• U.S. senators: Dialogue could imply difficult decisions (media)
• Thaci: Partnership with U.S. crucial for any process for Kosovo (media)
• Kurti: I fear the LDK’s fear from the PDK (Koha)
• Constitutional Court declares Haradinaj’s request inadmissible (media)
• Serbian List to decide today on participation in parliamentary elections (media)
• Pristina court jails six persons on terrorism charges (media)

U.S. senators: Dialogue could imply difficult decisions (media)

Two U.S. senators that visited Kosovo yesterday, Ron Johnson and Chris Murphy, said that the key to success for Kosovo and Serbia is reaching a final agreement which may also require compromise.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Kosovo leaders, Senator Chris Murphy said that two things are necessary for Kosovo’s economic revival. “The first is the internal reform, commitment to rule of law, educational reforms, but also commitment for dialogue with Serbia which will involve difficult decisions, here and in Belgrade.”

“We are here to lend support to the people of Kosovo and continue friendship between the two countries. We see there is a future for Kosovo and therefore we want peace, security and development for this country. All these are achieved through a new government which upholds the rule of law. At the same time, reaching of an agreement with Serbia is the key to unblocking the future,” said Senator Ron Johnson.

The two U.S. officials are set to visit Belgrade in the coming days and said that they will convey the same messages to leaders there. “We expect this dialogue to be meaningful and fruitful and we hope the two sides will realise sacrifice is required to be able to normalise relations between these two nations,” Murphy said.

Thaci: Partnership with U.S. crucial for any process for Kosovo (media)

President of Kosovo Hashim Thaci said after meeting U.S. senators Ron Johnson and Chris Murphy that the support of the United States for Kosovo is bipartisan.

“Our partnership with the U.S. was and remains decisive in any process for Kosovo. This support will continue also in the dialogue process between Kosovo and Serbia which will end in Kosovo’s recognition by Serbia and our membership in NATO, EU, and UN,” Thaci said on Facebook.

Kurti: I fear the LDK’s fear from the PDK (Koha)

Vetevendosje (VV) leader and candidate for Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, in an interview to KTV on Wednesday, talked about the reasons why he believes the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) did not enter into a pre-election coalition agreement with the VV. “There was fear, but I don’t know the details. The fear they had from the future toward PAN, especially toward the PDK was bigger. I was confident that together we would win 70 MPs and the others would race for the third and fourth places. Our victory would have been positive. Mr. Mustafa and I did not surprise one another … I cannot mention specific names, but there are great fears there [in the LDK]. Perhaps it is due to the fact that they governed together in two mandates. There are guarantees that the PDK will remain in the opposition,” he said.

Kurti ruled out any possible coalition with the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) saying that the latter must go in the opposition. “I won’t become Prime Minister with the PDK. I will become Prime Minister with the VV, and I wanted to do this with the LDK. The LDK co-managed [with the PDK] but they did not seize the state,” he said.

Kurti said if he becomes Prime Minister, he will give the post of Assembly President to LDK’s candidate for Prime Minister, Vjosa Osmani. He said he has respect for Osmani, and that the other candidates for Prime Minister, PDK’s Veseli, AAK’s Haradinaj and NISMA’s Limaj, “belong to the past and are already acting like an opposition”.

Asked to comment on the import tariff on Serbian products, Kurti said: “we believe that full international and political reciprocity is the right solution forward. “I am not in favor of the tariff, but for full reciprocity and this is more powerful”.

Kurti also said that if he leads the new government, he would follow three principles in the dialogue with Serbia: “no agreement without dialogue”, “no dialogue with maps” and “no maps with Presidents on top of them”.

Constitutional Court declares Haradinaj’s request inadmissible (media)

The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has declared the request put forward by the outgoing Prime Minister of Kosovo Ramush Haradinaj asking for clarification on the competencies of a resigned government to be inadmissible.

“The Court concluded that the issues raised by the applicant do not fall within the scope of jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court, as stipulated by Article 113 of the Constitution,” the Court said in its ruling.

Meanwhile, Haradinaj said yesterday said he had not yet seen the Constitutional Court’s decision but that what he has asked for, namely for the “decision to return to the people”, has happened. “We did not seek for competencies, neither me nor the government that resigned, we have asked for elections and for the mandate to return to the people which has fortunately happened.”

Serbian List to decide today on participation in parliamentary elections (media)

Serbian List leader Goran Rakic said on Wednesday that this political party will announce its decision on today on whether or not it will run in the early parliamentary elections on October 6. “I think tomorrow we will announce our final position,” Rakic said during a visit to Gracanica.

Pristina court jails six persons on terrorism charges (media)

The Basic Court in Pristina has jailed six persons accused of preparing terrorist acts to serve sentences reaching up to ten years. The group which also includes one woman were accused of preparing to carry out terrorist attacks on a number of sites inside and outside Kosovo. They are also accused of trying to establish an associate branch of the Islamic State in Kosovo, Northern Macedonia and Albania.