UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, May 9, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

Osmani congratulates first woman president of RNM: I am looking forward to deepening cooperation (RTK)
Gervalla: Kosovo supports Ukraine unconditionally, even though it does not recognize us (Albanian Post)
Kosovo not on next week’s agenda of Council of Ministers (Koha)
Belgian presidency in favor of lifting measures against Kosovo (media)
Basha: Europe committed to keeping Kosovo out due to lack of favors to Serbia (Reporteri)
Serwer: The U.S. should reevaluate its policy towards Serbia (RTK)
Hoti: When Kosovo coordinates with its allies, it becomes member, it is not conditioned (media)
Hoxhaj: Kosovo without a single recognition in four years (media)
Haxhiu: Kurti divided Albanians in North Macedonia, unified Macedonians around VMRO (ekonomia)

Serbian Language Media:

Hasani: The French and the Germans conditioned Kosovo because of distrust towards Kurti (KiM radio, KoSSev, Beta)
Press Council of Kosovo rejected the UNS appeal regarding the RTK's repeated fake news (Kontakt plus radio, KiM radio, Kosovo Online)
Giafreut: Focus on expansion (N1, RTS)
Blakaj on European of the Year award – Confirmation that we are doing right (Radio KIM)
Vitia with the managers of the health sector in the North, appointed in the Kosovo system (KoSSev)
Vucic congratulates new North Macedonian President on election win (Tanjug)
Mali: Xi's visit opens new chapter of cooperation and Serbia's economic growth (Tanjug, media)

International:

Russian Hackers Accused of Cyberattacks on Kosovo Government Websites (Prishtina Insight)
North Macedonia's Right-Wing Nationalists Win Both Presidential And Parliamentary Polls (RFE)

Albanian Language Media

Osmani congratulates first woman president of RNM: I am looking forward to deepening cooperation (RTK)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani has congratulated Gordana Silanovska-Davkova, for being elected as the President of North Macedonia. Among other things, Osmani emphasized that she is looking forward to continuing the cooperation with the new president.

“Kosovo and North Macedonia enjoy excellent unneighborly relations and share strong commitment to Euro-Atlantic integration. I look forward to working with the president-elect to achieve this common goal and to further deepen Kosovo-North Macedonia relations,’ Osmani wrote on X platform.

Gervalla: Kosovo supports Ukraine unconditionally, even though it does not recognize us (Albanian Post)

Kosovo’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Donika Gervalla, said that Kosovo supports Ukraine unconditionally, even though official Kiev refuses to recognize Kosovo's statehood.

"Ukraine has not recognized the Republic of Kosovo as a state, but we really believe that we know exactly what Ukraine is going through," she said in an interview for the American news agency, Associated Press.

She said that Europe should prepare for other conflicts in case Russia does not lose the war against Ukraine. "We know that there is only one solution, not only for Ukraine, but for Europe. Only Russia can lose the war and Ukraine can win this war, otherwise, Europe must prepare for other conflicts on our continent," she added.

While commenting on the two-day visit of the President of China, Xi Jinping to Serbia, Gervalla said that it has implications for Europe. "While Serbia is a candidate country in the European Union, it is increasingly identifying itself with the opponents of Western European democracies. You cannot be a candidate state of the European Union at the same time and be a representative of Russia in these times when Russia has declared war not only on Ukraine, but also on the West," she said.

Kosovo not on next week’s agenda of Council of Ministers (Koha)

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe will not have the issue of Kosovo on the agenda, CoE confirmed.

The Committee meets next week and it was expected that after the successful vote in the Parliamentary Assembly, the issue of Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe would go to the Council of the Foreign Ministers who would finally decide whether Kosovo would become the organization’s newest member.

“At this moment, Kosovo is not on the agenda of the meeting of the Committee of Ministers. We do not have more information at this stage, but we will inform you about developments,” reads the response of the Council of Europe to Koha.

Belgian presidency in favor of lifting measures against Kosovo (media)

Belgium, which leads the Presidency of the EU, is in favor of the removal of the measures and a balanced approach between Kosovo and Serbia. The Presidency of Belgium, which is responsible for advancing the work of the Council, in an answer to the Express news website said that the EU is ready to lift the punitive measures against Kosovo, but mentioned "further progress".

"In accordance with the Council's Enlargement conclusions of December 12, 2023, the EU is ready to lift the measures against Kosovo in the event of further progress in meeting the EU's requirements. The EU Council will return to the issue based on a report of the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy on the fulfillment of these requirements by Kosovo'', said the spokesman of the Belgian Presidency, David Jordens.

He said that his country is in favor of a balanced approach between Kosovo and Serbia. "Belgium seeks a balanced approach towards Serbia and Kosovo, including when it comes to EU measures. In this perspective, Belgium is in favor of lifting the EU measures against Kosovo when appropriate actions are taken to address the EU's demands".

Basha: Europe committed to keeping Kosovo out due to lack of favors to Serbia (Reporteri)

The MP of Vetevendosje Movement (LVV), Dimal Basha, said in a post on Facebook that Kosovo is committed to being part of the European family.

Kosovo is committed to becoming part of the European family! On the other hand, Europe is equally committed to keeping us out of this family!

Not that we do not share values with them or that we do not meet the criteria, but because we are not doing Serbia a favor, which continues to be led by the Milosevic clan and remains a close ally of Putin!

Happy Europe Day!” Basha wrote.

Serwer: The U.S. should reevaluate its policy towards Serbia (RTK)

The U.S. professor at John Hopkins University, Daniel Serwer, said that the new Serbian government is even more right-winged in ethno-nationalism and is closer to Russia and China than the previous government.

“So, it gives position to Vulin, who is sanctioned and makes prime minister the former minister of defense who has a history of supporting the attacks that have been condemned,” Serwer told RTK.

According to Serwer, with these results, Serbia’s response to the West is that we will not pay attention to them at all. “Vucic is showing the middle finger to the USA,” he said.

He said that Americans should re-evaluate the policy of the last few years and re-establish how to deal with Serbia.

“My opinion is that there will be a dividing line in Europe in the future, so there will not be a complete and free Europe, and this dividing line will pass through the Balkans, not at the edge of the Balkans, and Serbia has decided to be part of the East, not the West,” Serwer added.

Regarding the statement of the High representative of the European Union for foreign policy and security, Josep Borrell, that he is looking forward to working with the new government of Serbia, Serwer said that such a statement should not have been made. "Borell has made such foolish statements very often," he said.

He said that Borell, Lajcak and Escobar have been very lenient towards Serbia. "I don't see any change in their attitudes. In order to change the policy at this point, I believe that the personnel should also be changed", said Serwer.

Speaking about the visit of the leader of China to Serbia, he said that Vucic prefers the dictators of the world.

Hoti: When Kosovo coordinates with its allies, it becomes member, it is not conditioned (media)

Former Prime Minister of Kosovo and current MP of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Avdullah Hoti, said today that whe Kosovo is coordinated with its allies, becomes a member and it is not conditioned.

In a post on Facebook, Hoti mentioned several organisations where Kosovo is a member, referring thus to recent developments related to the process of Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe.

"When Kosovo coordinates with its allies, it becomes a member, it is not conditioned...", wrote Hoti, mentioning further the years when Kosovo became part of several international organizations.

Hoxhaj: Kosovo without a single recognition in four years (media)

Kosovo’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Enver Hoxhaj, said in a Facebook post today that “last week Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago have recognized Palestine’s independence. This month, Spain, Ireland, and Slovenia recognize it too! This shows that despite the war in Gaza, it has regained its momentum. Kosovo, without a single recognition in the last four years, has definitely lost its international momentum! This is the price that Kosovo is paying with no kind of foreign policy”.

Haxhiu: Kurti divided Albanians in North Macedonia, unified Macedonians around VMRO (ekonomia)

The MP of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Bekim Haxhiu, reacted after the results of the elections in North Macedonia, where the party VMRO-DPMNE came first. According to him, the main fault lies with Prime Minister Albin Kurti, whom he called "divider of Albanians".

This is Albin Kurti, the disruptor of Albanians. He divided the Albanians in Macedonia and unified the Macedonians around VMRO. The great victory of VMRO-DPMNE of the Macedonian nationalists is due to the involvement of Albin Kurti and LVV in the elections in Macedonia. Who is this man who is factoring the Serbo-Macedonians, why is he doing this?", he wrote.

Serbian Language Media

Hasani: The French and the Germans conditioned Kosovo because of distrust towards Kurti (KiM radio, KoSSev, Beta)

Professor of Law and International Relations Enver Hasani said that the conditionality of Kosovo by Germany and France, i.e., the membership in the Council of Europe for the Association of Serbian Municipalities, happened because of distrust towards Kosovo Prime Minister, Albin Kurti.

Hasani, who was also the former president of the Constitutional Court, told KTV that the seriousness of the demands of the international community "is humiliating because it expresses deep distrust."

"It is humiliating for one reason, the request that appeared with this intensity has to do with the lack of trust in Kurti regarding the fulfillment of the obligations," Hasani said.

According to him, the content of the A/CSM draft Statute was elaborated by the Brussels Agreement and the Ohrid Annex, which was not done without the knowledge of the Kosovo side.

He also assessed that the mediators for the normalization of the relations between Kosovo and Serbia did not "ruin the dialogue", but the dialogue was institutionalized with them.

"I don't think they failed; the implementation is not 100%. They created a legal framework and introduced the issue of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue into the Euro-Atlantic mechanisms of our Euro-Atlantic integration. This was not the case before. The dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia was not like this before, part of this trend. It is institutionalized, they created the legal framework," Hasani said.

Speaking about the direct involvement of the Kosovo PM and his Self-Determination party in the elections in North Macedonia, Hasani stated that Kurti's intervention divided the Albanians there and homogenized the Macedonian factor.

"What Kurti did is certain: he hegemonized the Macedonian-Slavic factor and divided the Albanian community, and it can be seen today. But even without Kurti's intervention, if only they had fought among themselves politically, this would have been the result. I said it was a mistake when he turned the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) against VMRO. Albanians should not play that game. The bad thing is that they were divided, otherwise there was no big change in the VLEN coalition, whatever the result with five MPs. Confidence is greater in those from DUI, it is clear," he concluded.

Press Council of Kosovo rejected the UNS appeal regarding the RTK's repeated fake news (Kontakt plus radio, KiM radio, Kosovo Online)

The appeal submitted by the Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) in Kosovo regarding the article with headline "Today, 20 years since the March riots", published on the websites of Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK) in Serbian and Albanian, was rejected by the Kosovo Press Council (KMShK). General Secretary of the UNS, Nino Brajovic, says that by making this decision, the KMShK showed solidarity with the publication of fake news, reported Kontakt plus radio.

UNS stated in the complaint that the information published on RTK's Serbian and Albanian language websites on the 20th anniversary of the March Pogrom violated professional norms and that such reporting directly threatens the safety of the entire community.

Let us remind you that on the 20th anniversary of the March pogrom, on the website of RTK in Serbian, false information was repeated, published on March 16, 2004, that three Albanian boys drowned in the Ibar river "while fleeing from the group Serbian young men".

After the Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) with its branch in Kosovo reacted, the website of RTK changed the news, emphasizing that "it was corrected after a previous unintentional technical journalistic error, for which they apologize."

On that occasion, RTK removed a part of the information in which it is claimed that three Albanian boys drowned while running away from young Serbs, but they did not state that the news they were talking about was untrue.

UNS complained about both the original and the corrected version, stating that Article 2 of the Kosovo Press Code, which refers to truthful reporting, and Article 3, which refers to incitement and hate speech, were violated.

However, the Press Council of Kosovo rejected the appeal, stating that none of the mentioned articles were violated. In the decision of the KMShK, it is written that the RTK journalist only "described the situation that happened 20 years ago, stating that the news about the drowning of children - while being chased by young Serbs - had a great impact".

"The media did not assess that 'the children drowned in the river after being chased by young Serbs', but only indicated the impact such news had," says the Kosovo Press Council.

Otherwise, the first paragraph of Article on Truthfulness of Reporting of the Kosovo Press Code, it is stated that "journalists and editors in their entire work ensure respect for true facts and the right of the public to know the truth".

The information about which UNS complained to the Press Council, and which was published by RTK, as UNS General Secretary Nino Brajovic says, lacks the essential fact to be true, namely that it is fake news, which, as RTK correctly states, ''had a great response".

"Yes, it had a great impact. Its consequence was the March 17th pogrom, in which 19 people were killed and 39 churches and monasteries were destroyed, villages and urban areas were burned, more than 900 persons were beaten and mistreated, and about 4,000 Serbs were expelled. Unfortunately, the Press Council, instead of stating that the news published by RTK lacked the essential feature that it was fake, ignores that fact and stands in solidarity with the repetition of fake news that had tragic consequences for the Serbian community in Kosovo. We had fake news, and now we have its rehabilitation and the fake Press Council of Kosovo", adds Brajovic.

As UNS previously wrote, apart from omitting the fact that it was fake news, the information published on RTK did not even state that Serbs died in the pogrom, but only Albanians were cited as victims.

Despite the repetition of false information, which, as RTK journalists themselves state, became the reason for the riots, the Kosovo Press Council says that the original version of this year's RTK text "was correct".

"The media took measures and improved that text, removing the sentence that refers to the alleged persecution of children by young Serbs - although it was neither a statement nor a position of the media, but was only mentioned in the context of the resonance the news had and the impact it had on causing unrest," stated the Kosovo Press Council's explanation.

Giafreut: Focus on expansion (N1, RTS)

European Union Ambassador Emanuel Giaufret told the Radio Television of Serbia that the new European Commission will focus on expansion which includes Serbia and the rest of the Western Balkans, reported N1.

He said the Serbian authorities should implement judiciary reforms and normalize relations with Pristina. “We believe that Serbia’s chosen strategic goal of membership in the EU is important to its population but we have to move forward and speed up reforms, he said and added that reforms, combating corruption and organized crime, making sure the judiciary is independent and that there is pluralism in the media as key issues”.

He said the EU has grown to a community of 27 countries with open borders and added that cooperation is even more important with war in Europe. The geopolitical situation has changed and there is a need to integrate new countries into the Union and that is in its geostrategic interest, the head of the EU Delegation said.

Commenting on the Chinese president’s visit to Serbia, Giaufret recalled that China is the country’s third largest trade partner after the EU and CEFTA. He said China is an important trade partner for the EU but that it is also its competitor and rival because of its political system.

Blakaj on European of the Year award – Confirmation that we are doing right (Radio KIM)

“This award is significant for the organization as it is a confirmation that we are on the good path and that we are doing right”, Bekim Blakaj, Humanitarian Law Centre Director Bekim Blakaj told Radio KIM on the occasion of receiving the European of the Year 2024 award.

He received this award ahead of the Europe Day for making significant contributions to the promotion of European ideas and values in Kosovo. Other candidates included Vesna Stajic from the Shelter for Gender Based Violence Victims, Blert Murini from NGO Cel Kosovo and Mentor Gashi and Slavisa Stojanovic from Pristina Dogs Shelter.

Blakaj told Radio KIM he did not expect the award. “I was very glad when they asked me to be nominated for it”, he said, adding he is happy and proud to receive it and that all other nominated persons equally deserved this award.

According to him, this represents recognition of the Humanitarian Law Centre in Kosovo work. “It is most important that our work is recognized and the contributions we make in the field of dealing with the past. This award is a contribution to the organization. Equally deserving of this award are the people with whom we cooperate, a huge number of individuals, and among them there are also those from the community of victims", he said.

European of the Year is awarded for the ninth year in a row by the EU Office in Pristina, on the occasion of Europe Day. Individuals or institutions whom the EU Office says contributed the most to promotion of the European idea in Kosovo during the previous year are nominated. While the EU in Kosovo and the EU member states propose candidates, the winner is decided by voting on the EU Office in Kosovo Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Vitia with the managers of the health sector in the North, appointed in the Kosovo system (KoSSev)

KoSSev portal reported that Kosovo Health Minister Arben Vitia met today with health and municipal managers from the North of the Kosovo system, most of whom are Serbs.

"The Minister of Health, Dr. Arben Vitia, received today at a meeting the representatives of three northern municipalities of the Republic of Kosovo: The President of the Municipality Leposavic, Mr. Lulzim Hetemi, the deputy president of Leposavic municipality Mrs. Marina Bogojevic, the director of health in the municipality of Leposavic - Mrs. Marina Zdravkovic, the director of health in Zubin Potok - Mrs. Gordana Mihajlovic, as well as health workers from Zvecan, Mrs. Valbona Kelmendi and Mr. Xhevdet Tahiri".

"At this meeting, the challenges and needs of the health system in our country, especially in the respective municipalities, were discussed. The commitment of the Ministry of Health will be continuous in every respect, since protecting the health of every citizen of the Republic of Kosovo is our duty and obligation, Minister Vitia said," announced the Kosovo Ministry of Health.

According to KoSSev portal, in question are persons who are relatively unknown in the North as directors of the health sector, that is, institutions in the Kosovo system that are not visible in the North and de facto do not function as primary and tertiary health institutions.

On the other hand, for the Kosovo authorities, the healthcare system of Serbia in the North is treated as "parallel", that is, "illegal", wrote the portal.

Vucic congratulates new North Macedonian President on election win (Tanjug)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic congratulated Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova on winning the recent run-off presidential elections in North Macedonia.

In a post on the social media network X, Vucic wished Siljanovska-Davkova success in her new post. "I am confident that we will together continue to work on strengthening Serbia-Macedonia ties with a view to progress and well-being of our peoples as well as prosperity of the entire region", he added.

Siljanovska-Davkova responded that she highly appreciated Vucic's sincere congratulations. "I expect that we will continue to work on advancing the exceptional Macedonian-Serbian relations. Thank you very much, President Vucic", she wrote.

Mali: Xi's visit opens new chapter of cooperation and Serbia's economic growth (Tanjug, media)

Besides being politically significant and boosting Serbia's reputation, Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Belgrade is very important economically as well and opens up new prospects for Serbia and a new chapter in its cooperation with China as well as its overall growth and development, Serbian Finance Minister Sinisa Mali said on Thursday.

"Besides EXPO 2027, the FTA with China, which takes effect on July 1, is the biggest development opportunity for Serbia for the next 15 to 20 years", Mali said in an appearance on Pink TV.

Serbia has FTA with the CEFTA and good relations with EU member states, as well as FTAs with the Eurasian Economic Union and Turkey and preferential status with the US, Mali noted.

"Now that we also have an FTA with China, the question arises of why someone who wants to invest in a country would not come to Serbia", he added. "In our country, they (foreign investors) have all the conditions when it comes to infrastructure, a good geographic position, a stable environment, an attractive, competitive economy, and when they build a factory and hire Serbians, they can manufacture products and export to countries with a total population of two billion", Mali said.

International

Russian Hackers Accused of Cyberattacks on Kosovo Government Websites (Prishtina Insight)

A Kosovo government spokesperson told BIRN that Russian hackers targeted official websites on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“We were informed by the relevant institutions that some government websites have been the target of DDoS attacks. For a short time the websites were not functioning,” the spokesperson said.

“The attack was carried out by Russian hackers in retaliation for our support of Ukraine with military equipment,” he added*.

He said that the government’s Information Society Agency got the websites working again without “consequences in the data”.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti told a press conference on Wednesday that Russian hackers’ aim was “a hybrid war which, if successful, would result in the destabilisation of Kosovo’s security, stability and welfare institutions”.

Foreign Minister Donika Gervalla-Schwarz first announced on X on Tuesday afternoon that “Russia is attacking Kosovo in a hybrid attack today, following our announcement of support in military equipment for Ukraine in its justified defence against Russian genocidal aggression”.