Kosovo Democratic Institute (KDI) think tank presented today findings of a poll carried out between 3 and 21 March and involving 1,065 rerspondents on the topic of Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. According to the poll, 58 percent of respondents said they do not believe courts in the north would be integrated into the Kosovo judicial system as agreed in Brussels while 48 percent believe that Serb parallel structures are still active in the north.

In a conference on the role of the Kosovo Security Force taking place in Pristina today, President of Kosovo Hashim Thaci said he has asked Assembly President Kadri Veseli in a letter sent today to “disregard” the draft law for KSF transformation and give more time for securing the support from strategic partners and all other stakeholders so that KSF is transformed through constitutional changes.  Thaci said his initiative to transform the KSF through a draft law was “legitimate” and came after all other possibilities were deemed exhausted.

Officials from the Serbian Republic Electoral Commission (RIK) announced that the voter turnout for presidential elections until 10 o’clock was 10.56 percent. The turnout in central Serbia by this time was 9.73 per cent, in Vojvodina 12.06 percent and in Belgrade 9.79. As for Kosovo, the OSCE spokesperson Senad Sabovic told Serbian media that the voter turnout in 90 polling stations across Kosovo has been 5.23 percent by 10 o’clock. According to Sabovic, the voting is going well and no major irregularities have been reported.

European Union foreign policy spokesperson, Maja Kocijancic, told Kosovapress that the EU is following the developments in Kosovo regarding the visits of Serbian officials ahead of presidential elections and that it regrets the visits planned within the provisions of the Brussels agreements did not take place. “It is regrettable how recently the visits planned in line with these agreements are not going ahead. We have received reports of road blockades to prevent the people from taking part in today’s rallies in the north of Kosovo.

Former head of UNMIK, Joachim Ruecker, said in an interview to Kosovapress that Kosovo is on the right track towards European Union integration but that it needs to fulfill visa liberalisation criteria. He said that he saw progress during his visit to Kosovo. “I am positive Kosovo is in the right direction and will eventually become member of the EU,” Ruecker said.

Several news websites report that a bomb was thrown at the house of Bane Jakovljevic, a Kosovo Police officer, in the village of Rudare, before midnight on Thursday. Citing unnamed sources, Kosovapress news agency reports that there are no human casualties. According to the same sources, Jakovljevic reportedly has close ties with people involved in smuggling and other criminal activities.

Prime Minister of Kosovo, Isa Mustafa, has travelled to Bosnia and Herzegovina where he is expected to take part in the summit of Western Balkans prime ministers. The summit, known as Western Balkan 6, will focus on the region’s integration process and cooperation.

The Association of the Families of KLA War Martyrs and the Association of KLA War Invalids issued a joint statement today calling on Kosovo’s institutions to take all the necessary steps to form the Kosovo Army. The statement notes: “There can be no independent country without an army and this is why Kosovo must have its army. There is no country in the world that does not rely its defense force on its army and Kosovo should do the same.

Head of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) parliamentary group, Ismet Beqiri, said the party would support the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) into an army but noted that this should be done with the support of strategic partners. Beqiri said the LDK would support the bill if it is put to vote at the Assembly but that the goal of creating an army that would protect Kosovo’s sovereignty would be difficult to achieve without the international support.

The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) parliamentary group has announced it will boycott the work of the Kosovo Assembly until 6 April when its leader will once again appear before a French court regarding an extradition request against him by Serbia. "AAK MPs are disappointed with negligence of Kosovo institutions on Haradinaj case and on Serbia's illegal arrest warrants against Kosovo citizens," the party said in a statement.