Albanian Language Media:

• Prime Minister Kurti on a two-day visit to Austria (media)
• Disagreement over association and stalled dialogue (DW Albanian)
• Hajdari: We must prepare for reciprocity (Ekonomia Online)
• Assembly Presidency meeting fails due to lack of quorum (media)
• PDK demands resignation of the Ombudsman (RTK)
• Kosovo Bar That Refused to Serve Minorities Condemned (Prishtina Insight)
• The American Chamber of Commerce calls on companies in Kosovo to avoid discrimination actions (media)
• Kosovo to Release Energy Strategy Amid Controversy Over Gas Pipeline (Prishtina Insight)
• COVID-19: 10 new cases, no deaths (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Covid-19: 58 new cases, one death registered in Serbian areas on Saturday (Radio KIM)
• Vucic to meet Lajcak in Belgrade tomorrow (Tanjug, Kosovo Online)
• Brnabic reacts to Kurti’s statement on possible unification with Albania (Euronews, Tanjug)
• Petkovic: International community must react to Kurti’s unification statements (N1)
• Serbian List: Kurti is against ZSO, yet he would vote for mono-national “Greater Albania” (Kosovo-online)
• Oliver Ivanovic murder case trial continues (Radio KIM)
• Vasic family house in Cernica village pelted with stones (Radio KIM)
• EU and Western Balkans: Membership blocked; only aid and investment in return (Beta, Danas)
• Serbian goods placement in Kosovo only half of the one before the taxes (Danas)
• Adviser to the UN Secretary-General: Please remove the Mladic mural (N1)

Opinion:

• Kosovo 2022 census and the Serb community (KiM radio)
• Is this the end of the peace pact holding Bosnia together? (politico.org)

International:

• North Macedonia: On the Edge (cepa.org)
• Croatian Contingent Given Send-Off to Kosovo Without Presence of Media, Minister (total-croatia-news.com)

   

Albanian Language Media  

  Prime Minister Kurti on a two-day visit to Austria (media)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti has traveled to the Austrian capital, Vienna, for a two-day official visit. During this visit, Prime Minister Kurti will hold a bilateral meeting with the Chancellor of Austria, Alexander Schallenberg, to discuss the relations between Kosovo and Austria and ways to strengthen them by increasing cooperation in areas of common interest. In addition to other official meetings, Prime Minister Kurti will take part in the discussion organized by the Karl Renner Institute, on "Kosovo: A ray of hope for democracy in Southeast Europe," which will be held today at 18:00 hours. The live broadcast of this discussion will take place on the official channel of the "Karl Renner" Institute on YouTube and on the social network Facebook.

Disagreement over association of Serb-majority municipalities and stalled dialogue (DW Albanian)

The Serbian side says that Pristina should establish the association of Serbian municipalities, before talking about a final agreement. Pristina says that in the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, the deadlines have already been presented when there can be a comprehensive final agreement, but this has been opposed by the Serbian side, which says that official Pristina should implement the agreements reached so far before talking about deadlines. Kosovo's chief negotiator in Kosovo-Serbia dialogue Besnik Bislimi, after returning from Brussels where the Kosovo and Serbian sides met with EU mediators, but not between them, told local media that "a comprehensive agreement of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue will be completed within a certain deadline" which according to him, “coincides with the mandate of the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti ".

"The deadlines are actually presented, but they have to do with a coincidence that the mandate of Mr. Kurti, Mr. Biden and Mr. Borrell coincide," said Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi, without mentioning an exact date.

"To us, it is initially important for the agreement to be good, not to the harm the citizens, then the timeline is important, but not as essential as the quality of the agreement. We will not sign any agreement that we would know for certain that it is to the detriment of the citizens," Bislimi said.

"There is hesitation from the other side. We are saying that the main focus should be on the comprehensive, legally binding agreement, and the Serbian side is saying to deal once with the other previous agreements, then we go to the comprehensive agreement," he stressed.

Official Belgrade reacted to these statements of the chief negotiator of Kosovo, saying that there are no deadlines for Albin Kurti to end the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. The director of the Office for Kosovo in the government of Serbia, who is also the Serbian chief negotiator in the dialogue Petar Petkovic, said that official Pristina should implement the agreements reached so far, prior to talking about deadlines.

"Contrary to the claims of the chief negotiator of Kosovo Besnik Bislimi, there are no deadlines for Kurti, in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, and the probability of reaching an agreement is not measured by time, but by Kosovo's readiness to respect the agreements reached so far and enabling the formation of the Association of Serb Majority Municipalities," Petkovic said in a statement issued by the office for Kosovo in the government of Serbia. According to him, “the end of the dialogue cannot be visible when Prishtina did not implement those agreed upon nine years ago, at the beginning of the dialogue."

"The fact that Pristina would like to have results of dialogue has nothing to do with reality or dialogue, as Pristina is wasting time with us and the mediators from the EU. The formation of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities is at the core of the dialogue and the continuation of the normalization of relations can be discussed productively only after Pristina does not evade its obligations and takes concrete steps towards the implementation of what its representatives signed in Brussels," Petkovic said.

One of the main reasons why the Kosovar and Serbian sides failed to sit down at a table last week in Brussels was precisely the issue of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities. The Serbian side insisted for this issue to be part of the talks, but the Kosovo side refused. The establishment of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities for official Pristina is inapplicable due to the fact that this is not allowed by the Constitution of Kosovo.

The formation of the Association is part of an agreement reached in 2013, in the framework of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. Two years later, in 2015, the parties had reached an agreement on the principles of establishing this Association. However, the Constitutional Court of Kosovo found that the principles for it are not in accordance with the Constitution of Kosovo, although it says that they can be harmonized with a legal act of the government of Kosovo. It is precisely the issue of the Association and the lack of progress in the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue that is making another high-level political meeting between Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic impossible, despite the calls of the international community that both sides should sit at the table.

German Ambassador to Kosovo Jorn Rohde, told a local television channel Kanal10, "It's good when you are optimistic, I'm optimistic too. In order to reach an agreement, we need to talk to the other party. You cannot determine at the table what the other party decides. You set your demands, they do the same. In this manner you see where a common ground can be found. This is the principle of whatever you call it, dialogue or negotiation. You have to talk to each other. It is not a good idea to refuse to talk about certain issues because it creates taboos and taboos do not lead to results," Ambassador Jorn Rohde said.

However, Serbia's pressure on official Pristina to establish the Association is being done through the Serbian List, which has 10 MPs in the Kosovo Assembly and is not participating in the meetings of the presidency of the assembly in order to prevent the convening of regular sessions. Following the local elections in which the Serbian List won in Serb-majority municipalities, the chairman of this political entity, Goran Rakic, stated that the party's struggle was focused on forming the Association of Serb-majority municipalities. "If there is no Association, there will be no Kosovo institutions," Goran Rakic said.

Hajdari: We must prepare for reciprocity (Ekonomia Online)

The Democratic Institute of Kosovo (KDI), in cooperation with the Committee on Economy, Industry, Entrepreneurship and Trade, have organized a public discussion on "Trade Barriers between Kosovo and Serbia".

The Minister of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Trade, Rozeta Hajdari said that Kosovo continues to be treated unequally towards Serbia.

 According to her, it is unacceptable that Kosovo is still presented through UNMIK in CEFTA, adding that they have addressed a request to this institution on this issue.

Speaking about trade reciprocity with Serbia, she said that additional work is required to prepare the institutions if they intend to apply such measures.

She claimed that there should be reciprocity in politics and not only in trade issues, adding that any instrument would protect local producers.

"Kosovo must play a constructive role in the bilateral dialogue. Kosovo is not properly represented. Why did not Kosovo request the departure of UNMIK through CEFTA? Kosovo is represented through UNMIK. We are still waiting for CEFTA to address our letter. We will continue to insist for Kosovo to be treated equally. And we sent this letter in September, which caused reactions from Serbia."

"Kosovo has the advantage that it has the opportunity to disagree with the decisions taken in CEFTA. If Kosovo is not treated equally and is represented through UNMIK how much do we gain from participating in CEFTA? If we stop the products of Serbia, where will the trucks stop? We need work to prepare the institutions if we want to apply reciprocity."

She added that the government is committed to use every instrument to protect our producer.

The Chairman of the Commission, Ferat Shala said that the trade barriers between the two countries have recently increased even more, therefore such a discussion could serve in finding a solution.

KDI representative Violeta Haxholli said that they have continuously provided assistance to the Assembly to strengthen its role in the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue.

Although she said that Kosovar companies are being severely damaged by the barriers of the neighboring state, she has demanded for economic issues not be part of political clashes.

"The issue of barriers between the two countries has always been a topic. The issue of Kosovo-Serbia relations has been one of the topics that the political spectrum has not agreed on. There is currently no reciprocity and companies face challenges. Kosovo applied protective measures against Serbia in 2011".

"At that time, it was the reason for Serbia to accept the customs stamp. Trade reciprocity has been abolished by the Hoti government. We now have a new government which has stated that it will establish trade reciprocity with Serbia, but there is still no decision. The Minister has warned that products entering Serbia will be investigated. What we have identified is that this topic should not become a topic of political clashes."

PDK demands resignation of the Ombudsman (RTK)

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) is demanding the resignation of the People's Advocate Naim Qelaj, after the latter rejected the complaint of the former chairwoman of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Valdete Daka against the President's decision to terminate her mandate as chairwoman of the CEC.

After the failure of the meeting of the Presidency of the Assembly in a press conference, the head of the PDK Parliamentary Group, Abelard Tahiri, called the decision of the People's Advocate shameful.

"It is not the People's Advocate who should assess the constitutionality of this act. The People's Advocate is the one who protects human rights in the Republic of Kosovo, and in this case, he should send the case to the Constitutional Court. As of today, we can no longer call him the 'People's Advocate', we can only call him the 'Advocate of Vjosa Osmani, of the President'. I do not think he deserves to stay in that position, as his assessments are unacceptable. His assessments that the decision was in accordance with the Constitution are unacceptable and I think that after this shameful act, he should no longer stay in that office. He would honor himself and the position if he resigned."

Tahiri said that this violation was also identified in the Progress Report. He warned that he would not stop trying to secure the necessary number of signatures to address the ombudsman's decision to the Constitutional Court, even though he had failed to collect it once.

"I have made constant efforts and we have not reached an agreement. I will not stop until the last days, because here we are clearly dealing with constitutional violations. I am not saying it only as an opposition, this has also been said by the Progress Report, therefore I will be dealing with this issue until the last days," he added.

Assembly Presidency meeting fails due to lack of quorum (media)

The meeting of the Assembly Presidency failed to be held today due to the lack of quorum. However, President Glauk Konjufca has scheduled the next parliamentary session, to be held on Thursday, starting at 10:00 hours.

The head of the Vetevendosje Movement (LVV) parliamentary group Mimoza Kusari-Lila told the media that a representative of the Serbian List (SL) and members of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) were not present at the meeting.

"The meeting of the Presidency of the Assembly lacked quorum again. The representative of the Serbian List and two representatives of the opposition parties LDK and PDK were not there. However, today the President of the Assembly, in accordance with his right according to the Constitution, scheduled the next plenary session of the Assembly on November 25 [Thursday] starting at 10:00,″ Kusari – Lila stated.

According to her, the most important point of this session is the review of the Draft Budget for 2022.

Kosovo Bar That Refused to Serve Minorities Condemned (Prishtina Insight)

After a Kosovo Minister on Sunday criticised a bar in a western town that had refused to some youngsters belonging to minority communities, an NGO and members of the public said such behaviour was intolerable, and should be investigated.

Kosovo’s public reacted angrily on Sunday after the Minister of Local Government, Elbert Krasniqi, reported that a bar in the western town of Gjakove/Djakovica had refused to serve a group of youngsters belonging to minority communities.

“It is shameful that bars in different Kosovo cities, in different ways, refuse to serve [minority] community members,” Krasniqi wrote in his Facebook page on Sunday.

He called for a boycott of bars and hospitality sites that differentiate between people based on ethnicity. “People with racial hatred should not be supported in their development,” Krasniqi said.

Krasniqi himself represents the small Egyptian community in PM Albin Kurti’s government.

“Gjakove/Djakovica is among exemplary towns when it comes to coexistence and such cases should not be allowed to happen. Institutions and society should engage to guarantee and develop coexistence and equal possibilities to all citizens,” he added.

Krasniqi’s post drew support on social media, with Minister of Justice Albulena Haxhiu calling the snub “unacceptable and to be condemned”.

“This should not happen anywhere, anytime. Equality, not discrimination,” she said.

A Pristina-based NGO, the Council for the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms, CDHRF, called on police to investigate.

“CDHRF has no verified information that supports the Minister’s statement so it calls on the police to start an investigation and, if proved, to take legal measures against those who refused to serve minority communities, violating human rights guaranteed by the Constitution,” it said.

“If this suspicion of Minister Krasniqi is confirmed, any inaction by law enforcement agencies will encourage potential violators in the future,” CDHRF added.

Kosovo’s population of 1.8 million people is mainly Albanian, but also includes Serbs, Bosnians, Romani, Ashkali, Gorani, Egyptians and Turks.

Kosovo’s constitution describes the country as a “multi-ethnic society consisting of Albanian and other Communities”. It defines these Communities as “inhabitants belonging to the same national or ethnic, linguistic, or religious group traditionally present on the territory of the Republic of Kosovo” and says they are entitled to “specific rights”.

Those rights include “to freely express, foster and develop their identity and community attributes,” as defined in the Law on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Communities and their Members in Kosovo.

Meanwhile, in another incident, Deputy Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Sejnur Veshall reported that a Roma family was assaulted on Sunday evening in a shopping mall in the southern town of Prizren because one of the family members was not wearing a mask. “In shopping malls nobody wears masks… but it’s easier to exercise violence to the Roma community,” he said.

Police confirmed the incident and said that four persons were detained after the incident but were released on the Prosecutor’s decision.

The American Chamber of Commerce calls on companies in Kosovo to avoid discrimination actions (media)

The American Chamber of Commerce has reacted to Sunday’s reports and expressed concern about the discriminatory treatment of members of a certain community by employees of an economic operator.

“The American Chamber recalls that non-discriminatory treatment is a constitutional obligation for all in Kosovo, while the practices of comprehensive and non-discriminatory service should be part of the active demonstration of corporate social responsibility values, and as such, should be respected at all times by enterprises in Kosovo,” it is said in the communique.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo has called on companies in Kosovo to avoid actions that they believe may suggest discrimination or exclusion from the right to service on any grounds.

Kosovo’s government has presented its new energy strategy for the next decade as arguments continue over a stalled project to build a gas link to North Macedonia.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Economy Minister Artane Rizvanolli have presented the working group that will be working on the Energy Strategy 2022-2031 for Kosovo.

Although the strategy does not specifically mention the issue of gas, it has been a topic of discussion in almost each parliamentary session, with opposition parties criticizing the government for its reluctance to go ahead with a US-supported project to build a gas pipeline to North Macedonia.

On September 30, Rizvanolli announced that the government would not push ahead with the project, planned with the support of the US agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, MCC.

Kurti said the energy strategy was the first one of its kind in Kosovo and was based on clear data and compiled by experts, and would be drafted through democratic and transparent processes.

“We have taken on the important task of developing a national energy strategy and identifying action plans so that our energy sector can embark on a full economic transition, a transition which will verify the energy mix, preserve security of supply will promote clean energy and regional cooperation, primarily with Albania but also other countries,” Kurti said.

Minister Rizvanolli said that by January 2022 they expected to have the draft strategy out for public consultation and finalized by March.

She described the plan as a strategy that would increase efficiency in energy, industry and households.

“The share of renewable sources in our electricity consumption today is only 5 per cent, while in the scenarios we are developing … this figure will increase to 25 or 30 per cent by 2031,” she said.

The stalled gas project has meanwhile sparked controversy in the Assembly between the government and opposition.

“Our government risks not receiving the benefits from such a project. I do not know how you will act in the future, Prime Minister, to seek support from the allies for energy, when you unreasonably rejected this project,” Ramush Hardinaj, from the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, AAK, said.

On November 18, Rizvanolli said that the government had decided not to push forward the MCC project, which had not been rejected, just postponed.

The stated reason for the postponement was that studies were focused on the technical side, while financial information was lacking.

“It has not been rejected, maybe it will be done. If it is done it will be because it is the best option for Kosovo and when we are clear about this. If it is not done, we will have other options which the strategy will reveal,” Rizvanolli said.

The cost of building the pipeline, as well as a gas power plant, according to the government, was estimated at around 600  million euros.

However, 95 per cent of the energy consumed in Kosovo comes from burning coal. In addition to centrally generating electricity from the Kosova A and Kosova B power plants in Obiliq, coal is the main source of heating in private households.

COVID-19: 10 new cases, no deaths (media)

Ten new cases with COVID-19 were confirmed in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 13 persons recovered from the virus during this time. There are 323 active cases with COVID-19 in Kosovo.

   

Serbian Language Media

  Covid-19: 58 new cases, one death registered in Serbian areas on Saturday (Radio KIM)

Out of 166 tested samples in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo, 58 tested positive for Covid-19 and one person passed away, Crisis Committee of Mitrovica North announced on Saturday, Radio KIM reports.

Deceased person was from Zubin Potok.

New cases were registered as follows: 16 in Mitrovica North, 12 each in Zubin Potok and Zvecan, ten in Leposavic, three each in Strpce and Gnjilane, and one each in Kamenica and Gracanica.

Currently there are 565 active cases of Covid-19 in the Serbian areas in Kosovo, while 98 persons completed a two-week isolation period.

Also, a total of 184 persons passed away in the Serb populated areas in Kosovo since the outbreak of the pandemic. 

Vucic to meet Lajcak in Belgrade tomorrow (Tanjug, Kosovo Online, Danas)

President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic will meet the special representative of the EU for the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina and other regional issues of the Western Balkans, Miroslav Lajcak on Tuesday, November 23, reported Tanjug. 

The meeting will be held at 12 o'clock in the building of the General Secretariat of the President of the Republic.

After the meeting, a press release will be forwarded to the media, the Service for Cooperation with the Media of the President of the Republic announced today.

Lajcak talked last week in Brussels with the main negotiators of Pristina and Belgrade in the Brussels dialogue, Besnik Bislimi and Petar Petkovic, recalled Danas daily.

Two meetings of the Working Group for resolving the issue of license plates were held in Brussels.

Last week, the EU Special Representative also had separate meetings with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Serbia, Nikola Selakovic, Montenegro, Djordje Radulovic and Northern Macedonia, Bujar Osmani.

Brnabic reacts to Kurti’s statement on possible unification with Albania (Euronews, Tanjug)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said on Sunday that the statement of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti that he would vote in the future for unification of Kosovo and Albania could seriously destabilize an entire region, Euronews in Serbian reports.

“This statement is yet another rock in undermining the foundations of regional stability and security. This statement could cause major upheavals in an entire region. It is a clear policy of Albin Kurit, which as it seems to me, he doesn’t hide. What concerns me even more is the lack of the reaction by the international community”, Brnabic said.

As media reported earlier Kurti said on Saturday that he would vote in favor of unification of Kosovo with Albania in a future referendum, provided that the referendum is peaceful and democratic.

Regarding the statement, Brnabic also said she would like to hear from Viola von Cramon, EP Rapporteur for Kosovo, something that relates to her job as the EP Rapporteur, adding she deals more with central Serbia and various topics there, starting from rights of employees, rule of law, climate for investment, mining, instead of dealing with what is going on in Kosovo.

“She doesn’t declare on what she is supposed to declare as a Rapporteur for so-called Kosovo, and that is the statement of Albin Kurti (on unification)”, Brnabic said. “I would like to hear both the EU and Viola von Cramon what they have to say on this. Any silence is a sign of approval”.

Brnabic recalled there were 117 various attacks against the Serbs and their properties in Kosovo this year alone, and as she said, “von Cramon didn’t react to any of them”.

Petkovic: International community must react to Kurti’s unification statements (N1)

Serbian Government Office for Kosovo and Metohija Director Petar Petkovic, said the international community must react to the allegations of the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, regarding “Greater Albania”, because its silence could mean approving and dragging the region into new conflicts and the destabilization of the region, N1 reports.

As the media reported earlier, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said that in the future he would vote for Kosovo’s unification with Albania, but only if such a referendum was conducted peacefully and democratically.

“There can be no peaceful and democratic referendum on the creation of “Greater Albania”, because those who would vote in that referendum do not have Kosovo at their disposal and they would turn the majority of humanity that supports the international law against them“, Petkovic said in a statement.

Serbian List: Kurti is against ZSO, yet he would vote for mono-national “Greater Albania” (Kosovo-online)

Reacting to the statement of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti that he would vote in the future for possible unification with Albania, Serbian List said that “Kurti by saying he would gladly vote for the creation of a “Greater Albania”, has shown his real face which he unsuccessfully hid all this time and which some Western politicians were neglecting”, Kosovo-online portal reports.

“The same Albin Kurti who spoke against the Community of Serbian Municipalities (ZSO) as a ‘monoethnic community’ is now talking about “Greater Albania”, which would be nothing more than a monoethnic creation. Are these the European values, by having Kosovo highest representatives calling for the formation of a creation that existed before only during the time of fascist occupation of this area. We are wondering what else needs to happen, so that the European Union, but also the prominent countries of Western Europe, would react to such anti-European statements which most directly endanger the peace and tranquility of the citizens”, Serbian List said in a statement.

The Serbian List said they condemn in the strongest terms “these irrational statements, which cause a feeling of insecurity among the citizens and which confirm that an extremely irresponsible person is leading the Government in Pristina, who is not aware, neither of his responsibility or the situation in the Western Balkans”.

Oliver Ivanovic murder case trial continues (Radio KIM)

The trial in the murder of Civic initiative Freedom, Democracy, Justice (GI SDP) leader and Serbian politician Oliver Ivanovic continues today at the special department of the Basic Court in Pristina, Radio KIM reports.

Today’s hearing was initially scheduled on September 14, then moved to September 17, and then due to Covid-19 measures scheduled for today. It started with a half an hour delay, due to technical reasons, and the journalists were told they must not publish the statements of the witnesses, Radio KIM said.

Caslav Ilic and Ksenija Bozovic will present their testimonies today, while the wife of Oliver Ivanovic, Milena Popovic was also invited, however, she informed the court she won’t be able to attend the hearing due to health reasons.

Ivanovic’s ex-wife, Marina Ivanovic and his son Nikola, who previously represented the family as an affected party, were not present either. A lawyer Milan Bigovic represents the Ivanovic family.

Kosovo Special Prosecution raised an indictment against six persons of Serb ethnicity for “taking part in or organizing a criminal group, misuse of official authority, aiding and abetting the criminal act of aggravated murder, unlawful possession of weapons, revealing official secrete and misuse of official authority by manipulating evidence”.

Oliver Ivanovic was gunned down while going to his party premises in Mitrovica North on January 16, 2018. 

Vasic family house in Cernica village pelted with stones (Radio KIM)

Family house and a yard of Stojan Vasic from Cernica village near Gnjilane were pelted with stones and glass bottles on Saturday afternoon, Office for Kosovo and Metohija said in a statement, Radio KIM reports.

At the moment of the incident, Stojan Vasic was not on his property, but his relative Ljubisa Petrovic was there.

The Office for KiM said that the case has been reported to the police which opened an investigation. “This is about disgraceful intimidation and attack against the Serbs living in Cernica village and an attempt to expel them out from their properties. Although the stones were pelted in Gnjilane, an inspirer of this holligan attack is based in Pristina, from where anti-Serbian rhetoric and policy of impunity encourage such and similar acts against the Serbs”, Office for KiM said in a statement. 

EU and Western Balkans: Membership blocked; only aid and investment in return (Beta, Danas)

The conclusion of EU officials dealing with the Western Balkans, as well as analysts of European institutes, is that the Western Balkans path towards membership in the European Union is currently "on hold", but it is inevitable to see what the region can offer in return, reported daily Danas. 

The Brussels-based "Center for European Policy" believes that "since there is no real progress in EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, nor valid solutions to overcome the region's fundamental problems, the European Union's promises of support and a common future now sound empty... it is unclear where the enlargement policy is going now."

In an analysis by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Oxford University professor Dimitar Becher said that although the Western Balkans were not lost to the EU, ''the Union must largely blame itself for losing influence and its main goal of membership being its 'Achilles' heel', because if the doors of the EU remain closed, those in power in the region will turn a deaf ear to Brussels' demands".

Diplomatic sources in Brussels also convey the conclusion of those familiar with the events in the Western Balkans that the whole region is currently very bad, they say, "a very disappointing situation" from the point of view of the adoption of European standards and laws, poorly developed democracies.

As they note, the authorities in the region are mostly autocratic rulers, often involved in corruption and even crime, prone to demagoguery, nationalism, chauvinism with which they maintain power. According to these sources, the reluctance of some EU members and potential voters there to accept "poor relatives with open arms'' suits them, because they themselves do not want to enforce norms and rules, especially the rule of law, judicial independence and freedom of expression since it could easily mean they could lose power, and to end up in prison even.

Some reputable centers for political analysis, such as the Berlin Institute for Security and International Politics and the Rome Institute for International Affairs, think that because of the priority given to stability policy and hence looking through the fingers at the maturing of autocratic authorities in the Western Balkans, policy of economic cooperation and especially trade policy went to the detriment of a region that has a constant trade deficit with the Union from year to year.

The open market of the Western Balkans is much more conducive to the economic interests of the Union and therefore raises the question of why it would essentially change. Although recently due to the global strategy of European partners in Washington, there is a belief that the influence of China and Russia in the region must not be allowed to increase.

European officials constantly complain that there is not enough information in the Western Balkans about what the EU has given financially, as an aid to the region. But at the same time, the great benefits of the powerful exporters and banks, especially the richest members of the Union, from the open market and the transfer of income from the region to the EU was never shown to the public of the European Union, or in the analyzes of the European Commission. 

There were proposals, French and German, among others, to offer the candidates who arrive at the door of the EU a temporarily privileged partnership, until the Union itself gets out of the turmoil and is able to accept a new member, if everyone agrees.

Carnegie Europe analyst John Kornblum, a former US ambassador to Germany and one of the founders of the Dayton Accords, said that "with the new EU High Representative, and the new German government in sight, it must be important to examine all options for 'non-membership', which could help to strengthen peace and strengthen civil societies in Bosnia, Kosovo and Serbia''. 

As Kornblum is convinced, "Continued foreign aid and economic support will be of vital importance, and much more active engagement of America and Russia in these efforts will be very important," writes Danas. 

The European Union is largely to blame for the unfavorable development in the region due to the bureaucratic-technical procedure of long negotiations on membership and the implementation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement, and by squinting at the collapse of democracy for the sake of stability in the region.  

However, it is true, according to officials and analysts in Brussels, that for now the only tangible tool can be much stronger financial support and earmarked investments, but with the necessary unification of the regional market, which is still in its infancy.

European diplomats and experts from research centers at the same time point out that in addition to the desirable economic and social strengthening of the region in the medium and long term, the whole region is currently very bad, they say "a very disappointing situation", and from the point of view of the adoption of European standards and laws, poorly developed democracies; while in power are mostly autocratic rulers, often steeped in corruption and even crime, prone to demagoguery, nationalism, chauvinism, and this affects the main goals of stability and security that the EU wants to achieve in the Western Balkans. 

European Commissioner for Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi said these days that the European Commission supports enlargement, "because the entry of the Western Balkans into membership is a geostrategic investment in peace, security, stability and economic prosperity of the whole of Europe."

The leaders of the EU institutions and most of the governments of the Union keep repeating that, but the analysts of the European institutes are almost unanimous in the conviction that very few people believe in it in the Western Balkans.

Serbian goods placement in Kosovo only half of the one before the taxes (Danas)

New measures for confectionery products that Serbia places in Kosovo were announced by the Minister of Trade, Rozeta Hajdari, in order to "reduce the enormous increase in imports and protect domestic producers", writes Danas daily. 

While the Kosovo authorities are deciding on the measures, one of the largest Serbian confectionery companies "Bambi" says that the increase in exports is logical, because several months of taxes of 100 percent on goods from central Serbia influenced the placement in Kosovo to start only in April 2020.

"It took us a while to reach the previous level, but it should be noted that our exports now are not higher than they were before the introduction of taxes in November 2018," explains the manager of that company, Ivan Jovanovic.

That his words do not only apply only to "Bambi", but can refer to the entire Serbian export to Kosovo, is also shown by the data on the import to Kosovo of the local statistical office.

During 2018, the most imported goods from the Balkan countries to Kosovo came from Serbia - 11.6 percent, and next year, while taxes were in force, it fell to 0.2 percent. The year before, Serbia was still behind Albania and Northern Macedonia with 5.3 percent.

If we look at the trends during September, we can see that the share of Serbia in imports was slightly above six percent in this and the previous year, while in 2018 it was twice as high (12.8 percent). As more precise data are not publicly available, it is difficult to conclude to what extent confectionery products participate in this. This is perhaps best shown by the image of shelves in stores across Kosovo, which are dominated by Serbian sweets and savory. This means that the new measures would significantly affect Serbia, claims Predrag Bjelic, a professor of international trade at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade.

"The introduction of measures is the result of an obvious desire to protect the domestic industry, since Kosovo's confectionery production is underdeveloped. The question is whether there is a political background, what is certain is that it is contrary to the rules of the Central European Agreement on Foreign Trade (CEFTA). Serbia addressed CEFTA the previous time as well, but they did not have an efficient mechanism and there will not be any until a new one is adopted for resolving disputes. It should be according to the rules of the world trade idea, that there is a possibility of excluding the country against which the objection is being voted, which is not the case now and that blocks any possibility of solving the problem," Bjelic believes

For now, Serbian exporters can only hope that a solution will be found according to which free trade will not be disabled or slowed down, concludes Jovanovic from Bambi.

Adviser to the UN Secretary-General: Please remove the Mladic mural (N1)

Acknowledging that genocide has taken place does not mean denying that other crimes have taken place, nor does condemning a person for genocide mean that the guilt is collective, said UN Secretary-General's Adviser on Genocide Prevention Alice Wairim Nderitu, who was on a three-day visit to Belgrade.

In an interview with N1, Nderitu said that the debate about the mural of the convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic reveals deeper processes and notes that society should talk about that.

“I think the mural provides space for such a conversation. It provides space, but it should not exist. My attitude and advice to everyone I spoke to was: ‘Please remove the mural’. That is advice from someone who has seen so much violence and so many wars in the world and that is why I say: ‘Remove the mural.’ And when I say that the mural should be removed, I also mean other murals with people who have been convicted should be removed,” Nderitu said.

The mural appeared in July 2021 on the corner of Njegoseva and Aleksa Nenadovica streets. The Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) called for the removal of the mural painted on the side of an apartment building but the gathering was banned by the police citing possible clashes between Mladic supporters and YIHR activists.

She added that at the same time, the crisis should be used to start a conversation on how to move the country forward.

“A lot of people told me that they were indignant because of all the verdicts against Serbs, and that ‘they perceive us that way because of them.’ I tell people that this is not a narrative that I believe in and that I came here with. I came to Serbia to look for leaders and to look for voices that are different from those who are ‘for’ or ‘against’ it,” said the adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Prevention of Genocide.

Ratko Mladic was sentenced to life imprisonment before the Hague Tribunal for genocide in the east-Bosnian town of Srebrenica and crimes against humanity against non-Serbs during the 1992-1995 war in the country.

See at: https://bit.ly/2ZbMy4R    

Opinion

  Kosovo 2022 census and the Serb community (KiM radio) By Stefan Surlic

The last census in Kosovo was conducted in 2011 without data from the north of Kosovo (North Mitrovica, Leposavic, Zvecan, Zubin Potok), while south of the Ibar, only about 25,000 Serbs accepted the work of enumerators. Therefore, the census planned for 2022, above all, should show the degree of trust in Pristina institutions by the Serbian community, and especially the effects of previous agreements reached between Belgrade and Pristina, wrote Stefan Surlic from the Faculty of Political Sciences (FPN) in Belgrade.

The Brussels agreement marked the beginning of the integration of local self-governments in the north of Kosovo through the holding of local elections, and the census planned for 2022 would be another type of test on the degree of trust and consent of Serbs with the Kosovo system. According to the data of the Kosovo Agency of Statistics, in the census conducted in 2011, the number of inhabitants was 1,739,825, of which 92.93 percent were Albanians, and 1.47 percent were Serbs. One of the devastating facts is that despite the evident boycott, the number of Serbs was often manipulated politically, so the percentage of 1.47% was presented as the main argument in the over-representation of Serbs in Kosovo institutions.

Censuses in Kosovo have a long history of number manipulation. The last census, which was not boycotted by either Serbs or Albanians, took place in 1981, when it was determined that 1.58 million people live in Kosovo, of which 209,497 were Serbs. As early as 1991, due to a boycott by the Albanian community, the Federal Bureau of Statistics resorted to an estimate of 1.97 million, of which 194,190 were Serbs. Despite a majority boycott of the Serb community, the 2011 census appears to be the first post-conflict population register to give an accurate figure of the total number of Albanians since 1981. However, many question whether that number is accurate given the large number of emigrants. Also, the number of Serbs who remained in Kosovo and those who were displaced due to the consequences of the war was largely manipulated. The current number of displaced persons from Kosovo, according to the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration, is 196,140, a slightly higher number than the 187,129 enumerated in 2000 in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). On the other hand, based on its estimates for the period between 2010 and 2013, the OSCE determined that 146,128 people live in Kosovo, which at that time accounted for 7.8% of the total population, or significantly more than the 1.5% surveyed during the 2011 census. Of that number, more than 70,000 lived in the north, while about 75,000 lived in the southern part of Kosovo. Also, unofficial estimates often used a figure of about 100,000 Serbs living in northern and southern Kosovo at a rate of 40% to 60%. This information was especially taken as relevant in the argumentation against the idea of delimitation, since its realization would mean the remaining of most of the Serbs in the Albanian part of the ethnically withdrawn lines.

In his address in 2019, the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, stated that 94,998 Serbs lived in Kosovo in 2017, emphasizing the much smaller difference between the northern and southern parts of Kosovo, i.e. that 47.1% Serbs live in the north and 52.8% south of the Ibar. While, according to him, Albanians resort to deliberately exaggerating its population, imposing it as one of the basic arguments in the inevitability of full international recognition of Kosovo's independence. On the same occasion, Vucic stated that the actual number of Albanians living in Kosovo is between 1,162,000 and 1,325,000. At the last session of the National Assembly in 2021, at which the Report on the negotiation process with the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government in Pristina was presented, Vucic reiterated that according to the data of Serbian institutions, no more than 95,000 Serbs live in Kosovo and Metohija.

Although it is claimed that the total population of Kosovo does not exceed 1.5 million, according to the Kosovo Agency of Statistics, at the end of 2019 there were 1,782,115 inhabitants in Kosovo, while the figure of 1.49 million will be realized only in 2061. Therefore, the basic goal of the planned census is to prevent further manipulation of the population numbers, since these numbers are repeatedly abused in terms of the population size of both Serbs and Albanians. Thus, e.g. in the period from 2013 to 2016 alone, the number of economically motivated Albanian migrants from Kosovo in EU countries was 229,005, while it is estimated that the total number of Albanians from Kosovo who are emigrants exceeds 700,000. The question of the census methodology and how to register those residents who have not lived in Kosovo for years remains open.

It is also very important to determine the exact and official number of Serbs still living in Kosovo, as the number may show the real situation in the silent migration of a significant number of Serbs in the post-conflict period (e.g comparing to the OSCE estimates in 2013 that there are over 140,000 to data from Belgrade that in 2021 there are less than 95,000 of them). At the same time, the exact number of members of the Serb community is important for further planning and strategic thinking to improve their position.

In the context of perspectives for the Serb community in Kosovo - manipulations of numbers can be seen in particular by the sum of the number of Serbs living in Kosovo, Serbs returning in the post-conflict period, then Serbs with a status of displaced persons, with a distinction of those displaced within Kosovo, and those who were displaced on the territory of central Serbia. Finally, displaced persons with a differentiation between the two groups - those who would like to return and those who have integrated into new environments. At the same time, the results of the census should result in a revision of the register of the number of displaced persons, because there is no logical connection between the claim that 194,190 Serbs, that is, 215,346 Serbs and Montenegrins lived in 1991, that 196,140 were displaced after 1999, and that in Kosovo remained to live between 140 and 95 thousand. That would mean that a significant number of Serbs returned after the war in Kosovo, but OSCE data show that by 2019, just over 30,000 had returned. Or that the number of displaced was much smaller, according to the European Stability Initiative Research Center, which estimated that only about 65,000 Serbs, mostly urban, left Kosovo in 1999. Or that in 1991 many more Serbs lived in Kosovo, which for some reason are not registered. 

Although not planned, the 2022 census should include Kosovo residents who are registered as displaced persons, mainly in Serbia, especially those who continue to express a desire to return. 

This task is not possible without close cooperation between the institutions of Belgrade and Pristina, but it would be the only way to accurately, statistically determine the obligation of the authorities in Kosovo to provide conditions for safe and sustainable return of displaced persons before any kind of final agreement

Finally, one should take into account that the census is a technical task aimed at collecting statistically useful data and that its ultimate purpose is to be a usable instrument in strategically considering social trends and creating concrete policies to change the facts, especially those that can harm the general social interest. 

In the case of Kosovo, the general interest is the survival and number of members of the Serb community, evenly distributed budget funds, urban planning and infrastructure projects by municipalities, according to the number of inhabitants and their needs. Then, providing conditions for the safe return of displaced persons, as well as developed policies for the integration of Serbs that guarantee rights and freedoms, conditions for the realization of existence, as well as the preservation and development of their cultural identity.

Is this the end of the peace pact holding Bosnia together? (politico.org)

The EU is sleepwalking into losing the Western Balkans — and can’t afford to.

Ivor Roberts was the British ambassador to Yugoslavia, Ireland and Italy and is a former president of Trinity College, Oxford.

The international community — or, more precisely, the European Union and the United States — has been in a long-standing predicament over the past 26 years, since the Dayton Agreement brought an end to the bloody civil war in Bosnia. Dayton was supposed to be the superglue that created a new unitary state from previously warring ethnic shards. But every couple years, we are reminded that the glue isn’t holding.

Read more at: https://politi.co/3czsc8P    

International 

  North Macedonia: On the Edge (cepa.org)

Fresh political upheaval in the Balkans worries the West and cheers the Kremlin. 

It is never good news when a political party with a long history of antagonistic nationalism and criminality threatens to retake power. This is doubly so in the Balkans, with its history of conflict. Events in North Macedonia are therefore worth some urgent attention, lest what seems like a very local dispute suddenly takes on a wider significance. 

The latest trouble began when the ruling party, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), performed badly in local elections. The vote was a likely bellwether for national elections, which may be called early. If won by the opposition Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization–Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity’s (VMRO-DPMNE) — which only narrowly failed to unseat the government in a parliamentary confidence vote — there may be serious negative implications.  

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3FHgFRj Croatian Contingent Given Send-Off to Kosovo Without Presence of Media, Minister (total-croatia-news.com)

ZAGREB, 22 Nov 2021 - The 36th 130-strong Croatian Army Contingent, including six servicewomen, is being given a formal send-off on Monday to join NATO's KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. The media and the defence minister are not present at the ceremony.

The ceremony is taking place in the barracks of the 132nd Croatian Army Brigade in the eastern city of Našice without the presence of the media. It is being attended by President Zoran Milanović in his capacity as Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces, while Defence Minister Mario Banožić has canceled his attendance.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3resOJB