Headlines - 02.07.2013 Van Rompuy urges implementation of Kosovo-Serbia agreement (dailies) President of European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, said in Pristina that agreement with Serbia for normalization of relations is a historic step for Kosovo. He called on the two governments in Pristina and Belgrade to make efforts for implementing the agreement on the ground and pledged EU support on the matter. “Without this cornerstone I wouldn’t be here today and we are aware that these achievements were possible only thanks to efforts from both sides. I am also grateful to the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia for their commitment to dialogue, their sincere and constructive spirit and the way they worked with us and their respective counterparts,” said Van Rompuy in a press conference following his meeting with Prime Minister of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi. Van Rompuy reiterated that the opening of negotiations for Stabilisation and Association Agreement require a great deal of work and progress in justice reform, fight against corruption and a number of other tasks Kosovo needs to complete before it can actually reach the SAA.  Van Rompuy also met President of Kosovo, Atifete Jahjaga, and Assembly Speaker, Jakup Krasniqi. The state to amnesty budget harmers too (Koha Ditore) The amnesty law approved by the Kosovo Government and sent to the Assembly for further endorsement is to be of benefit to numerous businesses and individuals that have damaged budget of Kosovo by millions of euro, reports the paper on the front page. More specifically, two oil companies suspected of tax evasion are to be released from any responsibility under the new amnesty law despite an ongoing investigation against them. The owners of these two companies for whom the paper says are close to Democratic Party of Kosovo and Alliance for Future of Kosovo, will benefit along with Serbs suspected of similar activity carried out in the last decade. Vetëvendosje apologizes to ambassadors (dailies) Glauk Konjufca, deputy leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, said at the meeting of the Kosovo Parliament chairmanship, that Vetëvendosje never intended to take over parliament. Konjufca, a member of the parliament chairmanship, said there was only an attempt to block the ratification of the Kosovo-Serbia agreement. “If there was a tendency for coup d'état, Vetëvendosje would not have participated in the last elections. When democracy in Kosovo is at risk, as was the case with the last agreement, then a radical action as we did that day is allowed”. Konjufca on behalf of the Vetëvendosje Movement apologized to U.S. Ambassador Tracey Ann Jacobson and all other diplomats. Pacolli and his ministers discuss Trepça (Koha Ditore) The paper reports in one of the front-page stories that Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Behxhet Pacolli will host a public hearing on “The future of the Trepça mining complex”. Pacolli will be accompanied in the panel by two government ministers from his party, Mimoza Kusari-Lila and Fadil Ismaili, and the hearing will be held on Wednesday at the premises of the Prime Minister’s Office. According to the paper, the panel will not include a representative from the Kosovo Privatization Agency which administers the mining complex. The paper recalls that Pacolli presented his plan for the mining complex in 2011, whereby the Prince of Kent, Michael, would get the “exclusive competency” to register it as a company in London and on the stock market. The plan foresaw that Trepça would function as an operational company and partial privatization would ensue several years later. The British meanwhile would have shares in the company. Nazim Bllaca’s village “surrounded” (Koha Ditore) The paper reports that large numbers of EULEX police officers have deployed in the village of Ribar i Madh, after a recent RPG attack at the house of Nazim Bllaca, collaborating witness of the prosecution in a number of criminal cases. On Wednesday, Bllaca will stand trial for the assassination of Ibush Kllokoqi. The prosecution believes a former minister in Thaçi’s government is responsible for Kllokoqi’s assassination in the aspect of leadership responsibility over the group. Kllokoqi’s assassination, the paper notes, is considered “a continuation of the spirit of assassination of LDK members and former collaborators of the previous regime”.