UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, May 8, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

Kurti: Conditioning membership in CoE with the Association is absurd (media)
Hacker: Linking Kosovo CoE membership with Association, grave mistake (media)
Kurti on the Dinar: I cannot put myself above the Central Bank Governor (Express)
Zulfaj: EU must lift measures in order not to damage its credibility (EO)
Kosovo Police, EULEX and KFOR conclude “Golden Sabre 2024” exercise (KSP)
Police find camera on mountain road on eastern border with Serbia (RFE)

Serbian Language Media:

Vucic: We are making history today, Xi's visit historic (Tanjug, media)
Xi Jinping: China supports Serbia’s efforts to preserve territorial integrity regarding Kosovo issue (Tanjug)
Rajic: We can expect China's support both on the issue of Kosovo and on the issue of the Resolution on Srebrenica (Radio Mitrovica sever, RTS)
RTK website changed name of page in Serbian, instead of “RTK2” it now says “Serbian” (Radio KIM)
The State Department had insight into the draft amendments of the Montenegro to the resolution on Srebrenica (KiM radio, Beta, N1)

Opinion:

EU’s ‘Foreign Agent Law’ is Misguided (Balkan Insight)

International:

Berlin hints at insistence of Serb association in Kosovo before CoE membership (Euractiv)
Austria plans to deport convicts to Kosovo (politico.eu)
China's Xi Arrives In Belgrade In Push For Greater Influence In Europe (RFE)
Montenegro Accused of Kowtowing to Serbs on UN Srebrenica Resolution (BIRN)

Albanian Language Media

Kurti: Conditioning membership in CoE with the Association is absurd (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said today that regardless of the positive vote by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for the Committee of Ministers to invite Kosovo to become a full member, in the last couple of weeks Kosovo has been faced with a new condition, which according to him, has nothing with the standards for membership in the Council of Europe.

“After the condition to enforce a decision of the Constitutional Court, we heard that some capitals were conditioning the membership process with the sending of a document to the Constitutional Court. This document, which was brought to us by EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak and the diplomatic advisors of QUINT countries, was not accepted on October 26 last year. Kosovo offered for the document to be part of the package of the Basic Agreement of Brussels and the implementation annex of Ohrid and to be signed in order to become legally binding and implementable, but Serbia refused this,” Kurti said in today’s meeting of the Kosovo government. “If on October 26, 2023, the package of the agreement in Brussels would have been accepted and signed, only then that draft could have been sent to the Constitutional Court. As such, it is a non-paper. The government cannot send documents that are not official to the Constitutional Court. This request has been and it still remains absurd.”

Kurti said that Kosovo expected “there would be obstacles to our membership in the organization from countries that haven’t yet recognized Kosovo, but we never thought that obstacles would come from democratic countries that support Kosovo for development and democracy and were by our side during the liberation. The lack of support is regrettable”.

Hacker: Linking Kosovo CoE membership with Association, grave mistake (media)

Member of the German Parliament, Thomas Hacker, argued in a post on X that “linking the membership of Kosovo to the Council of Europe with the implementation of the Association of Serb Municipalities would be a grave mistake. Again, it seems that some Western countries didn’t learn from past mistakes.”

Kurti on the Dinar: I cannot put myself above the Central Bank Governor (Express)

The news website notes that the transitional period provided by the Central Bank of Kosovo on the issue of the Serbian Dinar in Kosovo ends on May 11, and when asked today what will happen after that date Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said “after May 11 comes May 12”.

Asked if there will be a concrete plan or if concrete results are expected from the meetings between the chief negotiators in Brussels, Kurti said that he does not interfere in the work of the Central Bank. “After May 11 comes May 12, and so on, but on the issue of the Dinar, we have not banned it as such, but only as means of payment, and this was done by the Republic of Kosovo, not by the Government of the Republic, because it was done by the Central Bank of Kosovo with the new regulation. They are above us on the issue of the Dinar,” he argued.

Kurti also said that “there have been continuous attempts to put me in a position where I would decide for the Central Bank of Kosovo and their course of action”. “But this happens only in dictatorial states, and authoritarian regimes. We are a democratic state. The Governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo was voted in the same hall where I was voted. He does not report to me. He reports to the Assembly of Kosovo, therefore, I cannot put myself above the Governor. We need to safeguard our Republic and the division of powers, which is crucial for democracy. Therefore, the Central Bank of Kosovo with its implementation plans decides on phases and timelines. We are here to support them, not to lead them,” he said.

Zulfaj: EU must lift measures in order not to damage its credibility (EO)

Political advisor to Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Jeton Zulfaj, said in an interview with the news website today that the EU measures against Kosovo after the escalation of the security situation in the north of Kosovo last year are unfair and absurd. “The measures were unfair and wrong then [last year] and now the EU should lift them as soon as possible in order to damage its credibility as an organization for democracy, human rights and the rule of law,” he argued.

Kosovo Police, EULEX and KFOR conclude “Golden Sabre 2024” exercise (KSP)

Kosovo Police, the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) and KFOR have concluded on Tuesday the “Golden Sabre 2024” exercise. A press release issued by KFOR notes that the exercise showed extended capabilities to perform joint tasks to different security scenarios.

COMKFOR Ozkan Ulutas said: “the conclusion of the ‘Golden Sabre 2024’ exercise represents an important historic moment in the long-term cooperation between the three security responders throughout Kosovo. The commitment, professionalism and the spirit of cooperation shown by all participants was exemplary. Our commitment to contribute to regional stability is unwavering. Together we will continue to contribute toward a safe and stable future for all people living in Kosovo”.

Police find camera on mountain road on eastern border with Serbia (RFE)

Kosovo Police said on Tuesday that it found two cameras with solar panels on the eastern border with Serbia and that it suspects they were used by smugglers to monitor the road. Police also said they stopped a 30-year-old suspect with double nationality – Kosovar and Serbian – at the site. The suspect is believed to have gone to the site to check the cameras, which had already been seized by police units.

Serbian Language Media

Vucic: We are making history today, Xi's visit historic (Tanjug, media)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Wednesday Chinese President Xi Jinping was a great friend of Serbia and that his visit to Belgrade was historic, Tanjug news agency reported. Standing beside Xi on the northern balcony of the Palace of Serbia, Vucic addressed people who had gathered outside the building to greet the two presidents.

"Thank you for coming in such a large number to greet our great friend, the steely friend of Serbia, Xi Jinping. I told him that, as the leader of a big power, he would be met with respect everywhere but that there would be no match anywhere for the love and respect he would be met with in our Serbia", he said.

"We are making history today, even though, to many, it does not look like that. In just a few years' time, we will all be remembering this day and the fact that we were making history today", Vucic also said. He said FTA with China would bring economic security to Serbian farmers and that exports of Serbian beef to China were to begin soon, with apple, plum, blueberry, rakia and wine exports to be fully liberalized from July 1.

Vucic said that, just like Serbia had clear and simple positions regarding the territorial integrity of China, Beijing, too, provided unreserved support to the territorial integrity of Serbia.

"Just like we say that Taiwan is China and that the UN Charter says so, they, too, support our sovereignty and stand with us in all the most difficult moments. Do not forget that they were also with us 25 years ago, when Serbia was bombed, and they paid a price for that. They lost people just a few hundred meters from here", Vucic said.

Xi Jinping: China supports Serbia’s efforts to preserve territorial integrity regarding Kosovo issue (Tanjug)

Chinese President Xi Jinping said today his country supports Serbia’s efforts and commitment to lead an independent policy, follow its development path that corresponds to its interests and efforts to preserve its sovereignty and territorial integrity regarding Kosovo issue, Tanjug news agency reported.

"The two countries firmly support mutual interests and we really have strong political relations. China supports Serbia in adhering to its independence and following its development path that matches its conditions", Xi said at a joint press conference with the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

Rajic: We can expect China's support both on the issue of Kosovo and on the issue of the Resolution on Srebrenica (Radio Mitrovica sever, RTS)

Special adviser to Prime Minister of Serbia Milos Vucevic, Predrag Rajic, speaking about the special relations between Serbia and China, referred to the bombing of the Chinese embassy, stressing that this event had a profound effect on Serbian-Chinese and Chinese-American relations.

"Beijing has never fully forgiven what happened in Belgrade in 1999. It is a moment that brings us together in pain, but also gives us the opportunity to understand each other even better," said Rajic.

He pointed out that both China and Serbia support the basic norms of international law, and that Serbia's position on the policy of one China, as well as China's position on the status of Kosovo, is a good basis for improving economic cooperation.

"It is easier to develop economic relations when you have political understanding," said Rajic.

He emphasized that the special relationship between the two countries is due to the relationship that the President of Serbia has with the Chinese President, as well as the high degree of respect that, as he says, President Vucic has with the key powers.

Therefore, he says, we can expect China's support both on the issue of Kosovo and on the issue of the Resolution on Srebrenica in the UN.

"If there was no such relationship with the Serbian president, China could calculate with those issues. But no, here you see Beijing's principledness, and that's where we match, because we also have principledness in foreign policy," said Rajic.

He added that Serbia will get a lot from China that European countries are clamoring for, precisely because good relations have been built for years.

RTK website changed name of page in Serbian, instead of “RTK2” it now says “Serbian” (Radio KIM)

A day after the board and management of the Serbian language RTK2 program, part of Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK), informed the public of their request made in a meeting with RTK director general in March that the page of the website in Serbian language RTKLive/RTK2 be under their authority, and until that happens to remove RTK2 sign from it, the page had been renamed as RTKLive/Serbian, Radio KIM reported.

In a meeting it was also requested to publish the names of editors of this webpage, but this request had not been fulfilled to date.

RTK2 board and management have informed the public, media, journalists associations, responsible institutions and international community that the RTK2 channel in Serbian does not have under its own authority the website, Facebook page, or YouTube channel.

They also said that RTK Live/RTK2 website is not edited by the editorial staff of RTK2's Serbian-language program and pointed out that content contradicting journalistic standards has recently been published on the RTK Live/RTK2 website.

The RTK2 management and board reiterated that RTK2 officially does not have its own website and that they are not professionally liable for the news posted on the RTK Live/RTK2 website, which are actually only translations from the Albanian language and not reports of the Serbian RTK2 newsroom and are in contradiction with professional and ethical standards of journalism.

The State Department had insight into the draft amendments of the Montenegro to the resolution on Srebrenica (KiM radio, Beta, N1)

The State Department had insight into the unofficial draft of Montenegro's proposed amendments to the Draft Resolution on Srebrenica, but did not intervene in them, the US Embassy in Podgorica announced.

The Montenegrin media reported that the Government of Montenegro has not yet officially submitted amendments to the UN resolution on Srebrenica, but that it is discussing with partners, primarily the USA and Germany, about supplementing the text of the resolution and introducing into it the position that "guilt for the crime of genocide is individualized, and cannot be attributed to any ethnic, religious or other group or community as a whole", reported KiM radio.

On Sunday evening, the media, referring to unofficial information from the Government in Podgorica, published amendments to the text of the Resolution that the Government would allegedly submit to the UN Security Council, with the mediation of the USA.

Foreign Minister Filip Ivanovic neither denied nor confirmed unofficial media reports.

According to media reports, the amendments envisage the individualization of the genocide in Srebrenica and insist on strict compliance with the Dayton Agreement.

Part of the public in Montenegro, which supports the proposal of Germany and Rwanda for the Resolution on the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, believes that the proposed interventions are unnecessary, because the resolution does not mention collective guilt, nor does it question the Dayton Agreement for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and that the amendments were " written outside Montenegro" and motivated by loyalty to the authorities of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

A group of 110 NGOs, as well as "more than 340 citizens of Montenegro, are asking the Government of Montenegro to co-sponsor the UN resolution", considering it "a worthy expression of respect for the victims of the Srebrenica genocide and a responsible attitude towards the future".

Opinion

EU’s ‘Foreign Agent Law’ is Misguided (Balkan Insight)

By Tara Petrovic

The proposed EU directive is a threat to civil society and the media, both inside and outside the EU’s borders.

For the second time in two years, tens of thousands of protesters in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi are braving police tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets and beatings to block a Russia-style “foreign agent” law aimed at clamping down on independent civil society. The protesters, mainly young people, see it as an existential battle for the future of their country – the only way to prevent a disastrous turn away from EU integration towards Putinesque authoritarianism.

The EU has been a crucial ally in their fight both times, issuing statement after statement condemning the law and granting EU candidate status to Georgia last December after the government withdrew its original proposal. However, worryingly, the EU is now pursuing a near-identical law to the one it criticizes, jeopardizing the bloc’s credibility to speak out against the Georgian legislation.

Ahead of June’s European Parliament elections, in which far-right extremism is expected to surge, the EU is urgently stepping up its fight against malign foreign interference from Russia. Central to these efforts is a proposed directive targeting European organizations and individuals thought to be furthering foreign government interests. But this approach is the wrong way. The proposed EU directive is a threat to civil society and the media, both inside and outside the EU’s borders.

Incompatible with EU Values

The European Commission has moved ahead with the “Directive on Transparency of Interest Representation on Behalf of Third Countries” despite fierce opposition from European civil society since its unveiling in 2023. Critics have dubbed it the “EU foreign agent law”, referencing similar legislation elsewhere which singles out foreign-funded people and groups for additional scrutiny, ostensibly to promote transparency and sovereignty but often as a means to silence dissent or vilify opponents.

Invariably, such laws lead to clampdowns on civil society and critical media. Groups designated as foreign agents are often publicly stigmatized and subjected to bureaucratic harassment to bully them into submission or bury them in paperwork.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2my444yj

International

Berlin hints at insistence of Serb association in Kosovo before CoE membership (Euractiv)

The German government is likely to insist on the establishment of the Association of Serb Municipalities in north Kosovo before giving the ‘ok’ for the country to join the Strasbourg-based human rights organisation, the Council of Europe according to comments given to Euractiv.

Kosovo is at the last step of the application process having passed a landslide vote in favour of its membership in April. On 17 May, the Committee of Ministers comprising foreign ministers from each member state, will meet to vote on whether Kosovo will become a member.

Rumours have been swirling that aside from the obvious opponents, Serbia, Germany and even France could also be set to oppose the accession unless Pristina forms an Association of Serb Municipalities designed to give the country’s Serb population more autonomy and pushed for by Serbia and the EU.

Euractiv asked the German Foreign Ministry whether they would insist on Kosovo establishing the association before it joins the Council of Europe.

A ministry spokesperson confirmed they are in favour of Kosovo’s accession and that talks on this matter are already underway ahead of the 17 May meeting.

They added “It is important for the next steps that Kosovo now sends clear signals with regard to the protection of minorities, which is a key issue in the Council of Europe.”

The argument that Kosovo must increase protection for minorities was used by some member states and the plenary debate but shot down during discussions with the line that the country joining the council will bring all minorities and citizens under its protection while also providing more mechanisms for redress.