Headlines - 21.09.2017

• EU wants Haradinaj to “revive” European agenda (Koha Ditore)
• President Thaci meets U.S. President Trump (dailies)
• Kosovo delegation meets OIC Secretary General (RTK)
• Local election campaign kicks off (media)
• Apostolova: I do not communicate with indicted politicians (Zeri)
• Ruling and opposition parties disagree over timing of Assembly session (Zeri)

Kosovo Media Highlights

EU wants Haradinaj to “revive” European agenda (Koha Ditore)

Prime Minister of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, and some of his ministers, have been presented with firm requests from the ambassadors of EU countries to Kosovo, the paper reports on the front page. In a meeting held behind closed doors yesterday, the ambassadors are reported to have asked the government of Kosovo to “revive” its European agenda. A press release issued by PM Haradinaj’s office states that the government of Kosovo highlighted the importance of Kosovo’s European integration path. “Ambassador Apostolova and Heads of EU Missions welcomed governments focus on European Agenda, highlighting especially the need to implement the SAA, ERA and agreements reached within the dialogue,” the press release reads. Sources however said that the ambassadors were critical to the work the government of Kosovo has done so far in implementation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) and called on the new government of Kosovo to be “nothing like the last one”.

President Thaci meets U.S. President Trump (dailies)

President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, met at the margins of the UN General Assembly the U.S. President Donald Trump. A statement to the media issued by Thaci’s office says the meeting was “brief” and that Thaci stressed that the U.S. is Kosovo’s key strategic partner and that “its strong and inclusive support is crucial to the peace, stability and overall development of Kosovo and the region.”

Kosovo delegation meets OIC Secretary General (RTK)

President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, and Foreign Minister, Behgjet Pacolli, met in the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session, Organization of Islamic Cooperation Secretary General, Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen. “We thanked him for the continuous and strong support the Organization and its member states have provided to the Republic of Kosovo with regards to consolidating its statehood and its full integration into international community,” Pacolli wrote on Facebook.

Local election campaign kicks off (media)

Political entities in Kosovo today officially launched the one-month campaign for local elections to be held on 22 October.  The Central Election Commission has certified 91 political entities, including 1 coalition, 35 political parties, 30 civic initiatives and 25 independent candidates running for mayor or municipal assemblies in different municipalities. CEC spokesperson, Valmir Elezi, told media on Wednesday that all the necessary preparations for the local election have been made.

Apostolova: I do not communicate with indicted politicians (Zeri)

In a front-page interview to the paper, the head of the EU Office in Kosovo and Special Representative, Nataliya Apostolova, said that the rule of law is the most important priority for the EU in Kosovo. “We will always be restricted with regards to communications and contacts with indicted people,” said Apostolova. She reaffirmed that border demarcation issue with Montenegro and fight against organised crime and corruption remain conditions for visa liberalisation. “We are not the ones that propose a solution. We have insisted the border demarcation be voted as quickly as possible,” Apostolova said adding that it will be up to the government of Kosovo to decide how it wants to proceed with the issue. If both Montenegro and Kosovo agree on changing the current border demarcation agreement, “we will accept it but they need to be aware that without a final solution on demarcation and the fight against corruption, the European Union will not take any political decision to give up on these two criteria.”

Ruling and opposition parties disagree over timing of Assembly session (Zeri)

The paper reports that disagreements between ruling and opposition parties over the timing of the next Assembly session have resulted in no date being announced at all. Opposition parties insisted the session take place next Monday while the ruling parties maintained that next Thursday would be the best time for it. As a result of this, the opposition representatives walked out of the Assembly presidency meeting accusing the Speaker, Kadri Veseli, of breaching the Assembly regulation.