Albanian Language Media:

• Osmani meets Trump, “reaffirmed commitment to strength our alliance” (media)
• Osmani meets Musk, “great conversation about government efficiency” (media)
• Kurti: Stability and peace in Balkans require unified and decisive reaction (media)
• Kurti: Serbia is keeping hostage Western Balkans because of Moscow (media)
• Turkish troops from KFOR’s reserves deploy to Kosovo (media)
• Cupric: Terrorist act that constitutes a serious threat (media)
• AJK condemns “Kurti's dangerous language against the media” (media)
• Calls on TikTok for Albanians to damage Serb monuments (Dukagjini)

Serbian Language Media:

• Kurti published a video about the explosion on the Ibar-Lepenac canal; Petkovic called it a cartoon (Beta, NMagazin, KoSSev)
• Petkovic: Belgrade strongly supports SL’s decision to participate in elections (Radio Mitrovica sever, Kosovo Online)
• KFOR after Kuci's claims about the SPC and weapons: Avoid inflammatory rhetoric (KoSSev)
• Elek: Lack of response of the international representatives to the violations of Serbian MPs' rights concerning (Vecernje Novosti, Kosovo Online, RTS)
• Djuric on Kurti's accusations: If it weren’t sad and dangerous, it would be laughable (RTS, Kosovo Online)
• Kurti in Sarajevo: Serbia is a “kitsch state”, it wanted to start a religious war (N1, KoSSev)

Albanian Language Media 

Osmani meets Trump, “reaffirmed commitment to strength our alliance” (media)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani said in a post on X that during her stay in Paris “it was an honor to meet U.S. President elect Donald Trump and congratulate him on his victory on behalf of the people of Kosovo. I also reaffirmed our commitment to strengthening our alliance. We rely on strong U.S. leadership as we work together to promote peace, security, and prosperity in our region and beyond”.

Osmani meets Musk, “great conversation about government efficiency” (media)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani met with Elon Musk during her stay in Paris. “A great conversation about government efficiency and effectiveness, efforts to fight disinformation, as well as the importance of always respecting the will of the people,” she said in a post on X.

Kurti: Stability and peace in Balkans require unified and decisive reaction (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in a Facebook post that in raids in the north of Kosovo after the terrorist attack on November 29 against the Iber Lepenci water canal, “different arms, uniforms and equipment were seized, along with insignia of Russian and Serbian intelligence, army and security structures. This concerning discovery is proof of the potential involvement of Serbian-Russian extremist and terrorist groups, with strong ties in Serbia, whose aim is to destabilize Kosovo and create an unsafe environment in the region. Stability and peace in the Balkans require a unified and decisive reaction against these terrorist and destabilizing activities that threaten overall security and democratic values in the region”. 

Kurti: Serbia is keeping hostage Western Balkans because of Moscow (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in an interview with Bosnian TV station Hayat, that “Serbia is keeping hostage the Western Balkans because of Moscow and they want the whole region to be their hostage”. “They are holding everything back because they know they can use instability and they want all of us to listen to them. In the same way, Republika Srpska wants Bosnia and Herzegovina to depend on it and to be its hostage,” he argued.

According to Kurti, problems in the region and in Bosnia and Herzegovina were caused by the regimes of Aleksandar Vucic and Milorad Dodik who he said are proxies of Russia. 

Asked to comment on the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, Kurti said Belgrade wants to have control over the Serb community in Kosovo and for them to have their own president like Dodik in Republika Srpska, and make Kosovo a dysfunctional state. “We will not allow this,” he said, adding that the international community is increasingly realizing that Serbia wants to create a light version of the Republika Srpska. 

Turkish troops from KFOR’s reserves deploy to Kosovo (media)

NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR, said in a Facebook post that “Turkish troops from KFOR’s reserves completed their deployment to the NATO-led KFOR mission. They will replace departing units from Italy. Around 350 personnel, from the Turkish 65th mechanized infantry brigade, will carry out a range of activities, together with KFOR troops, and will be employed in response to any relevant developments in the security situation. KFOR is well resourced and well postured to prevent any potential risks for escalation and to tackle any security scenario in accordance with its long-standing UN mandate”.

Cupric: Terrorist act that constitutes a serious threat (media)

Cedomir Cupric, professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, said in an interview with RTK, that the attack on the Iber Lepenci water canal was a direct attack on public interest. He said such incidents require an immediate investigation in order to prevent further escalation. “This terrorist act constitutes a serious threat. It threatens the supply with drinking water, the electricity stability, and the lives of people in Kosovo. Such an act must never be accepted. It is crucial to discover the purpose and the actors behind this act through a full investigation,” he said.

AJK condemns “Kurti's dangerous language against the media” (media)

The Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK) said in a statement on Sunday that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti used the meeting of his party, Vetëvendosje, where he was nominated for prime minister, to make another unacceptable attack on the media. “In his speech, among other things, Kurti said that ‘the media for every attack and aggression by Serbia against our state, always found the culprit in our government, but never in Serbia, they do not deserve your attention. ‘Never have the media been so much against the government than in this four-year period of ours. I believe that this is for two reasons or perhaps fundamental causes. The first, because we do not pay them. The second, because now the media is no longer afraid of the government’, said Kurti. AJK strongly condemns this offensive and very dangerous language of Prime Minister Kurti, who ranks the Kosovo media alongside Serbia. Such unacceptable language coming from the head of government directly endangers the safety of journalists and other media workers. It is high time that Mr. Kurti stopped using such hateful language towards the media, which is then reflected and multiplied by many of his voters. In respect of media freedom and freedom of expression, journalists and the media in Kosovo must be allowed to carry out their work to hold the government accountable, without being hindered or intimidated by the authorities”.

Calls on TikTok for Albanians to damage Serb monuments (Dukagjini)

The TV station reported that two days after the terrorist attack on Iber Lepenci water canal, a page on TikTok called on Albanians to take revenge by attacking two Serb monuments, one in the center of Kosovo and another in the north. The call for the first target – the statute of Milos Obilic in Gracanica - got over 100,000 views, 334 comments and over 2,600 likes. The other monument is the statute of Prince Lazar at the entrance of the main square in Mitrovica North. 

Murat Mehmeti, a former police investigator during the March 2004 riots in Kosovo, said the calls are dangerous and called for added caution. He argued that the calls for violence can have two objectives – political, or the interest of another country, which he said could be Serbia. “Usually groups of interest, criminal political groups, in order to come to power or to win back the favors, they manipulate with the people … the stability of the country does not favor them. Serbia too, as long as we have these relations with them, they always have an interest to use be it even non-resident people to cause social unrest, outrage and even acts of vandalism,” he said.

The TV station also contacted the Kosovo Police to see if they are investigating the calls made through the platform or if they are undertaking any action but received no response. 

Serbian Language Media 

Kurti published a video about the explosion on the Ibar-Lepenac canal; Petkovic called it a cartoon (Beta, NMagazin, KoSSev)

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, published yesterday a four-minute video in which the events related to the explosion on the Ibar-Lepenac canal on November 29 were listed, repeating that it was a 'terrorist attack', while the director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, called the video "a cartoon film" without answering serious questions. Kurti stated on the X, along with a video in which the sequence of events after the explosion was arranged chronologically with certain claims, that approximately 20 kilograms of explosives were used in the "kinetic terrorist attack last Friday on the critical infrastructure of Kosovo".

"The past week could have been very different if there had not been a quick, coordinated and professional institutional response to mitigate the impact of the damage. As an attack on the civilian population, it could have reduced the country's electricity production by 60 percent and affected access to water for up to 40 percent of the population," Kurti wrote, assessing that there is an "alarming similarity" with the Russian targeting and destruction of critical civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.

The Director of the Office for KiM, Petar Petkovic, on the other hand, believes that Kurti "after the fiasco at the conference last week has now decided to edit a cartoon", with the assessment that it would be good to answer the "serious questions from which he persistently runs away". Petkovic asked who ordered it and how he knew in advance about the attack on the Ibar-Lepenac canal, as well as how nine minutes after the attack "he had a letter ready to KFOR with a request to send the so-called KBS (Kosovo Security Forces) to the north". He also asked for an answer as to where the evidence is for the "false accusations he made against Serbia in the first minutes after the attack", as well as why "after the fiasco, he tried to ban the Serbian List and expel it from the assembly".

"Kurti doesn't answer all these questions, but that's why he makes animated films to deceive the public. He won't succeed, we will insist on the answers persistently because Belgrade, unlike him, has nothing to hide," Petkovic added in the statement.

Petkovic: Belgrade strongly supports SL’s decision to participate in elections (Radio Mitrovica sever, Kosovo Online)

The Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, stated that the Government of Serbia supports the Serb List's decision to participate in the Kosovo elections on February 9, emphasizing that this decision is in the best interest of the Serbian people in Kosovo.

In an interview with Kurir, Petkovic highlighted that it is clear Albin Kurti's unequivocal goal has been to prevent the SL from participating in the upcoming elections by any means, so he could replace them with obedient individuals from Serbian ranks who would serve his interests.

“Belgrade's principled stance is that the best judgment on such matters lies with the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija and their only legitimate political representatives, the Serb List. Thus, the Serb List's decision to participate in the elections is strongly supported by Belgrade because we believe it is a good decision in the interest of the Serbian people. It is evident that Kurti's clear goal was to prevent the Serb List from participating in the upcoming elections to replace them with his own obedient Serbs, without whom, it seems, he can hardly secure a parliamentary majority,” said Petkovic.

He firmly believes that the Serb List’s response to Kurti’s tactics will be a convincing victory, securing all 10 guaranteed parliamentary seats.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/4hmjprum

KFOR after Kuci's claims about the SPC and weapons: Avoid inflammatory rhetoric (KoSSev)

Actions to confiscate weapons in the North of Kosovo, after last week's diversion on the Ibar-Lepenac channel, were a reason for individuals from public life in Kosovo to try to connect them with the SPC temples in Kosovo. Thus, Gurakuc Kuci from the Oktopus Institute said among other things that the continuation of the "finding of weapons" was "expected", but that it was not known whether they were also in churches, and "what kind of people are there".

The Eparchy of Raska-Prizren condemned "irresponsible, dangerous and false statements", and KFOR yesterday, when asked by KoSSev for comment, said that "it is crucial to avoid inflammatory rhetoric and actions that could raise tensions".

KFOR did not specifically address Kuci's claims but called for the avoidance of incendiary rhetoric.

"It is crucial to avoid inflammatory rhetoric and actions that could raise tensions, because that would be harmful to security and stability in Kosovo and the region," they stated. This mission once again condemned the attack on the Ibar-Lepenac canal with the message that "it is necessary to ensure responsibility".

"What is important now is to establish the facts through a thorough and transparent investigation and bring those responsible to justice and ensure that local communities continue to receive basic services," they stated.

They add that the KP was conducting the investigation, but also that KFOR, although it does not have an investigative role, continues to support security and stability.

Elek: Lack of response of the international representatives to the violations of Serbian MPs' rights concerning (Vecernje Novosti, Kosovo Online, RTS)

The President of the Serbian List, Zlatan Elek, says that the party has decided to participate in the elections announced in Kosovo for February 9, because, unlike the international community, they refuse to remain silent in the face of the terror imposed by Kosovo PM Albin Kurti's regime on the Serbian population in the region.

“They will not intimidate us into giving up the fight for the rights of Serbs in these areas. Due to Serbian unity and solidarity, and because for us there is no turning back, the SL has decided to participate in the elections, where we will achieve a resounding victory together with our people,” Elek told Novosti daily.

He points out that the ban on the SL MPs to attend the parliamentary session in Pristina on Thursday was an unlawful and authoritarian decision by the President of the Kosovo Assembly, Glauk Konjufca, who is a close associate of Kurti. Elek says that this action reflects the position of the Serbian people under the current regime in Kosovo.

“Calling MPs who represent our people terrorists and criminals is a label they apply to all Serbs in these areas who are unwilling to serve Kurti’s regime,” Elek said.

Read more at:https://tinyurl.com/yc3ebtyv

Djuric on Kurti's accusations: If it weren’t sad and dangerous, it would be laughable (RTS, Kosovo Online)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric stated that the accusations by Kosovo PM Albin Kurti, blaming Serbia for the explosion at the Ibar-Lepenac canal based on discovered emblems and uniforms, represent yet another attempt to divert attention from his own failures and the fact that he was caught making false allegations against Belgrade.

Djuric wrote on the social media platform "X" that, seven days after making serious and completely unfounded accusations against Serbia, Kurti has failed to provide any evidence to support his dangerous claims.

"Mr. Albin Kurti's pitiful show, featuring a collection of military stickers presented as 'evidence' of Serbia's involvement, is just another of his attempts to distract from his failures and the fact that he was caught fabricating accusations against Serbia. If it weren’t sad and dangerous, it would be laughable. Such public manipulations clearly highlight the unserious and false nature of his claims," Djuric wrote.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/47rdc4d8

Kurti in Sarajevo: Serbia is a “kitsch state”, it wanted to start a religious war (N1, KoSSev)

In an almost hour-long speech during a visit to the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti leveled a series of accusations against Serbia — calling it the "most kitsch state", accusing it of terrorism and genocide. He also claimed that Serbia aimed for a "religious war" in Banjska while praising Kosovo's police for not falling for it.

According to Kossev, Kurti praised Kosovo as a “democratic state“ that protects the rights of Serbs, arguing that they are „more free“ and that Kosovo now has “true integration.” He claimed discussions in Brussels have shifted from Kosovo’s status to Serbia’s and that he was “honored to contribute”.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2j42xezs