Headlines - 23.08.2016

• Mustafa: The borders were set when Kosovo was liberated (media)
• Çollaku: No plan B for visa liberalisation (Zëri/RFER)
• Haradinaj: U.S. will be with us regardless of demarcation vote (Kosova Sot)
• Serbian List sets conditions over demarcation vote (Zëri)
• Krasniqi calls on MPs not to ratify demarcation deal (media)
• Bulliqi: Consult Montenegro before making final decision (Koha)
• Lajçi: Kosovo, not the municipalities, losing territory (Epoka)
• Hand grenade thrown at public broadcaster premises (media)
• Albanian Ambassador: Nis meeting should not be politicised (Koha)
• Kosovo’s embassy in Paris vandalised (dailies)

Mustafa: The borders were set when Kosovo was liberated (media)

Most media report that Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said on Monday that Kosovo’s current borders where set when the country was liberated and when it declared its independence. Mustafa wrote on his Facebook account: “the border with Montenegro is the one with which the North-Atlantic, led by the U.S., intervened in Kosovo. The border defined by the Kumanovo Agreement and ‘drawn up’ by the Ahtisaari Plan and respected by the Spatial Plan of the Republic of Kosovo and the Development Plan of the Municipality of Peja. The State Committee for the border delineation did not set new borders, it only respected borders with which we declared independence. Therefore, arguments with maps and cadastral documents between the State Committee and certain experts who want to show which are Kosovo’s borders, lose their importance. Kosovo’s borders were set when Kosovo was liberated and when independence was declared. They cannot be set today or at the meeting on 1 September. We can poison the public with all sorts of arguments, we can even make threats that the agreement will never be ratified, but we need to be realistic that this state will not have different borders. These are the borders recognised by the United States of America and the international community. In our statements we can make Kosovo bigger according to our appetites or political ambitions, but the reality is that international borders are not the will of only one party. It involves the will of two parties, in our case it was signed at the government level and the will of those who helped us become free, declare independence and who support us in our statebuilding process. We should feel honored and respected that the Vice-President of the United States of America is addressing our matters. The United States does not owe Kosovo, we owe the United States and the international community for everything they have done for the freedom and independence of Kosovo, including their human losses. No member of parliament or the government is so young not to remember the time of war and our appeal for help to the international community”.

Çollaku: No plan B for visa liberalisation (Zëri/RFER)

Kosovo’s European Integration Minister, Bekim Çollaku, told Radio Free Europe on Monday that the ratification of the border demarcation agreement only strengthens Kosovo’s sovereignty. He said linking demarcation with the visa liberalization process was not fair, but, “this condition has been set and cannot be surpassed.” According to him, if the Kosovo Assembly fails to ratify this agreement, Kosovo has no plan B for the visa liberalization process. “Unfortunately, there is no plan B, because the EU does not compromise with the criteria that have been already set,” he said.  The failure to ratify the border demarcation agreement, according to Çollaku, will be followed by consequences for Kosovo’s Euro-Atlantic future.

Haradinaj: U.S. will be with us regardless of demarcation vote (Kosova Sot)

According to the leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) Ramush Haradinaj, the United States of America will stand close to Kosovo no matter the ratification of the border with Montenegro on 1 September. According to Haradinaj, it is the prime time for Kosovo to correct the mistake made by demarcation. He also said that violence should not be used at the Assembly. “If we violate the Assembly, there is no democracy in this country,” Haradinaj said.

Serbian List sets conditions over demarcation vote (Zëri)

The paper reports in a front-page story that the Serbian List MPs will only vote for the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro on 1 September in exchange for votes on the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities. Representatives of the opposition parties say they are not surprised by such arrangements between the coalition partners. Frashër Krasniqi, spokesperson for Vetëvendosje Movement, told the paper that the ruling coalition is continuously adapting to the Serbian List requests. According to him, precisely by complying with these requirements, Kosovo is returning to Serbia.

Krasniqi calls on MPs not to ratify demarcation deal (media)

Several media report that Jakup Krasniqi, former Assembly Speaker and current chairman of the National Council of the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA), called on members of the Kosovo Assembly on Monday not to ratify the border demarcation deal with Montenegro. Krasniqi posted on his Facebook account that any pressure on MPs is illegal and against the constitution. “No legal provision obliges MPs to protect the interests of party leaders. The oath of the MPs obliges them to rise above individual and group interests and to protect the interests of the state,” Krasniqi said. He also called on President Thaçi and Prime Minister Mustafa to refrain from pressuring or promising funds and positions to MPs in exchange for their votes in favour of the demarcation deal.

Bulliqi: Consult Montenegro before making final decision (Koha)

Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) MP, Shpejtim Bulliqi, who led the group of independent experts in the debate on the border demarcation between Kosovo and Montenegro, said on Monday that Kosovo should consult with Montenegro before making the final decision on the matter.

Lajçi: Kosovo, not the municipalities, losing territory (Epoka)

Former member of the government committee for the border demarcation with Montenegro, Ali Lajçi, said on Monday that with the current version of the border delineation Kosovo will lose public property and not properties managed by the municipalities. He said that the land that is being lost with this agreement was supervised by the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning as well as the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development. He called on the two opposition parties, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo and the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA), to join Vetëvendosje movement at the 1 September protest in Pristina. Lajçi also argued that the ruling coalition lacks the required number of votes to ratify the demarcation deal and warned that there will be tensions, rejection and resistance if the agreement is ratified.

Hand grenade thrown at public broadcaster premises (media)

Several media report that a hand grenade was thrown last night around 22:00 hours at the building of the public broadcaster RTK in Pristina. The public broadcaster later reported that the explosion happened within the premises, more precisely at the transmitter of frequencies. Police and demining units are investigating the incident. There were journalists and other staff inside the premises at the time of the explosion, but there have been no casualties.

Albanian Ambassador to Kosovo: Nis meeting should not be politicised (Koha)

In the leading front-page article, the paper quotes Albania’s Ambassador to Kosovo, Qemajl Minxhozi, as saying that Serbia will host the economic forum in October and that a tripartite meeting between Albania, Serbia and Kosovo was never discussed. Minxhozi said the meeting, which will be held in Nis, should be seen as an effort aimed at strengthening regional cooperation. After meeting U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden in Belgrade, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic had said he would invite lower-ranking representatives from Pristina to the Nis meeting. Officials from the Office of Kosovo Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, however said they would not attend the meeting regardless of the level of representation. Ambassador Minxhozi told the paper on Monday that there was misunderstanding surrounding the Nis meeting. “The Prime Minister [Edi Rama] was very clear in his statement. He is not authorised to invite anyone and so far there is no invitation for a meeting between the main leaders of the Balkans … The same way we welcome all meetings between the governments of Kosovo and Serbia for the normalisation of communication between the two countries, the same way every other initiative in the region should be welcomed, be it between Albania and Serbia or Kosovo and Serbia,” he added.

Kosovo’s embassy in Paris vandalised (dailies)

The entering sign of the Kosovo Embassy building in Paris was vandalized on Monday morning with Serbian nationalist symbols, dailies report. Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs through a press release condemned the attack, urging France’s relevant authorities to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice. “The Ministry condemns this cruel act which is against any diplomatic standard and asked the respective security authorities in France to find the perpetrators,” reads the press release, noting that this was not the first time that the embassy had been vandalized with Serbian nationalist symbols.