Headlines - 09 09 2016

• Pristina and Belgrade reach agreement on license plates (Epoka e Re)
• Tahiri: Team for Association has no authorisation to draft the statute (Koha)
• Kocijančič: Association/Community not discussed in Brussels (Telegrafi)
• Haliti: Serbian List to respect coalition’s decisions (Indeksonline)
• Đukanović: Montenegro needs not an inch of land from Kosovo (RTK)
• “Serbian List set conditions in exchange for demarcation vote” (RTK)
• PDK ready for early elections (Zëri)
• Warlick: New power plant will help Kosovo’s economic development (Koha)
• Putin: West to recognise Crimea, same as it did with Kosovo (Koha)

Pristina and Belgrade reach agreement on license plates (Epoka e Re)

After nine hours of talks on Thursday, the delegations from Pristina and Belgrade reached agreement on the use of license plates for vehicles traveling to and from Kosovo and Serbia. Kosovo’s chief negotiator, Edita Tahiri, said in a statement that the agreement is a major achievement as it will eliminate the use of provisional license plates imposed by Serbian authorities on Kosovo vehicles. “This agreement will facilitate freedom of movement of people and vehicles, and both countries in this case proved that reciprocity is the main principle of the Brussels dialogue and bilateral relations,” Tahiri said.

Tahiri: Team for Association has no authorisation to draft the statute (Koha)

Kosovo’s Minister for Dialogue, Edita Tahiri, said on Thursday that the management team that prepares the establishment of the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities has neither the mandate nor authorisation to draft the statute of this mechanism, the paper reports on page two. The management team, consisting of four Serbs, had issued a press release saying that it received the authorisation to begin its work. Tahiri however denied this. “The authorisation of the management team derives from the Agreement on the Association and the entity responsible for implementing this agreement is the Government of the Republic of Kosovo. The group will be authorised after the Prime Minister announces the full composition of the team and this includes: the management team, representatives of the government, the OSCE in an assisting or facilitating role and the EU Office in Kosovo,” Tahiri said.

Kocijančič claims Association/Community not discussed in Brussels (Telegrafi)

EU foreign policy spokesperson, Maja Kocijančič, has rebutted news that the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities was discussed in the EU-facilitated dialogue in Brussels this week. She said however that the EU plans to meet the parties regarding the establishment of the Association/Community in the near future.

Haliti: Serbian List to respect coalition’s decisions (Indeksonline)

Kosovo Assembly Deputy Speaker and senior official of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Xhavit Haliti, told the news site that the Serbian List should respect the decisions of the governing coalition and not act on their own.  “Why should we have consultations about everything? They live in Kosovo and they should act as Kosovo citizens. So, they should respect and implement the decisions of the coalition. It's absurd what they did, but I think they had another goal. Belgrade does not care about the demarcation agreement with Montenegro,” he said.  According to Haliti, the Serbian government is interested to present Kosovo as incompetent and unable to govern the country. Haliti also said he believes that the current demarcation deal must be resubmitted to the Assembly as soon as possible.  “I believe the government will return the agreement to the Assembly soon and will try to secure the necessary votes for its ratification,” he said.

Đukanović: Montenegro needs not an inch of land from Kosovo (RTK)

In an interview for BIRN’s “Jeta në Kosovë” show aired last night on RTK, Montenegro’s Prime Minister, Milo Đukanović, said his country needs not an inch of land from Kosovo and doesn’t expect Kosovo to renounce its rights in favour of Montenegro. “We understand the need for a lively political debate. We have to make sure that this dialogue will not impair Kosovo’s relations with its neighbours. This is very important,” said Đukanović who added that Kosovo and Montenegro commissions in charge of drafting the agreement on border demarcation have worked carefully throughout a three-year period and respected all relevant documents.

Musmurati: Serbian List set conditions in exchange for demarcation vote (RTK)

Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) secretary, Basri Musmurati, said on Thursday that the Serbian List had set conditions in exchange for votes on the demarcation deal on 1 September.  “The Assembly failed to ratify the demarcation deal, because according to information I have, the Serbian List had several requests for the government. All those requests, which were published by the media, cannot be fulfilled because we cannot violate our Constitution,” Musmurati said.  Pristina-based news site Gazeta Express yesterday published three alleged requests made by the Serbian List to the government of Kosovo in exchange for votes on demarcation. According to the news site, the Serbian List wants to have the posts of the Deputy Commander of the Kosovo Security Force, Deputy Director of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency and Deputy Commander of the Kosovo Police.

PDK ready for early elections (Zëri)

The paper reports in a front-page story that Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) officials say they are ready for early elections, while Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) officials complain that now is not the best moment for elections because of the special court for war crimes. PDK’s parliamentary group chief, Zenun Pajaziti, publicly declared that his party is ready for early elections. On the other hand, LDK MP Adem Salihaj said on Thursday that if PDK is ready for elections this might be only for “criminal interests” rather than the interests of the people. Opposition parties meanwhile believe that Pajaziti’s statement is the first sign of early elections.

Warlick: New power plant will help Kosovo’s economic development (Koha)

In one of its front-page stories, the paper quotes Mary Warlick, the United States Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy and Natural Resources, as saying that the construction of the Kosova e Re power plant will help Kosovo’s economic development and will reduce air pollution. Warlick, accompanied by Kosovo’s Minister for Economic Development Blerand Stavileci, visited the Kosova A and Kosova B power plants on Thursday. In a media statement following the visit, Warlick said the United States believes that “energy security is an essential ingredient for future economic growth and the overall stability of Kosovo, and we are encouraged by Kosovo’s efforts to modernise its energy sector”.

Putin: West to recognise Crimea, same as it did with Kosovo (Koha)

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview for Bloomberg on Thursday that “in the case of Crimea, the West is denying the people’s right for self-determination, whereas in the case of Kosovo it relies on the will of the people”. Putin said nothing could be against the will of the people. “And it seems that some of our partners don’t understand this. When they think of Crimea, they tend not to take into consideration that the will of the people living in Crimea – around 70 percent of whom are ethnic Russian and the rest speak Russian as their mother tongue – is to unite with Russia … In another place, such as Kosovo, you can use the will of the people, but not here?” Putin said.