Prime Minister of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, has dismissed Numan Balic from the post of Deputy Minister of Local Government Administration. Lajmi quotes sources saying the dismissal came as a result of complaints from the Bosniak MPs that Balic does not represent their interests and is their political opponent.
In an interview to Deutsche Welle in Serbian, Prime Minister of Kosovo Ramush Haradinaj commented on the statements of certain politicians in Serbia about the possibility of Kosovo's partition saying that border games in the Balkans are extremely dangerous. "Tragic consequences would be huge and it is not wise to discuss this now," Haradinaj said.
Situation in Kosovo will be the focus of tomorrow’s meeting of the UN Security Council where the member states will discuss the most recent report of the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, covering the period from 16 July to 15 October. Serbia will be represented at the session by Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic whereas the UN SG’s report will be presented by his Special Representative, Zahir Tanin.
News website Lajmi reports that the Turkish Ambassador to Kosovo, Kıvılcım Kılıç, in a statement to the media said that the arrest of the Turkish national, Ugur Toksoy, by Kosovo authorities in Prizren came as a result of an arrest warrant issued by a court in Hatay, Turkey and that Toksoy is charged for being part of a terrorist organization. Kılıç said she hoped Kosovo judiciary would take the right decision regarding Toksoy’s extradition request.
LAA coalition appears to be determined not to vote the leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Kadri Veseli for the President of the Assembly of Kosovo, and neither the leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, for the position of the Prime Minister of Kosovo. This was reiterated today by LAA MP, Ilir Deda.
Vetevendosje movement MP, Rexhep Selimi, said after his registration at Assembly administration that creation of the new institutions and process of registering MPs could have taken place much earlier. According to him, this was intentionally delayed by those who claim to have the numbers to create the government.
Selimi said that they are discussing program matters with the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), however he added that they have not discussed the position of the Prime Minister yet.
The leader of the Alliance for New Kosovo, Behxhet Pacolli, hailed the position of the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vucic, who according to Pacolli, accepted the new reality in Kosovo.
He said that in essence, Vucic’s position opens way to normalization of the relations between Kosovo and Serbia, “of course by also closing the matter of the missing persons which is a serious wound for many families here and in the entire Kosovo.”
Kosovo could enter crisis with regards to creation of the institutions, if the winning coalition, PAN, does not manage to gather required votes, being that coalition between Vetevendosje movement and the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), is assessed as very difficult to be reached.
LDK officials including the candidate of this party for Prime Minister, Avdulah Hoti, continuously claim that they would not join a coalition with PAN or Vetevendosje.
Kosovo Assembly President and leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Kadri Veseli, is quoted as saying at a meeting with party membership in Drenas/Glogovac that early elections are a viable option if the border demarcation agreement is not ratified. According to sources present at the meeting, Veseli said early elections could take place during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan which this year begins end of May.
The European Union has reacted to the statements of the Albanian Prime Minister, Edi Rama, saying that political interference breaches good neighborly relations.
The Spokesperson of the European Commission, Maja Kociajancic, said that the region of Western Balkans has a clear European perspective, as confirmed recently by the European Council.