Pastor, leader of the Hungarian party, had previously advocated a new "concentrated" government that would include both Progressives and Democrats.

Beside the Democratic Party and LSV, Pajtic’s reshuffle won support from four of the six deputies of Tadic’s SDS and one vote from a deputy who left the Progressives’ coalition to join the Democrats just prior the vote.

Members of the SDS who supported Pajtic’s government were later expelled from Tadic’s party for not obeying the party’s decision not to participate in the reshuffle.

Although the SDS had participated in reshuffle talks, on October 29 it announced that it would not back the change to the provincial government, saying there was no guarantee that the way Vojvodina was run would change.

The SDS said the negotiations, led by the Democrats, had focused "exclusively" on the distribution of positions and on "holding on to power," instead of the economic crisis, living standards and unemployment.

 

Serbia Starts IMF Loan Talks to Get Investors’ Confidence (Bloomberg, by Gordana Filipovic, 4 November 2014)

Serbia started loan talks with the International Monetary Fund for the first time since a deal collapsed two years ago, with a pledge to restrain government spending amid a deepening recession and plans for fresh market borrowing.

The two-week negotiations will analyze Serbia’s financial state focusing on this year’s budget implementation and measures to rein in public debt, the National Bank of Serbia in Belgrade said in an e-mailed statement today. The IMF and the government will also discuss ways to reduce the size of the public sector and “restructure public companies,” it said.

“I am more skeptical on the IMF deal right now,” Peter Attard Montalto, an emerging-market strategist at Nomura International Plc, said by e-mail today. Serbia is “prefunded enough and has enough support from U.A.E., China and Russia. They will end up with a facility at the end of the day but they can play hard ball with the fund until into New Year, maybe.”

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, who has avoided dealing with the IMF since his first election victory in May 2012, is looking for a three-year program, he said in an interview on Oct. 30. Vucic is trying to restore growth after unprecedented floods in May damaged farming and power generation. He has pledged to cut public wages and pensions to narrow the budget deficit from about 8 percent of output this year. He also needs to curb the shadow economy and improve tax collection.

Ease Pressure

Finance Minister Dusan Vujovic expects to reach an agreement by Dec. 25, he told state TV RTS today.

An IMF accord could help stave off pressure on the dinar as the Fed ends a record bond-purchase program, Montalto said.

Vucic wants to prepare Serbia for European Union membership by 2019 while maintaining close economic and political ties with Russia. He said he hopes for an IMF agreement before the end of 2014 to reassure investors that his policies will lead to more sustainable public finances over three years.

Serbia continues to rely on the EU for trade and investments, on China and Russia for infrastructure projects and on U.A.E. for budget support.

The biggest of the former Yugoslav states is looking for a “precautionary loan program,” which is “sufficient when you have solid liquidity,” Nebojsa Savic, head of the central bank governor’s council, a 5-member advisory body, said by phone yesterday. “It gives an opportunity to quickly draw funds if necessary.”

Eurobond Sale

The government wants to raise 1.25 billion euros ($1.56 billion) in a Eurobond sale, according to the revised 2014 budget approved by lawmakers on Oct. 26. While Vucic expects the Eurobond sale in the first quarter of 2015, Vujovic said on Oct. 22 the sale will happen before the end of 2014. Serbia held four Eurobond sales between September 2012 and November 2013, raising $4.25 billion.

“Our main scenario is that the authorities will make ends meet with the IMF,” Roxana Hulea, an emerging-markets strategist in London at Societe Generale SA, said in an e-mail yesterday.“I believe this will be the straight-jacket Serbia needs at this point and regular monitoring will manage to accelerate the process of reining in the large imbalance.”

The yield on Serbian dollar bonds maturing in 2021 fell two basis points to 4.749 percent as of 11:16 a.m. in Belgrade, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The dinar traded 0.15 percent weaker against the euro at 119.3084.

“There is so much investor fatigue at this point regarding how much the government has stretched its fortunes, that they cannot risk another slip up,” Hulea said.

 

Jailed Bosnian Serb war criminal sues British government for £120,000 for PTSD 'scars' because it failed to protect him from fellow inmates who slashed his throat (Daily Mail, by Stephanie Linning, 3 November 2014)

A former Serb general convicted of war crimes who had his neck slashed open by prisoners in a British jail has launched a £120,000 lawsuit against the Government.

Radislav Krstic, serving a 35-year sentence after being convicted of Europe's worst massacre since the Second World War, said he has been left physically and mentally scarred after the 2010 attack.

He claims that the Government failed to protect him from the razor attack, carried out by three Muslim inmates at top security Wakefield Prison.

The Serbs were the deadly enemies of Bosnian Muslims during the Yugoslav civil war in the 1990s. At least one of Krstic's attackers is said to be a Bosnian Muslim.

He said that he has been haunted by recurring flashbacks since the incident and is seeking damages for his injuries and for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

When Krstic, an amputee, was moved to Woodhill Prison following the attack, he claims he was assaulted by a Muslim inmate who 'kicked him in his remaining leg'.

His barrister, Adam Sandell, told a judge that 'no one has ever apologised to Mr Krstic', who has since been transferred to serve out his jail term in Poland.  

Krstic, 66, who watched the court proceedings today via video link, claims the authorities at Wakefield Prison negligently failed to take 'all reasonable steps' to protect him.

That was despite the fact that the jail is a 'high security prison housing some of the UK's most dangerous male lifers', said Mr Sandell.

Lawyers for the Ministry of Justice are defending the case, insisting that prison staff did what they could to protect the war criminal.

They say he was at no greater risk in the prison system than a paedophile would be.

Government barrister, Oliver Sanders, also suggested that Krstic had 'exaggerated the consequences of the attack in terms of his PTSD'.

Krstic was convicted for his part in the massacre of more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys who had been rounded up in the UN's supposedly safe haven of Srebrenica in July 1995.

At the time he was one of the most powerful men in the Bosnian Serb army, second only to General Ratko Mladic, who is still on the run from war crimes investigators.

He was arrested in a daring joint SAS and U.S. Navy SEAL snatch in Bosnia in December 1998.

In 2001 he became the first man to be convicted of genocide by the War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague and was sentenced to 46 years in prison.

This was overturned on appeal and replaced by a 35-year sentence for aiding and abetting genocide.  

Mr Sandell said his client was in his cell when three Muslim attackers stormed in and slashed at him with a 'razor-blade attached to a toothbrush handle'.

He said: 'They held Mr Krstic down and cut his head and neck with their weapon, he understood that the prisoners were trying to kill him.

'The three prisoners then left, saying, "he's finished", meaning that they believed he would die from the injuries they had inflicted on him.'

Krstic had lost part of his right leg in a mine blast during the Bosnian war and was less able to defend himself, he added.

But Mr Sandell said that nothing he had experienced in the war zone compared with the mental torment left by the prison attack.

He said: 'He has a poor prognosis; it is unlikely that there will be anything other than a modest improvement in his disorder with the further passage of time.'

He added that the ex-general was lucky to escape with his life and was marked with 'severe facial scarring'.

His three attackers were tried and convicted of wounding with intent over the razor attack in February 2011.

Mr Sandell said there had been a 'glaring' risk of an attack occurring at Wakefield Prison - given Krstic's high-profile status and the wide publicity surrounding his case.

There were also numerous 'red flag incidents' in the months before the attack which should have triggered heightened vigilance by prison staff, said the barrister.

He added: 'His offences were exceptional and they put him at risk from certain other prisoners.

'But this risk was not exceptional and was in fact no different from the risk from other prisoners faced by numerous sex offenders and prisoners who have committed violent or sexual offences against children'.

Judge Antonio Bueno QC, sitting at Central London County Court, has now reserved judgment and will rule on the case at a later date.