LOCAL PRESS

 

Vucic: No details before all is agreed (Beta)

 

The Belgrade – Pristina dialogues should continue since an eventual solution will have a positive effect on the whole region, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told a joint news conference with the Presidents of Kosovo, Slovenia, Austria, and an EU official, Beta reported.

Vucic said that he told a meeting with his Kosovo counterpart Hashim Thaci, mediated by the Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurtz and the EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn that “It will not go easily.” “We both know that the differences between us in trying to find any compromise are too big. I hope that we will be able to keep on talking. I cannot reveal the details before all is agreed,” Vucic told another news conference with Thaci, his Austrian counterpart Alexander Van der Bellen, Slovenian President Borut Pahor and Hahn. He has said that a solution in which Serbia recognizes Kosovo’s independence and gets nothing in return won’t happen in a hundred years. “If you think that the frozen conflict can last forever, it cannot. One day it will defrost, and then we will have a war, what no one wants,” Vucic warned. He added that we have to solve the problems with the Albanians for the benefit of both peoples and the whole region. Though I’m still a pessimist,” he said, adding that in case of reaching an agreement we will solve the problem that exists for more than two centuries. However, Vucic said, he was not confident that Serbia’s people would support an eventual agreement. He called on the EU to give him more significant support in the process of normalizing relation with Pristina, adding a solution cannot be reached without the EU. Thaci, who favors a correction of borders, has said that no one should be afraid of a potential agreement with Belgrade, even if it will mean some border changes. “Kosovo and Serbia wouldn’t be either the first or the last which corrected the borders to solve the conflicts,” Thaci said. Both Thaci and Vucic called on the international community to support an eventual agreement reached by Belgrade and Pristina.

Hahn said that the EU supported the integration of the Western Balkans, but reiterated that the bloc could not take in new members before they solved the bilateral issues. Pahor said that if a deal were reached, the region would have a bright future. “I know how difficult that is, but I recognize both Vucic’s and Thaci’s commitment to reach a sustainable solution,” the Slovenian President said.

 

Djuric: Vucic to visit places in Kosovo no president has visited (Tanjug/Prva TV)

 

During his September 9 visit to Kosovo and Metohija, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will visit places no Serbian president has visited before, and it will be one of the most significant visits to Kosovo and Metohija Serbs ever, says the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric. Vucic will send a strong message to Kosovo-Metohija Serbs that Serbia is with them, Djuric told Prva TV.

 

Vulin: Delineation is the only way to stop creation of Greater Albania (Beta/B92)

 

Serbian Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin said on Saturday he stood behind the delineation idea. Delineation was the only way to stop the creation of Greater Albania, Vulin told the press in Belgrade but refused to clarify what he meant under delineation. Vulin added he was pleased US administration understood that interfering and imposing solutions would not help resolve Kosovo problem but could, sooner or later, lead to conflict, war and division. He welcomed the statement John Bolton, US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, gave about US not ruling out territorial adjustments if the two parties worked it out. “If Serbia and Kosovo reached an agreement that UN accepted, it could be a sustainable solution leading to Balkans stability,” Vulin said.

 

Arsic: Albanians from Medvedja don’t want to join Kosovo (Novosti/B92)

 

The Mayor of Medvedja Nebojsa Arsic said he hadn’t heard from the Albanian representatives there or anywhere else that they wanted to join Kosovo. “There is no ethnic animosity here. There are no exclusively Serbian or Albanian restaurants, people spend time together, congratulate religious holidays to each other.... It is an example of a functioning multi-ethnic place,” Arsic told Novosti. Arsic said that delineation was the subject for the highest state authorities to discuss and that state bodies were the place for discussion about rights of Albanians from this part of Serbia.

 

SPC to hold a special meeting about Kosovo and Metohija? (Tanjug/B92)

 

The Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) is actively considering a special meeting of the Holy Assembly of Bishops with Kosovo and Metohija as the main topic. As Tanjug learns from the well-informed church circles, the special meeting is a possibility even though the Church’s stance on the issue remains clear and unchanged. The Church’s position, announced after the May meeting, is that Serbia must not lose Kosovo. The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church could make the decision about the special meeting at the regular meeting on August 30. If the Archbishops agree, the meeting would certainly take place after the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vucic, visits Kosovo and Metohija at the beginning of September and his subsequent meetings with the world leaders. It's hard to estimate how the public’s mood in Kosovo and Metohija and what Vucic says there will affect the Archbishops discussion but it could affect how strongly the Church defends its position. The Church’s position encompasses only what the Holy Synod or Holy Assembly conclude or what the Serbian Patriarch declares, though he is only the first among equals. All statements issued by other church dignitaries, bishops and abbots of the SPC are considered their personal attitudes, though the public doesn’t always see it that way. Namely, the recent statements of the Bishop of Raska and Prizren, and Kosovo and Metohija, Teodosije, the current head of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro, bishop Amfilohije and SPC monastery Visoki Decani Abbot Sava Janjic drew the public's attention. Serbian Church hasn’t officially commented their statements. According to Tanjug’s sources, the Church doesn’t care much about them but they don't exclude the option that they might be brought up in future meetings. Serbian Patriarch has recently repeated his position on not giving up on Kosovo and Metohija but hasn’t openly commented or criticized President Vucic’s proposals and policy about it. The frequent encounters between Vucic and the Patriarch Irinej and their mutual respect and understanding strengthen the impression the patriarch won’t impede President’s search for compromise solution with Pristina.

 

Ivanic: Bosniaks need leader for historical step forward (Politika, by Mladen Kremenovic)

 

Politika carried an interview with Serb member of the Presidency of B&H Mladen Ivanic. Asked what he expects out of new Srebrenica Report, Ivanic said that the conclusions of the RS parliament are completely logical, since the RS government claims it has new discoveries, and they should be revealed and discussed. “Serb victims from that region were not mentioned in the past, and those who want complete truth should not undermine the victims on other sides.”

Commenting the issue of Kosovo, Ivanic said that Kosovo and the RS should not be connected in such manner, because that means they are giving up on one or the other. “If Kosovo is a part of Serbia, then according to that logic, the RS cannot be a part of the Serb territory. That is not good approach,” said Ivanic and explained he is aware that majority of Serbs want independent RS, but they must consider what is realistic at the moment. “Any opening of Dayton in the current moment would be detrimental to the RS. Who would support us?” Ivanic pointed out that the current Serbian leadership has clearly stated they are not going to do anything in violation of the Dayton B&H. He went on to say that Bosniaks must start cooperating with Serbs if they want to keep the country whole, adding that he does not expect much involvement from the international community. Ivanic said he expects B&H to get candidate status in the EU soon, but the new authorities must be formed after the elections first. “If there is crisis, Serbs are not going to be responsible for it,” said Ivanic and pointed out that he does not support the rhetoric of RS President Milorad Dodik who is openly supporting the Croat side in their conflict with Bosniaks in the FB&H. Commenting tensions between Sarajevo and Belgrade, he said that the situation would have been different if the border issues between the two countries were resolved. “B&H lacks Bosniak leader willing to take a historic step forward.” Ivanic also said that he is well-aware of the fact that over 90 percent of people would love independence of the RS, but added that one must observe what is possible, real and what is risky. Ivanic stated: “Any kind of unpacking of the Dayton at this moment would harm the RS. We have no powerful friends to make a wish for independence come true. Who would support us? Serbia loves the RS, but Serbian leadership said - loud and clear - that they will not do anything against the integrity of the Dayton B&H. Russia also firmly stands behind the Dayton”.

 

Bieber: Vucic and Thaci don’t want quick Kosovo solution; silence in EU dangerous

(N1)

 

Neither Serbia’s nor Kosovo’s President want a quick solution to the Kosovo problem, according to professor at the Centre for South European Studies in Graz, Florian Bieber. “I ask myself whether both presidents want some kind of quick solution,” Bieber told N1 on Sunday. “They want to keep talking about it. The EU would later be tending to other things - the rule of law, corruption, so I think that the signing of some legally binding document will either way not take place in the spring,” Bieber said. The professor said he does not understand the message that came from Aleksandar Vucic after he met with Hashim Thaci at the Alpbach European Forum on Saturday, where the Serbian President asked the international community to let Serbs and Albanians solve the Kosovo issue themselves and expressed dissatisfaction regarding the attempts by other countries to influence the content of a possible agreement between Belgrade and Pristina. “I don’t understand how he wants to achieve this, if the aim is changing borders, how would consequences to other countries in the region be avoided?” Bieber asked. A solution is not in sight as there are still many unknown issues, he said. “It will not happen that fast, I expect a lot of opposition to the division ... and how would both Serbia and Kosovo be rewarded for reaching an agreement,” he said. So far ethnic borders were rejected as solutions and Bieber said he fears this could destabilize the region rather than be a solution. Commenting on the apparent change of US’ position towards the idea of border correction, Bieber pointed out that the controversial messages did not come from the State Department, but from people close to President Donald Trump. “It is, to a certain degree, Trump’s logic: the only important thing is reaching a deal, while its content does not matter,” he explained. However, according to Bieber, the silence in the EU is more dangerous. Only Angela Merkel expressed her opposition towards the potential border change. “It is likely that EU’s only goal is to get the issue off the agenda, and it is not paying attention to the potential dangers of that kind of solution,” he said. Bieber also expects the negotiations on the potential deal to last longer than the mandate of the current EU institutions. “There are many uncertainties – how to divide certain municipalities, for example, or how to mitigate negative effects on other countries in the region. There is also going to be much opposition to the solution,” he reminds. Asked about the upcoming meeting of Presidents Vucic and Thaci with EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, Bieber expressed his concern about Mogherini’s ability to keep the dialogue in the current official framework, since it is clear that there are direct negotiations running in parallel. “The thing that makes me uneasy is that nobody talks about the Serbs living in the majority-Albanian municipalities in Southern Serbia and Southern Kosovo. Vucic and Thaci are talking about the agreement between two ethnic groups, but if we look at what is happening on the ground, that is completely opposite from the truth,” concluded Bieber.

 

EC: Belgrade and Pristina need room for agreement (Beta)

 

The European Commission (EC) says on Monday it believes Belgrade and Pristina should have space to reach a deal on normalization of relations, Maja Kocijancic, the EC spokesperson has said. Speaking to reporters in Brussels, Kocijancic added that the European Union as the mediator in the dialogue could not comment on the possible elements of an agreement, but that it would continue to work intensively with both sides on an overall document which would be supported by the international community.

“A lasting solution means an applicable, sustainable and realistic agreement in line with the international law” said Kocijancic.

 

However, Kocijancic fell short of answering reporters’ question about the EC stand toward the ideas of border changes, land swap and ethnically clean territories, saying she "won’t speculate and go into the details in this final phase if the dialogue.”

“They (Belgrade and Pristina) need space to be able to reach an agreement on the overall normalization. As the mediator, we cannot comment on possible solutions,” Kocijancic said.

She added that the EU Commissioner for Enlargement Johannes Hahn said he received the assurances from both Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic and his Kosovo’s counterpart Hashim Thaci, that any agreement would be specific, tailored by Serbia and Kosovo interests and not a precedent.

“Many things have been said, the dialogue goes on. And that’s why is too soon to say what a final agreement will look like,” Kocijancic said, adding she would not comment on speculations about the EU and some of its member states’ position about the Belgrade – Pristina dialogue, adding that the EU priority was to jointly work on a lasting peace between Kosovo and Serbia and in the region.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Dodik: RS will not allow introduction of silent sanctions against Russia (Srna)

 

Republika Srpska (RS) will not allow the introduction of silent sanctions against the Russian Federation only because some Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) politicians want to ingratiate themselves with some embassies in Sarajevo, said RS President Milorad Dodik. Dodik has said that the Russian Federation is a friend of RS, but also of B&H, which it has confirmed during all these years since the signing of the Dayton Agreement. “We will insist on discovering who and why made this scandal with writer Zahar Prilepin on the eve of a visit by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Banja Luka,” Dodik has told Srna. Dodik has expressed regret over the fact that representatives of the SDS and PDP in joint institutions are part of this scandal, because, he says, neither B&H nor RS can afford to side with anyone in a conflict of great powers. It is in our interest to have good relations with both the Russian Federation and the West, because we are too small to influence world politics. “It is regrettable that B&H by this move sent a message that it is a dwarf state, without a shred of integrity. The writer whom they declared a security threat travels freely around the Western Europe while Europe is banning extremists, who are welcome to B&H, from entry into Europe,” Dodik has said. On behalf of institutions of the RS, Dodik requested on Saturday from the Serb representatives in the joint institutions of B&H to urgently answer the question as to who knew and who participated in the “scandal” in which Prilepin was banned from entering B&H. He stressed that, if they knew but could not prevent it, they should have informed the public about it. Dodik reminded that members of SDS and PDP participate in the work of almost all joint institutions and organizations, adding that the Bosniak and Croat staff in these institutions cannot do anything without their knowledge. “It is impossible that only one person participated in making the decision to ban a person from entering the country, even if it was Director of the B&H Intelligence-Security Agency (OSA) Mehmed Osmanagic himself. It is impossible that the OSA got involved in this adventure on its own, without the knowledge of several ministries in the B&H Council of Ministers,” Dodik argued.

 

Cvijanovic: Ban to Prilepin to enter B&H is outrageous and part of hysteria against Russia (RTRS)

 

RS Prime Minister Zeljka Cvijanovic assessed that ban to Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin to enter B&H is outrageous and part of the hysteria against Russia. Cvijanovic added that bans to Russian citizens from entering B&H keep on coming without relevant explanations, adding that this time the ban was issued to a writer, while earlier bans referred to businessmen. Cvijanovic stated: “A number of people were put on a list and they can suffer huge inconvenience by travelling everywhere throughout Europe – as we heard – they enter and exit – but they cannot enter B&H. I agree with those who say that this is part of an orchestrated story and a drama and the entire hysteria created against Russia. We always said that we do not want to be in any kind of a trap or involved in some kind of a trap of this kind. Therefore, Russia is our good friend”. Cvijanovic concluded by saying that making such lists of people who are banned from entering B&H is outrageous, in a situation when dozens, hundreds of migrants enter B&H, while authorities do not know potential security risks for B&H and its citizens.

 

Ivanic demands explanation for ban against Prilepin (BNTV)

 

Serb member of the B&H Presidency Mladen Ivanic said that Russia is a very important country for Republika Srpska (RS) and B&H in the political and economic sense and that a precise explanation is needed for why Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin could not enter B&H and participate in a cultural event. "Given that both the RS and B&H have extremely friendly relations with Russia, and that it is a country that is a guarantor of the Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA), I expect a clear position of the relevant authorities regarding this case."

 

RS officials react to ban against Prilepin (ATV/RTRS/TV1)

 

Head of SNSD Caucus in the B&H House of Representatives (HoR) Stasa Kosarac stated that actions of B&H Minister of Security Dragan Mektic in the case of ban against Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin represent an additional reason for his removal from this post. Aside from the migrant crisis, banning Prilepin from entering B&H is another argument in favor of discussion on Mektic’s removal at the session of the B&H HoR on September 4, according to Kosarac.  RS parliament speaker Nedeljko Cubrilovic wondered how is it possible that a poet who stayed in B&H on around twenty occasions poses a threat to B&H. "This speaks about absurdity of B&H and immaturity of the institutions. I do not know what else to say. To ban entry to a poet and say that he is potential danger for the system and for one people... How can someone jeopardize something by reading poems" Cubrilovic asked. NDP leader Dragan Cavic said that the person who banned Prilepin from entering B&H should be held responsible, because that person had no right to make that decision. He finds it unacceptable that any writer, no matter what nationality he or she is, is banned from entering a country based on what he/she writes and publishes, or how he/she thinks, because that is his/her basic human right. Cavic concluded that such a ‘watch list’ must be suspended and all those that took part in making it must be sanctioned. Meanwhile, SDA candidate for a Bosniak member of B&H Presidency at the upcoming elections Sefik Dzaferovic welcomed a decision of OSA to ban entering of Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin to B&H. He also strongly condemned attacks coming from Serb member of B&H Presidency Mladen Ivanic and RS President Milorad Dodik against the OSA.

 

Trilateral meeting between B&H, Serbia and Turkey to take place in Banja Luka on September 4 (Nezavisne)

Trilateral meeting between Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), Serbia and Turkey will take place in Banja Luka on September 4. Sources told daily that Minister of Foreign Affairs of B&H Igor Crnadak will host the meeting, and that the agenda of the meeting is still being discussed. According to daily, Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusoglu and Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic have both confirmed their presence at the meeting. Daily reminded that trilateral meetings between B&H, Serbia and Turkey are being organized for almost a decade, with the goal of improving relations between those three countries, and creating room for economic cooperation and unburdening of political relations. The agreement on those meetings was made in 2010 by then members of the Presidency of B&H, former President of Serbia Boris Tadic and former President of Turkey Abdullah Gul. The first meeting, which was organized in Istanbul in April 2010, was labelled by media in both Serbia and Turkey as the historic one.

 

Croat minority praises Serbian President (Hina)

 

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has proven to be a credible, proactive and responsible person as regards demands of the ethnic Croat community brought to his attention on February 20 after his official visit to Zagreb, the leader of the Democratic Alliance of Vojvodina Croats (DSHV) party and member of parliament Tomislav Zigmanov told Hina, noting that not all of the assumed obligations had been fulfilled. Commenting on Vucic's statement of Thursday that all 26 demands for the improvement of the status of the Croat minority in Serbia had been met in line with the Subotica Declaration, Zigmanov said that the demands the Serbian President cited had been met owing to "Vucic's direct engagement." Zigmanov said the demands concerned problems encountered by the Croat minority in the context of exercising their minority rights. "That primarily refers to the financing of some associations, the opening of a Croatian language instruction office at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Studies in Novi Sad, the introduction of new high school educational profiles in the Croatian language, communal facilities and infrastructure... in Monostor and Tavankut, the purchase of a part of the house where Ban Josip Jelacic was born in Petrovaradin, the opening of dialogue with bishops of the Roman Catholic Church, and participation of representatives of the Croat community in the work of the government of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina," said Zigmanov. "The only outstanding issue is the issue of restitution of the Croat community center in Sremska Mitrovica to the local Croat community, which Vucic himself has admitted" Zigmanov told Hina. At the same time, Zigmanov noted that "Croats in Serbia still encounter problems in exercising their rights." "The latest case concerns obstruction regarding the establishment of a Croatian language class in Bereg and the putting up of a bust honoring poet Aleksa Kokic in Subotica" Zigmanov said, assessing this as "a consequence of an inadequate rule of law and undeveloped minority policies." Zigmanov pointed to the first point of the Subotica Declaration on the promotion of bilateral protection of minorities – the Croat minority in Serbia and the Serb minority in Croatia – in line with an agreement between the two countries "which also explicitly speaks about the representation of minorities in legislative authorities at all levels, and executive authorities at the local level." "That still has not been resolved," he said, stressing other issues too such as "the issue of proportional representation in state administration bodies" and "the right to participation in the administration of educational and cultural institutions and the right to the official use of the language and script." "Last but not least, we have as a consequence of disagreements and tensions in Croatian-Serbian relations an almost permanent, strong anti-Croat sentiment in a part of the public, which results in fear and unwillingness of Croats to take part in public life" said Zigmanov, the only representative of the Croat minority in the Serbian parliament, elected on the slate of the opposition Democratic Party. He said that the Croat community in Serbia "positively views any progress resulting from President Vucic's direct engagement." Vucic said on Thursday that all 26 demands for the improvement of the status of the Croat minority, as foreseen in the Subotica Declaration that he signed two years ago together with his Croatian counterpart, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, had been fulfilled. "I think that we Serbs should be proud of what we are doing to improve the status of the Croat minority in Serbia," Vucic told reporters, underscoring that the list of demands was "100% completed" and that he would speak about it in greater detail in about three weeks. The Subotica Declaration on advancing relations and resolving outstanding issues between the two countries was signed in 2016 by Vucic in the capacity of Serbia's Prime minister and Croatian President Grabar-Kitarovic, after the two met with representatives of the Serb ethnic minority in eastern Slavonia and the Croat minority in Backa, Serbia.

 

Only majority MPs certain to take part in referendum campaign so far (MIA)

 

Around seventy MPs are likely to take part in the public campaign leading up to the referendum on Sept. 30. The campaign, Parliament said, would be run through paid advertising, TV debates, as well as editorials in the press and in online media. So far, only MPs from SDSM and their coalition partners have confirmed their participation in the campaign, which has also received some support from BESA MPs. VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski said on Saturday that, while being against the name deal with Greece, his party's final position on the referendum was yet undefined. As for the public campaign, Mickoski said he would suggest to his group of MPs to have their share of the funds go to a Tetovo high school instead. Meanwhile, VMRO-DPMNE's Antonio Milososki has been openly against the referendum. He sent a letter on Friday asking Parliament for money to launch a campaign against the public vote. Milososki received a response that Parliament would not give each of the 120 MPs a separate sum of money for a personal referendum campaign, but that the campaign would be run at the national level.

Parliamentary group of the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) has informed the Parliament Speaker about its intention to take active part in the campaign for 30 September referendum.

Taking into consideration Macedonia’s strategic goals – the EU, NATO membership – all DUI MPs, along with the central/local government and NGOs - will run a campaign in favor of the Prespa Agreement (Skopje-Athens name deal) and the country’s accession to the Euro-Atlantic organizations, the party said in a press release on Friday. The Democratic Party of Serbs in Macedonia's MP Ivan Stoiljkovic joined Milososki's call for boycott of the referendum.

No information yet about the Alliance for Albanians' stance on the referendum, while DPA is expected to take part in the campaign. On Thursday, Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi gave MPs three days to let him know if they would participate in the public campaign, as well as to publicly declare their position regarding the referendum question, that is, if they are for or against. Based on that information, Xhaferi said, Parliament would buy advertising space in direct proportion to the number of MPs taking part in the campaign.

 

International support for the name deal with Greece and EU and NATO membership (MIA)

 

Macedonia has been receiving the continuous support and encouragement for the Sept. 30 referendum from strategic partners such as the U.S.A and the EU, but also from neighbor countries. The citizens' vote is one of the crucial steps towards the implementation of the name agreement with Greece as well as towards NATO membership and the start of EU accession talks. Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov paid a three-day visit to Washington this week. In the US Department of State, he met with the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and he also held a series of meetings in the US Senate and the White House. At all meetings with US experts and politicians, he received strong support for Macedonia's course toward Euro-Atlantic integration.

In an interview for MIA, FM Dimitrov said Macedonia's efforts have garnered great encouragement. "The timing of the visit is very indicative," Dimitrov said. "This meeting, held before the launch of the campaign for the referendum scheduled for Sept. 30, is a message that the U.S. backs Macedonia’s Euro-Atlantic course and that it supports the resolution of Macedonia’s last bilateral issue – the Agreement with Greece signed in Prespa." "The U.S. supports our strategic efforts to join NATO, as it is good for the region, for us, for the U.S., which is interested mainly in the stability of the Balkans. The main message was a great encouragement," Dimitrov said. In the meantime, Johannes Hahn, EU Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, voiced regret over the lack of national unity in Macedonia about the referendum on the agreement with Greece and urged citizens to exercise their voting rights to shape the country's future as well as their own. For Hahn, the referendum is an opportunity for citizens to choose between a future in the EU and isolation, MIA's Brussels correspondent reported. "This is a choice between a forward-looking course set towards EU integration with specific benefits for citizens such as the rule of law, drawing in foreign investors, more and better jobs, higher living standards - and a course set towards isolation, stagnation and missing a unique opportunity for improvement and progress in crucial areas," Hahn said. The referendum, he went further, is also a choice between holding on to old nationalist concepts or embracing the country’s future, with reforms and with the EU and NATO integration as the final step. Hahn expressed his hopes that citizens would learn more about the difference their vote makes. Angela Merkel, as well, voiced Germany's great support for Macedonia's referendum, by speaking to PM Zoran Zaev over the phone last week. Dusan Janjic, president of Belgrade's Ethnic Relations Forum and one of Serbia's leading political analysts, told MIA that NATO membership was the crowning point of a country's statehood. "The very fact that there's a referendum on the name issue resolution shows that Macedonia is on the course to stabilization," Janjic said. "NATO membership means an entry into a wider system of stability," Janjic said. "Take for example the NATO membership of 'tiny' Montenegro, which was formed in the 19th century as the first Balkan state even before Serbia was a country. You can see now what this means for Macedonia, fighting to round off its own statehood. NATO membership is the crowning point of a country's process of securing and developing its status of being a state."

 

Emigrants blocked in Italy, Albania: Ready to help (ADN)

 

The Albanian Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs, Ditmir Bushati, expressed the willingness on Saturday to help Italy with the emigrant issue. In a short message in Italian, he said that Albania is ready to help with 150 emigrants blocked in a ship in Sicilia from August 20.

"We cannot replace Europe, but we are here from the other side of the sea, where one time we suffered day and night waiting for Europe to wake up. Italy saved us and now we are ready to help," says Bushati.

 

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES

 

EU commissioner goes against Merkel on Balkans borders (EUobserver, by Andrew Rettman, 27 August 2018)

 

BRUSSELS - The European Commission has endorsed the idea of a potential Kosovo-Serbia border change, going against Germany and breaking a former taboo. "Whatever the solution finally is, and we should not exclude anything ... [it] should respect that the overarching goal is stability in the region," EU enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn said at a symposium in Alpbach, Austria, on Saturday (25 August). "We should leave it to them [Serbia and Kosovo] ... finding a solution will be supported by us if the overall setting is OK," he added. "It's about a bilateral solution which should not serve as a blueprint for other issues," he also said. Hahn spoke to media alongside Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic and his Kosovar counterpart Hashim Thaci. Both men have, in recent months, begun openly discussing the idea of a new territorial accord. The changes would likely involve giving the Presevo Valley, an ethnic Albanian area in southern Serbia, to Kosovo in return for handing ethnic Serb areas in northern Kosovo to Serbia. Such a deal could help normalise relations 20 years after the war ended, paving the way for EU accession down the line. But it could stir instability in the Western Balkans if other minorities, such as Croats and Serbs in Bosnia or Albanians in Macedonia, also tried to change borders for the sake of ethnic purity. "We want to reassure our neighbour countries, EU member states, and other countries in the world, not to be afraid of a potential peaceful agreement between Kosovo and Serbia, even if such a deal implies a border correction," Kosovo's Thaci said on Saturday. "We are not problematic guys – we are trying to do an agreement," he said. Serbia's Vucic described the status quo as a "frozen conflict." "Someone one day will de-freeze it and then we'd have a war. And none of us wants a war," he said in Alpbach.

The EU commissioner's comments flew in the face of the German and UK position on the issue.

"The territorial integrity of the states of the Western Balkans has been established and is inviolable," German leader Angela Merkel said in Berlin on 13 August after meeting Bosnian president Denis Zvizdic. "This has to be said again and again because again and again there are attempts to perhaps talk about borders and we can't do that," she said. The UK ambassador to Kosovo, Ruairi O'Connell, told Kosovo's T7 broadcaster on 15 August that "borders are written in words, but they change with bullets". The US and the EU have in the past walked in lockstep on Western Balkans policy after Nato intervention helped to end the 1990s wars there. But the White House went against Merkel on Friday, when John Bolton, US president Donald Trump's national security advisor, also backed a potential border change. "If the two parties can work it out between themselves and reach agreement, we don't exclude territorial adjustments," Bolton said while in Kiev on 24 August. "We would not stand in the way, and I don't think anybody in Europe would stand in the way if the two parties to the dispute reached a mutually satisfactory settlement," he said. Meanwhile, with Russia and China opposed to Balkans border changes, the EU commission's Hahn said in Alpbach that EU states had a special responsibility to play a leading role in conflict resolution there. "It's our task, our responsibility to care about European countries and not to leave it to other parties, third parties somewhere in the world," Hahn said.