UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, December 9, 2025

Albanian Language Media:

Highest number of voters outside Kosovo are in Germany (RFE)
Voting by mail for voters outside Kosovo begins (Koha)
AJK expresses concern over warnings that VV will boycott some media (Koha)
LDK’s Hoti slams government for avoiding TV debates (media)
Tahiri: Government running away from Prosecution, media and parliament (Klan)
Maqedonci: Letter to KFOR is not a repledge, but an explanation (Koha)
Ramadani to Maqedonci: Publish letter you sent to KFOR commander (Telegrafi)
Lajcak meets Guterres, “appreciate his insights and assessments” (media)
Palokaj on Lajcak’s successor: It seems Sorensen will be a favorite (KTV)
Biden’s order on additional steps on situation in Western Balkans (media)
Raid at "Dunav" office, a person escorted to police - two computers, a laptop and documents seized (Reporteri)

Serbian Language Media:

Djuric: We have prevented Pristina from becoming member of Council of Europe (media)
Djuric: Opening strategic dialogue with US would take relations to new level (Tanjug)
Trial of Serbs from Pasjane accused of alleged war crimes moved to January 15 (media)
Court of Appeals: Indictment against Svecla and three MPs for throwing tear gas upheld (Kosovo Online)
Ivkovic reports harassment, Kosovo police claim there are no elements of case (Alternativna.com, Radio KIM, TV Most)
Ban on Arsenijevic from approaching Syla extended (Radio kontakt plus)
Scholz: Principle of inviolability of borders must apply to everyone (Kosovo Online, social media)

Opinion:

Why the US, under Trump, should sign a security agreement with Kosovo (BIRN)

International Media:

Russia-driven disinformation campaign aims at drawing parallels between Kosovo and Ukraine (Prishtina Insight)

Humanitarian:

Qerka-Gashi: Multitude of narratives can be explored on the platform (Kosovo 2.0)

Albanian Language Media

Highest number of voters outside Kosovo are in Germany (RFE)

Nearly 105,000 people from Kosovo have registered to vote in the February 9 parliamentary elections in Kosovo, and over 44,000 of them live in Germany. People living outside Kosovo can vote through mail starting from today, or in Kosovo’s diplomatic offices only on February 8.

Voting by mail for voters outside Kosovo begins (Koha)

The Central Election Commission (CEC) has announced that the voting by mail period has begun for all Kosovo residents who have registered to vote from outside Kosovo and who have selected this voting method for the February 9 elections. Voting at diplomatic missions will be held on February 8.

The CEC has announced that the voting period is from January 9 to February 8, 2025, and will only apply to citizens who have managed to register as voters outside Kosovo and who, during registration, have individually determined the voting method, by sending the ballot by mail to one of the mailboxes opened by the CEC outside Kosovo, or by sending the ballot by mail to the CEC mailbox in Kosovo.

AJK expresses concern over warnings that VV will boycott some media (Koha)

The Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK) has expressed concern over, as it is said, “the warning of a boycott of some of the main television stations in the country, such as Klan Kosova, TV Dukagjini and T7, by the ruling party, Vetevendosje”.

The AJK’s reaction states that this is a development that goes against transparency and efforts to undermine the role of journalists and the media in holding the party that has led Kosovo for 4 years accountable.

The AJK has called on the Vetevendosje Movement “to reconsider its position and offer the media equal access to the campaign”.

“The media should be enabled to equally present the programs of all competing political entities, as their work is in the public interest. The announced boycott represents a deliberate attack on the media plurality that distinguishes Kosovo and is a continuation of a series of actions by this government and the Vetevendosje Movement directed against journalists and media in Kosovo,” the AJK’s response states.

AJK also emphasized that it condemns, as stated, the continuous targeting that Vetevendosje officials are making of journalists and media. In this case, a post on the issue of the boycott warning by Vetevendosje spokesperson Arlind Manxhuka is mentioned.

LDK’s Hoti slams government for avoiding TV debates (media)

Senior member of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Avdullah Hoti said in a Facebook post today that “the ruling party’s avoiding TV debates and going to party meetings in the municipalities is a desperate attempt to camouflage the failures in governance in their four-year mandate. There is no other explanation. If they had achieved results, they would have filled TV studios and faced the opposition in every TV studio, table and forum. It is easy to talk to party hardliners that applaud you, but facing political opponents requires facts”.

Tahiri: Government running away from Prosecution, media and parliament (Klan)

Former Kosovo chief negotiator for dialogue with Serbia, Edita Tahiri, has commented on the ruling party's move to boycott most media outlets during the election campaign. She assessed that in the same way, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is running away from the prosecution. "Running away from the media, running away from parliament when issues of major failures are debated, running away from the prosecution when called upon for corruption issues - this government in exile has itself taken the path of the past... it is not even waiting for the elections," Tahiri wrote.

Maqedonci: Letter to KFOR is not a repledge, but an explanation (Koha)

Kosovo’s Minister of Defence, Ejup Maqedonci, said today that the Kosovo government’s letter to KFOR pledging that the Kosovo Security Force would not deploy in the north without a previous authorization from the NATO mission was more an explanation than a repledge. He said the explanation was meant to clarify that a KSF unit was engaged in one of the northern municipalities and that this act was not aimed at creating tensions. “The purpose of the letter was to explain to the commander of KFOR that the engagement of a KSF unit in one of the four northern municipalities several days ago before the letter was not aimed to create tensions. In the letter, I explained the circumstances behind the engagement of the KSF unit and as I have always said publicly in the media, I reiterated that Kosovo’s institutions would continue to respect the pledge made on April 19, 2023, about the engagement of KSF in operations in the north only with preliminary coordination with the commander of KFOR. So this is not a repledge because the pledge in 2013 was made at the level of the Prime Minister and the NATO Secretary General. We are continuing to respect the pledge that the former Prime Minister made in 2013, although we believe that the pledge was wrong and detrimental for our army,” Maqedonci said.

Ramadani to Maqedonci: Publish the letter you sent to the KFOR commander (Telegrafi)

The former Inspector General of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency, Burim Ramadani, reacted today after the Ministry of Defense confirmed that the Kosovo government had sent a letter to KFOR a few days ago with the commitment that the Kosovo Security Force would not be deployed in the north without their prior authorization.

“Minister Maqedonci, publish the letter addressed to the KFOR Commander! Today, the Minister of Defense confirmed that the letter he sent to the KFOR Commander is related to the deployment and/or movement of the KSF in northern Kosovo. I have confirmed what I said last night on Pressing T7 that the letter was requested after a ceremonial occasion in northern Kosovo. But, to clarify everything, Minister Maqedonci is better off publishing the letter! Transparency helps democracy!", Ramandani wrote.

Lajcak meets Guterres, “appreciate his insights and assessments” (media)

EU special representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, met on Wednesday with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “I enjoyed our conversation about the Western Balkans and EU enlargement and appreciate his insights and assessments,” Lajcak wrote in a post on X.

Palokaj on Lajcak’s successor: It seems Sorensen will be a favorite (KTV)

Brussels-based correspondent, Augustin Palokaj, in an interview with the TV station on Wednesday, said that Danish diplomat Peter Sorensen is likely a favorite to succeed Miroslav Lajcak as special representative of the European Union for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia. “There is no confirmation and there won’t be any confirmation until it is official who will be Lajcak’s successor. After it is made official, the name could be announced. In the EU, in such procedures, they don’t say who the candidates are. Sources said that there were two candidates until the last minutes, Sorensen, the Danish diplomat, and former Finnish Foreign Minister Haavisto. The impression seems to be that Sorensen will be a favorite, because High Representative Kaja Kallas will lead the high-level dialogue, as Borrell did before her. It was requested that whoever comes after Lajcak should be more of a diplomat than a politician,” he said.

Palokaj said that although in the EU they can publicly praise Lajcak for his work, in private this is different “because many EU diplomats are disappointed by the lack of progress in the dialogue process”. “What Lajcak leaves as a hot potato for his successor is the fate of the Brussels Agreement in 2023, because Lajcak, the EU and the QUINT countries made unnecessary and meaningless improvisations there. The agreement was not signed and Serbia said that it does not accept it in its entirety. We need to know what the fate of the agreement is now. It remains unclear if they will insist that all parties must respect the agreement in its entirety and what are the consequences for failing to implement it,” he said.

Biden’s order on additional steps on situation in Western Balkans (media)

Most news websites report that U.S. President Joe Biden has expanded the list of sanctions targeting individuals subject to punitive measures by the United States for challenging the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states in the Western Balkans. Read more at: https://shorturl.at/wXYgj

The raid at "Dunav" office, a person escorted to police - two computers, a laptop and documents seized (Reporteri)

A person was escorted to the police, after Wednesday’s action in North Mitrovica, in an office where the "Dunav" insurance was operating. According to the 24-hour report of the Kosovo Police, it is learned that during the raid, two hardware computers, a laptop, a stamp and various documents were seized. "After the search was completed, the premises was closed and by decision of the prosecutor after the interview, the suspect was released in regular procedure", the Police report states.

Serbian Language Media

Djuric: We have prevented Pristina from becoming member of Council of Europe (media)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric said one of the greatest successes of Serbia in the previous year was preventing Kosovo from becoming part of the Council of Europe, but also the shift of the situation related to the Resolution on Srebrenica in United Nations, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Speaking of Kosovo's attempt to join the Council of Europe Djuric said Serbia with its contacts and engagement managed to thwart this attempt. He further said the critical priority for Serbian diplomacy was further progress on the European path, expressing hope that opening of a new cluster would happen at the end of January or beginning of February. He also said Serbia increased its alignment with EU foreign policy to almost 60 percent. As he said, crucial decisions in Brussels are made by consensus and that is why it is difficult to become part of the EU.

“Another thing is if there will be new pressure regarding Kosovo and Metohija. For ten years already everyone has been saying that Serbia will recognize the so-called independence of Kosovo, and I would recall that no one supported our people in Kosovo and Metohija more from people accused of such things. I went to Kosovo more than 200 times as director of the Office for KiM. We will continue fighting for our people. We preserve the peace and are waiting for favourable circumstances so this issue is resolved the way we think is best”, Djuric said.

Djuric: Opening strategic dialogue with US would take relations to new level (Tanjug)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric said on Thursday opening a Serbia-US strategic dialogue would significantly boost the relations between the two countries and take them to a new level. Speaking to Tanjug news agency, Djuric said the opening of the dialogue, due in the coming days, would be an additional impetus to development of cooperation in all areas.

If this were to happen at this time, it would be an exceptional pledge for cooperation with the incoming Trump administration upon the achieved institutional foundations, introducing a certain regularity of active exchanges between ministries and institutions of the two countries that we have never had before, Djuric said.

"That is something I have also fought for years as Serbia's ambassador to Washington", Djuric added, noting that the cooperation had been initiated years ago due to an awareness that raising the level of the relations with the US was extremely important for the pillars of Serbian foreign policy.

"In the months to come, we will see how the nominations in the new administration go, and we would like to see Donald Trump visit Belgrade. President Aleksandar Vucic was one of the first world leaders to speak with Trump. We very much respect his policy and his attitude towards Serbia. Richard Grenell is a champion of the relations between the Balkan region and the US and a man who has identified that the economy is a chance for overcoming various conflicts", Djuric said.

Trial of Serbs from Pasjane accused of alleged war crimes moved to January 15 (media)

Preliminary hearing in the case of five Serbs from Pasjane started at Basic Court in Pristina today. They are accused of allegedly committing war crimes against the civilian population in the Gnjilane region. The prosecution accuses them of “taking part in the murder of eight Albanian civilians”.

The presiding judge has decided to postpone the trial for January 15, given that defence lawyers have not received file cases and conditions were not met to continue with the preliminary hearing.

Five Serbs, Dragan Nicic, Slobodan Jevtic, Dragan Cvetkovic and Milos Sosic were arrested on August 3, last year in the village of Pasjane, near Gnjilane, while Nenad Stojanovic was arrested in the village of Bosce, near Kamenica. Four of them remain in detention, while Dragan Cvetkovic was placed under house arrest.

Court of Appeals: Indictment against Svecla and three MPs for throwing tear gas upheld (Kosovo Online)

The Court of Appeals upheld the indictment of the Basic Prosecution in Pristina against Kosovo Interior Minister Xhellal Svecla, two Self-determination Movement MPs Salih Ziba and Fitore Pacolli Dalipi and Democratic League MP Drita Milaku for “throwing tear gas in Kosovo Assembly in March 2018”, Kosovo Online portal reported citing Pristina-based Reporteri.

The Court of Appeals dismissed claims of their defence lawyers that there is no sufficient evidence to support reasonable doubt. Following the upholding of the indictment, it is expected that the Basic Court in Pristina schedules the hearing.

According to the indictment raised on July 29, 2019, Svecla, Milaku, Ziba and Pacolli-Dalipi are accused of “discharging several tear gas devices on March 21, 2018, around 12.10 in the Kosovo Assembly where plenary session was taking place”. As a result MPs were forced to leave the hall and the session was discontinued. Each of them is individually accused of carrying out “a criminal act of use of dangerous weapons or tools”, and “obstructing official persons in performing official duties”.

Ivkovic reports harassment, Kosovo police claim there are no elements of case (Alternativna.com, Radio KIM, TV Most)

Journalist and editor of Mitrovica North-based portal Alternativna.com, Ana Marija Ivkovic reported to Kosovo police a harassment case which took place yesterday in Mitrovica North. Kosovo police said there are no elements for them to open the case, the portal reported.

Ivkovic was approached by an unknown man yesterday around 15.00 at Mitrovica North promenade, near the café bar Grey. “He firstly addressed me in English saying ‘if he could ask me something’ and when I replied that he may, he asked me if I am a Serb woman or Albanian woman, and continued, practically very close to me, to walk on the promenade”, Ivkovic said. She added the conversation was held in English, but she believes the person was Albanan because of the dialect and questions he was asking. She also said the person in question asked for her ID card.

“I refused to give him my ID card and asked if he is a police officer, given that he was asking for my ID card. He said he was not and allegedly wanted to see if I am Serbian or Albanian. He asked, among other things, for my name, which I refused to tell him and continued walking by my side”, she added, noting that they had no physical contact. As she explained at the end of the promenade she moved away from him and lost him out of sight, but upon taking Kolasinska Street she realized this person was following her. As she said she called friends (couple) living in the building nearby wanting to go to their apartment and once arriving at the entrance she took the phone to photograph the person who was following her, after which he left and moved in the direction of the main Ibar River Bridge. She reported the case to the Kosovo police in Mitrovica North. She said police acted professionally and that she reported the case as an ordinary resident and not journalist, as she did not have her press card displayed. She also said it happened several times that Albanian men approach her on the ground and mutter unclear words, but they stop upon seeing her press card. She said she reported the case as she knows how many of her fellow women residents gave up from going to the police and reporting unpleasant situations.

“There are no elements for the case, but we are still working to find out who this man is, and then we will inform the prosecutor again”, Kosovo police deputy commander for the region North, Veton Elshani told Alternativna.com portal.

Ban on Arsenijevic from approaching Syla extended (Radio kontakt plus)

The Basic Court in Mitrovica made a decision to extend the ban imposed earlier on the leader of Serbian Democracy Aleksandar Arsenijevic from approaching Visar Syla, chief of the cabinet of current Mitrovica North mayor Erden Atiq, Radio kontakt plus reported. The measure had been extended for two more months.

Jelena Krivokapic, Arsenijevic’s lawyer, said she will file an appeal to this decision. The measure in duration of one month was initially imposed on Arsenijevic in October 2024, then extended in November of the same year for two more months.

Arsenijevic is often protesting the presence of Mitrovica North current municipal officials on Mitrovica North promenade or Pristina officials by blowing the whistle over their, as he underlined, anti-Serbian and discriminatory policies and decisions.

Scholz: Principle of inviolability of borders must apply to everyone (Kosovo Online, social media)

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stressed that the inviolability of borders is a fundamental principle of international law and that this principle must apply to all countries, whether small or large.

In an extraordinary address to the media, Scholz reported that he had spoken today with several European leaders and EU representatives.

"The inviolability of borders is a fundamental principle of international law. In the final act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in 1975, in the midst of the Cold War, European and Eastern Bloc countries and the US agreed on this issue. Borders must not be changed by force," Scholz explained.