Deputy president of the Assembly of Kosovo and member of the leadership of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Xhavit Haliti, supports the proposal of the PM Isa Mustafa to measure the territory of Kosovo. “I proposed territorial measuring from the beginning, when the current version was objected. It is good to measure the territory and see if we have lost territory or not. Montenegro is claiming that its territory has increased and based on the report of the state commission, Kosovo’s territory has increased as well.

Kosovo Montenegrins have welcomed Sunday’s meeting between Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa and his Montenegrin counterpart, Dusko Markovic, who discussed the border demarcation between the two countries. Slobodan Vujicic, leader of the Association of Montenegrins of Kosovo, issued a media statement saying that the meeting confirms not only the friendly relations between the two nations and states “but also their joint aspiration toward values of civilisation and common strategic interests”.

The Kosovo government is relying on the votes of the Serbian List or one part of the opposition to ratify the draft law on the border demarcation with Montenegro. Bajram Gecaj, advisor to Prime Minister Isa Mustafa, told the news website today that even if all MPs of the ruling coalition would vote in favor of demarcation, their votes would not suffice. “We currently don’t have enough votes to ratify demarcation. The votes of PDK and LDK MPs do not suffice to ratify the deal.

The news website reports that according to Kosovo government officials, the agreement on the border demarcation with Montenegro will be sent back to Parliament next month. Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said recently that the opposition and the Serbian List are responsible for blocking the border demarcation with Montenegro and visa liberalisation for Kosovo.

Kosovo’s Deputy Minister for Local Government, Bajram Gecaj, said in an interview for the news website that December is the final time for ratifying the border demarcation agreement between Kosovo and Montenegro. “In 2017, many EU member states will go to elections and the attention on Kosovo could be lost. This is why December is the final time when we can do something about this issue,” he said. Asked if the ruling coalition has secured the required number of votes in Parliament to ratify the border deal, Gecaj said, “we still don’t have 80 votes.

The inability of the ruling coalition to conclude issues such as the border demarcation with Montenegro – a requirement for visa liberalisation – and delays in meeting certain obligations from dialogue with Serbia and the inability to form the Armed Forces could take Kosovo to early elections next spring. Kosovo Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, who is also the leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo, is opposing the idea of early elections.

Kosovo Assembly President, Kadri Veseli, said today that the people of Kosovo should not remain isolated due to the border demarcation with Montenegro. “We have talked with Montenegrin officials and they confirmed that they will send an official note to the European Union asking for the people of Kosovo not to remain isolated due to the border demarcation,” Veseli said. He also commented on the telephone code for Kosovo, saying that Kosovo’s independence and sovereignty cannot be reversed. “Kosovo will no longer have the 00-381 telephone code.

Kosovo Assembly MP from the  Vetëvendosje movement, Glauk Konjufca, said that the Brussels agreement makes Kosovo only a user of a telephone code and not an owner. According to him, it is clear that Serbia will be the owner of the prefix, while Kosovo will only use it. “Legalization of Serbian operator in Kosovo does not appear to be as the government claims, and this makes the agreement unacceptable,” Konjufca said.

The Kosovo Assembly’s foreign affairs committee will meet today at 15:00 to discuss the final version of the declaration on visa liberalisation for Kosovo that will be sent to the European Union. Pal Lekaj, head of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) parliamentary group, said this is a good opportunity to convince the EU that the demarcation with Montenegro should be concluded with political and peaceful means. “The process of demarcation should in no way ruin our good relations with Montenegro,” Lekaj said.

Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) MP Shpejtim Bulliqi welcomed today the idea of a joint declaration by the Kosovo Assembly to Brussels on visa liberalisation for Kosovo. Bulliqi, who is the biggest opponent from the ruling coalition to the current border delineation agreement with Montenegro, said the initiative would unblock the process and create room for renegotiations on the border demarcation agreement.