The Serbian List, represented in the Assembly of Kosovo with 11 MPs, is blocking the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) into Kosovo Armed Force (KAF), said representatives of the Kosovo government. The establishment of the Kosovo Armed Force can only be done through a constitutional amendment which requires double majority, namely also two-thirds of votes from non-Albanian communities.  Kosovo Security Force Minister, Haki Demolli, said that KSF has already implemented its entire programme and is ready to undergo the transformation process.

President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, will not decree 34 judges from the Serb community nominated by the Kosovo Judicial Council (KJC) since 2015. Thaçi’s office said the KJC nominations have not been processed due to the expiration of the legal deadline. It also stated that they have asked the KJC to resubmit the nominations including for another 14 candidates for judges from the non-Albanian communities.

In an interview for Radio Free Europe in Albanian, Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj said that dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade will continue in the same format as until now but that the government of Kosovo hopes doe a more creative approach to the process “to know what are the exact parametres of the dialogue and the final objectives”. Hoxhaj said there needs to be a clear timeframe of the dialogue process and should end in mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia. “A dialogue whose goal is not recognition is senseless and objectiveless to us,” said Hoxhaj.

Representatives of Serbs in the north of Kosovo stated that the construction of 300 new houses will commence despite the opposition from authorities in Pristina. Head of the Zveçan/Zvečan provisional authority appointed by Belgrade, Ivan Todosijević, said that it is up to Pristina to demonstrate good will by granting construction permit for the houses. He said the foundation has already been laid and construction is expected to begin shortly. Furthermore, Todosijević accused the government in Pristina for failing to help the return of the Serb community to Kosovo.

While preparations are underway by the government of Kosovo to put up for ratification at the Assembly the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro, opposition parties claim they will continue efforts to prevent such a scenario from unfolding. According to them, the border demarcation issue requires the setting up of a new, special commission comprised of local experts and representatives of opposition parties.  Vetëvendosje spokesperson, Frashër Krasniqi said that the government should first annul the border demarcation agreement of 26 August and then set up a new commission.

The president of the Kosovo Judicial Council, Nehat Idrizi, told Radio Free Europe that the Basic Court in northern Mitrovica is expected to become operational by beginning of September this year. According to Idrizi, this court will function according to Kosovo laws. He said the vacancy for recruiting staff is already open, but stressed that the employees will be mainly those who have worked so far in the so-called parallel courts.

Authorities in Belgrade insist the Association/Community of Serb-majority Municipalities is established in accordance to the Brussels agreement and not the Constitution of Kosovo, reported Radio Free Europe in Albanian. The agreement reached on 25 August last year as part of the dialogue for normalisation of relations between Pristina and Belgrade grants the Association/Community a level of autonomy in education, health, urban and rural planning.

The US Balkans expert Daniel Serwer said in an interview for Radio Free Europe that Serbia will not be able to gain European Union membership without resolving all major issues, including recognition of Kosovo and exchange of ambassadors. “If it doesn’t do this, I don’t see how Serbia could become an EU member,” he said. Speaking about recent Serbian elections, Serwer said the current Prime Minister of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic won major support because of his pro-European politics.

Air pollution is estimated to be the lead cause of 800 premature deaths annually in Kosovo, said World Health Organisation representatives. Head of WHO for Kosovo, Skender Syla said that Kosovo has many environmental concerns such as air, water, or land pollution and the Government of Kosovo needs to undertake measures to significantly improve environmental conditions. Ilir Morina from the Kosovo Environment Protection Agency said that there has been improvement in air quality in Kosovo compared to the situation in previous years.

Opposition parties – Vetevendosje, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA) – have announced they will not take part in tomorrow’s continuation of the Kosovo Assembly’s plenary session. Adonis Tahiri from Vetevendosje said that since tomorrow’s session is a continuation of last week's, the position not to attend it remains unchanged. “As a united opposition, we boycotted this session last week under the reasons given out by MP Ismail Kurteshi,” said Tahiri.