UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, February 9, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

UN Security Council session on situation in Kosovo (media)
Gashi: Banjska showed Serbia orchestrated, and funded the attack (Paparaci)
Bislimi meets MPs from German Bundestag (media)
Serbian reporter Radomir Dimic arrives in Kosovo (RTK)

Serbian Language Media:

UNMIK Head Caroline Ziadeh addressed UNSC session on Kosovo (RTS, media)
Vucic at UNSC: Unbearable living conditions for Serbs intentionally created (RTS, B92, media)
Serbian officials’ reactions to Vucic’s speech at UNSC (RTS)
N1 interlocutors: UNSC session on Kosovo indicator that Western powers are not content with Kurti’s acts
Grenell: Unilateral actions by Kosovo create instability in the north (Kosovo Online, social media)
Bilcik on EP Resolution: “The ball is in the hands of Serbian institutions” (N1, media)
Brnabic: Resolutions come and go, it’s not the first, won’t be the last (media)
Dacic: EP Resolution is non-binding political declaration (N1, BETA)

International Media:

Impatient Kosovo ‘Not Taking Serbian Community Needs into Account’ (BIRN)
From Dinar to Euro: Kosovo Serbs Voice Concerns over New Euro-Only Policy (Prishtina Insight)

Albanian Language Media

UN Security Council session on situation in Kosovo (media)

The leading story in all media on Thursday evening was the session of the United Nations Security Council on Kosovo held following Serbia’s request.

Special Representative of the Secretary General and Head of UNMIK, Caroline Ziadeh, in her address to the Security Council, referred to recent developments in Kosovo, including the new currency regulation by the Central Bank Board of Kosovo, and expressed deep concern over the impact of unilateral actions that clearly fall within the political dialogue process and its governing agreements.

“I will continue to call on both Pristina and Belgrade to engage actively, and in good faith, in the EU-facilitated Dialogue, the venue for tackling the most sensitive policy issues that affect the communities,” said Ziadeh.

Reaffirming the importance of upholding the rule of law and ensuring that all related actions are anchored in the principles of human rights, the SRSG reiterated that actions lacking due consultation with the concerned communities put people’s sense of safety and livelihoods at risk. “Such actions not only increase tensions but also weaken the potential for lasting peace and security across all communities in Kosovo. In the spirit of conflict prevention, more should be done to win the hearts and minds of non-majority communities,” she said.

Ziadeh also said that it was crucial that efforts towards negotiated and mutually accepted solutions do not falter and that “the only acceptable path ahead is one that is grounded in dialogue and compromise, embraces human rights and ensures the equitable application of the rule of law.”

Read her full statement at: https://shorturl.at/bnIQ6

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said in his address that the CBK regulation can create irreparable damages for the survival of Serbs in Kosovo. “The provisional institutions of self-government in Pristina have created in the territory unbearable conditions for the Serbs. This situation and the lack of a proper reaction can create irreparable damages for the survival of Serbs in Kosovo,” he said. Vucic said that the ban of the Dinar would impact the healthcare, education, and other sectors. “The decision by the regime in Pristina directly renders unable the functioning of all medical, educational, social, and cultural institutions, that enable the Serbs to secure for them and their families the basic means for education, health treatment, and everything for normal life and dignity,” he said. According to Vucic the decision on the Dinar is a direct attack against the Serbs.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in his address rejected every claim made by Vucic that Kosovo was persecuting Serbs in Kosovo saying they were all lies. He said it was Serbia that committed genocide in Kosovo. “I can proudly say that we are enforcing the Constitution with the highest measures for the protection of the rights of minority communities. 20 guaranteed seats in parliament from a total of 120, 10 of which are reserved for Serbs. Serbs in Kosovo also have 10 out of 38 municipalities in Kosovo.

Serbian language is the second official language everywhere in Kosovo. The idea that Kosovo is carrying out ethnic cleansing or persecution against the Serb community is simply a lie and it has been refuted by many international organizations,” he argued.

On the regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Kurti said that it does not stop Serbia from giving financial aid to Kosovo Serbs. “Every other claim is false propaganda and aimed at inciting tensions. The regulation brings legality on the import of funds into Kosovo and is in line with our constitution and the EU monetary policy. Belgrade has raised the alarm not because of the exchange of the Dinar into Euros, but because sacks with Dinars are being stopped at the border and they are complaining not because they are concerned for the Kosovo Serb citizens, but because the pipeline of funds in the north of Kosovo are being stopped,” he said.

Kurti said in the coming days he will communicate with Serbs in Serbian language so that they can better understand the issue of the CBK regulation. He said he has nothing against the Serbs. “I will speak in Serbian because I have nothing against the Serbs. I have a Minister who is a Serb, Nenad Rasic. His deputy is a Serb. I don’t believe that ethnic differences bring conflicts, on the contrary,” he said.

Kurti mentioned the attack in Banjska in the north of Kosovo in September last year. He said Serbia had declared three days of mourning for the Serb attackers killed during the operation and directly accused Vucic of funding and supporting the terrorist attack. “You saw today that Mr. Vucic was mentioning several Serbs that were injured or wounded in different incidents, but he didn’t mention the three Serbs that were killed in [Banjska]. Why? Because he knows that those were terrorists financed, supported, and orchestrated by himself, and this is why he didn’t mention them,” he said.

Kurti mentioned the agreements reached in Brussels and Ohrid last year, and said that “Serbia refuses two key obligations: not to obstruct Kosovo’s membership in international organizations and does not respect territorial integrity”. Calling for the agreements to be signed, Kurti said that “the signing of the agreements is not only a formality but also a guarantee that they will be implemented fully and unconditionally, and for peace and security in the Balkans. Despite my repeated offers, Mr. Vucic has refused to sign them. I call on him today, here, and now, to sign the agreements, highlighting the crucial role of the UN Charter in this relation. This symbolic act would prove his commitment for peaceful relations with Kosovo,” he said.

Kurti also said that Kosovo does not seek revenge for the crimes Serbian troops committed during the war in Kosovo. “We will not seek revenge. I want justice and justice is done not through seeking revenge. In order to have peace and normal relations, they need to stop fantasizing that we want revenge. As Prime Minister I guarantee that we are not seeking revenge,” he said.

The Swiss representative at the UN called on Serbia to bring to court the authors of the attack in Banjska and called on Kosovo to avoid unilateral actions. He said the coexistence between the communities in Kosovo has been jeopardized lately and called on the parties to choose dialogue as means for solutions.

The French representative at the UN criticized Kosovo on the issue of the Serbian Dinar and said that the CBK should suspend its decision immediately. He condemned the attack in Banjska last year and said that Serbia should bring the perpetrators to justice.

Slovenia’s representative expressed concern about the attack by Serb protesters against KFOR troops in the north last year and said that Kosovo and Serbia must refrain from actions that incite violence. “I call on the parties not to undertake any actions that would jeopardize the relations,” she said.

The UK representative said current tensions highlight the importance for greater commitment in the process of dialogue. “First, Kosovo and Serbia must implement their obligations and avoid unilateral actions. Second, Kosovo needs to enforce its sovereign authority in line with the vision of a multiethnic democracy embodied in the heart of the Constitution of Kosovo … The Kosovo authorities must build a clear plan for all Kosovo Serbs that continue to receive funds [from Serbia] and for the basic services to continue to function until a comprehensive solution is found,” he said.

The U.S. representative at the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said that on the Central Bank’s new regulation, Kosovo acted without coordination and consultation with the local Serbs. She also said that the process of dialogue is led by the European Union and not by the UN Security Council. “The United States remain committed to peace and stability in the Western Balkans, including our support for the Kosovo Security Force through NATO. We encourage the parties to return to the EU-facilitated dialogue which the U.S. supports strongly and continuously. To be clear, the dialogue is facilitated by the EU and not the Security Council, and that is the channel to resolve issues related to the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, including solutions that respect the rights of all communities. The U.S. has expressed concern over Kosovo’s plan to enforce the amended CBK regulation on cash transactions. The decision was made without proper preparations or consultation with the local population. We once again call for the plan to be postponed until satisfactory procedures are followed in line with European standards,” she said. Greenfield said the U.S. is also concerned about the actions of the Kosovo government against Serbian-run institutions and offices. “These actions are not consistent with Kosovo’s pledge to use the EU-facilitated dialogue to regulate issues related to the well-being of the Serb community in Kosovo and to damage the path of normalization of relations. The Security Council is not the place where these issues are resolved”.

Greenfield also said that the U.S. condemns the paramilitary attacks against the Kosovo Police and called on Serbia to bring to justice those that planned and carried out the terrorist attack. “The self-proclaimed leader of the attack still roams free in Serbia. We again call on Serbia to seek full accountability from the authors and members of this attack,” she said.

The representative of Malta at the United Nations called on Kosovo and Serbia to respect the agreements reached in the dialogue and that they need to resolve their disputes through the dialogue. He said the pledges made need to be implemented and that the Association of Serb-majority municipalities “is crucial in the process of normalization”.

Russia’s representative at the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, said in his address that the request of the European Union to recognize Kosovo’s statehood was unjust. He argued that last year alone, 178 attacks against ethnic Serbs in Kosovo and their properties were carried out. “There is a campaign to usurp cultural heritage. Old Orthodox churches are being renamed as Catholic … There are crimes against humanity and arbitrary arrests, and threats and violence,” he claimed.

Political commentators on UNSC session:

Edward P Joseph, commentator on the Balkans, said in a post on X that “instead of international pressure focused squarely on Belgrade – thanks to massive European Parliament majority vote on allegedly fraud-filled Serbian elections – Kurti is being hauled into the UN Security Council over another uncoordinated overreach (on Euro/Dinar.) So, instead of having to explain to Serbian citizens why their country is threatened with the cut-off of EU funds over election violations, Vucic can play the big defender of Kosovo Serbs. Russia and China – which each actively isolate Kosovo – will aid tonight’s utterly unnecessary UNSC circus”. Read more at: https://shorturl.at/ACGW5

Ehat Miftaraj, Director of the Kosovo Law Institute, said in a Facebook post that “the biggest violator of the rights and freedoms of Serbs in the Republic of Kosovo, is Aleksandar Vucic and his regime in Belgrade. It is difficult to see such a liar pretending to be a victim at the UN Security Council!”

Dritero Arifi, political commentator said in an interview with TeVe1, that “Kurti was victorious against Serbia, but not in relation with the U.S. The U.S. publicly scolded the Kosovo Government’s decision and called for its suspension. It was a clearly defined speech, without diplomatic gloves. It was a blow to the Kurti government in this respect because this is the meeting of the Security Council and when the U.S. asks for this, one can only imagine how non-recognizing countries see this decision”.

Several news websites covered a post on X by Serbian attorney Cedomir Stojkovic who argued that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic “will tell many lies … comparing things that can never be compared, for the purpose of creating confusion among the population”. According to Stojkovic the purpose is “to use subtle conclusions and carefully chosen words to instill in the collective memory of Serbs hatred against the west and the idea that the west hates Serbia and that Aleksandar Vucic defends Serbia”.

Gashi: Banjska showed Serbia orchestrated, and funded the attack (Paparaci)

Kosovo’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Liza Gashi, said on Thursday that Kosovo warned its partners and friends about the continuous threats from Serbia and its illegal armament of criminal groups. “These groups are tied to Serbia in many ways. [The attack in] Banjska showed that the Serbian government was not only directly linked but it also helped, orchestrated, and funded the attack in Kosovo,” she said in a meeting in Pristina with representatives of news agencies from Europe and the world.

Bislimi meets MPs from German Bundestag (media)

Kosovo’s Deputy Minister Besnik Bislimi met on Thursday in Pristina with a delegation of MPs from the German Bundestag and German Ambassador to Kosovo Jorn Rohde. He thanked them for the visit and “expressed appreciation for Germany’s continuous contribution and support for the statebuilding of Kosovo, progress and development”. Bislimi said that every policy that the Kosovo government is implementing is aimed only at improving the lives of all citizens of Kosovo. The German MPs commended Kosovo Police for their mature reaction to the Banjska attack in September last year and expressed concern about the huge amounts of weapons found.

Serbian reporter Radomir Dimic arrives in Kosovo (RTK)

Serbian reporter Radomir Dimic, who recently sent a letter to the Kosovo Government, returned to Kosovo on Thursday evening. At the Merdare crossing with Serbia, Dimic told RTK that he had no problems or concerns on the way to Kosovo. “I am returning with optimism to Kosovo because I am coming back to my country. I will work for the common good and for the coexistence of all ethnic communities,” he said. Dimic also called on Kosovo Serbs to join the institutions and to work for the common good.

Serbian Language Media

UNMIK Head Caroline Ziadeh addressed UNSC session on Kosovo (RTS, media)

Serbian media widely covered the address of the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) and Head of UNMIK, Caroline Ziadeh to the UNSC session on Kosovo.

"Just solutions do not come from unilateral actions, but from sustained commitment, communication and dialogue"; "In the spirit of conflict prevention, more should be done to win the hearts and minds of non-majority communities"; "Neither the CBK regulations nor the operations of Kosovo police have contributed to the de-escalation that the international community persistently calls for", are some of the messages of SRSG and Head of UNMIK Caroline Ziadeh during her speech last night, KoSSev portal reports.

She also recalled agreements in Brussels and Ohird, saying that over the previous period a slowdown in implementation occurred. SRSG Ziadeh mentioned elections in northern Kosovo in April last year that Serbs have boycotted, clashes in Zvecan in May last year and the Banjska incident on September 24, as serious setbacks.

Although certain progress had been achieved, SRSG said, mentioning license plates and energy roadmap, unilateral actions “are cause for great concern, regardless which side undertakes them and justifications”.

She also spoke about implementation of the Kosovo Central Bank regulation that on the use of dinar in payment transactions. "Limited public information was offered despite the fact that the dinar has served as de facto primary currency for cash and commercial transactions in Serb-majority areas since 1999. Tens of thousands of individuals are affected by this decision, as well as the economy, which depends on their purchasing power", SRSG Ziadeh said.

She emphasized that the regulation "interrupts payments to individuals employed by Serbian-funded institutions in Kosovo, certain agricultural subsidies, social benefits, pensions, small and medium-sized enterprises, health and education services, including child care". "They can be the most affected, as they have for long also used to receive their funds from Serbia”, SRSG Ziadeh added.

Read the full SRSG Ziadeh statement at: https://shorturl.at/bqJMS

Vucic at UNSC: Unbearable living conditions for Serbs intentionally created (RTS, B92, media)

Almost all Serbian media widely covered the UNSC session on Kosovo, held last night as per the request of Serbia. Serbian public broadcaster RTS, Belgrade-based N1 TV, Tanjug news agency and Kosovo Online portal, among others, broadcasted the session live.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic addressing the session said that persecution and difficult life of Serbs in Kosovo, as well as the entire situation there is absolutely contrary to the UN Charter and the Security Council resolution.

"In the past months, the Provisional institutions of Self-Government in Pristina have created unbearable living conditions for Serbs and are now carrying out widespread systematic attacks on Serbian civilians and their persecution. Such a situation, if there is no adequate reaction, can cause irreparable harm to the survival of the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija", Vucic said at the beginning of his address.

"Serbia requested the holding of an extraordinary session of the Security Council because Pristina's activities are of such a nature that they can cause irreparable harm to the Serbian people, and the immediate reason is the move by the Central Bank of Kosovo to ban the circulation of dinars, which is the culmination of attacks on the Serbian and non-Albanian population because a huge number of inhabitants on the territory of Kosovo and Metohija directly or indirectly depends on dinar income from the Serbian budget and thus they are deprived of the basic means of living”, he added.

"The data that the Republic of Serbia pays 60,946 salaries and pensions in Kosovo and Metohija, 2,430 scholarships for students and finances soup kitchens that meet the basic needs of around 2,000 socially most vulnerable citizens from this budget, clearly show that this measure is primarily an attack on the Serbian population and that makes the situation in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija difficult. Only these figures clearly show that a huge number of inhabitants in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija directly or indirectly depend on dinar income from the budget of the Republic of Serbia. As a result, it is obvious that the ban on dinar payments, i.e. the abolition of the dinar as means of payment, directly deprives a huge number of residents of basic personal means of living", he said.

"To sum it up, the decision to ban dinar payments means that Pristina directly prevents the functioning of all social, health, educational, social, cultural and other institutions that enable Serbs to provide themselves and their families with basic necessities of life, education, treatment, shopping medications and do all the other things that today are considered normal life with a minimum of human dignity", Vucic said.

As Vucic said those institutions represent the basis for the formation of the Community of Serbian Municipalities, whose competences and structure are clearly defined by the agreement on municipal principles signed in 2015, which precisely defines that Serbia has the right to finance the CSM.

He also spoke about ethnically motivated crimes against Serbs in Kosovo, adding their percentage increased by 300 times since Albin Kurti took power, massive arrests of returnees under false war crimes accusations, while those committing crimes against Serbs, such as KSF member who shot and wounded two Serb boys on Christmas Eve and walks free.

Vucic also called upon the Security Council and international organizations that may impact resolution of the crisis to undertake urgent and decisive steps to normalize the situation in Kosovo, prevent further persecution of the Serbs and create conditions for renewed establishment of meaningful Belgrade-Pristina dialogue in line with UN Charter and UNSC resolutions.

Serbian officials’ reactions to Vucic’s speech at UNSC (RTS)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in his address to the UNSC session on Kosovo on Thursday evening clearly said that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti “intentionally and systematically creates unbearable living conditions for Serbs in Kosovo”, Serbian officials said in their reactions to his speech, RTS reports.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said Vucic in his speech clearly accused “prime minister of provisional institutions of self-governance in Pristina, Albin Kurti, for crimes against humanity, and for creating unbearable living conditions for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija”. She also said that by abolishing dinar Pristina and Albin Kurti aimed “to deprive Serbs from conditions to live”.

Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said Vucic with his speech at UNSC “(…) made the entire world aware of the unbearable position of the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija caused by the criminal regime of Albin Kurti”. He also said Vucic showed to everyone that “Kurti is the main threat to peace and stability”.

Minister of Culture, Maja Gojkovic said Vucic “in a manner supported by arguments showed that illegal and unilateral decision of Pristina to abolish dinar in payment transactions was only one in a series of planned and systematic measures aimed at creating unbearable conditions for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, bringing into question their physical survival (…)”. She also said it was important to hear that private properties and properties of the Serbian Orthodox Church are systematically targeted, and that Pristina refuses to return land to Visoki Decani Monastery.

Minister without portfolio, Djordje Milicevic said Vucic in his address “proved that Albin Kurti’s regime systematically works on ethnic cleansing of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija”.

Serbian List in their reaction said President Vucic presented the truth to the entire world “that Albin Kurti is carrying out crimes against humanity against Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, by intentionally creating unbearable living conditions for the Serbian people”.

N1 interlocutors: UNSC session on Kosovo indicator that Western powers are not content with Kurti’s acts

Extraordinary UNSC session on Kosovo took place last night as per the request of Serbia. Analysts assessed that messages from this discussion would be primarily directed to the Pristina authorities, because Western powers are not happy with the policy of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, and measures as well as actions he carries out, N1 reported.

Commenting on the fact that Western countries, UNSC members which recognized Kosovo and had majority there accepted the session, diplomat Zoran Milivojevic told N1 it speaks in support of the fact that Western powers are not happy with the policy of Albin Kurti and how things evolve in Kosovo in relation to measures and actions he carries out.

Vice President of the European Movement and vice president of Serbia Centre Party Dusko Lopandic agreed with the stance that the session is a message to Kurti and the government in Pristina because of their actions and “irritation that he caused among the Western powers, in particular US”. He also said that, however, Kurti thus far demonstrated a rather high level of resistance in the politics he was pursuing. “This politics is far from the Brussels-Ohrid agreement. Kurti never accepted agreements with Serbia, only to the extent that he had to. We see on the ground that he is not implementing it, that he has no intention of implementing it. He accepted neither spirit nor the letter of agreements, which is obvious in his attitude towards the Serbian community”, Lopandic added.

Grenell: Unilateral actions by Kosovo create instability in the north (Kosovo Online, social media)

Former US presidential special envoy for Belgrade-Pristina talks Richard Grenell said yesterday that unilateral Kosovo actions create instability in the north of Kosovo, Kosovo Online portal reports.

Grenell wrote in a post on X social platform that US President Joseph Biden’s administration started picking up their criticism of Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani and Prime Minister Albin Kurti.

“Unilateral actions by Kosovo are creating instability in the north”, he said.

Bilcik on EP Resolution: “The ball is in the hands of Serbian institutions” (N1, media)

European Parliament (EP) Rapporteur for Serbia Vladimir Bilcik said following the adoption of the Resolution on Serbian elections that the “final text is a compromise” and that he is happy with it.

“The Resolution is calling for an investigation, that’s the key point”, he said, stressing that now the “ball is in the hands of the Serbian institutions”.

“The final text is a compromise. I am happy that most of the EPP text is in the text. I am also pleased that some of the extreme formulations which were proposed by some other political groups have been polished. In a way I think we are sending a clear message, a critical message, but also a constructive message to the extent that I think those critical remarks in the Resolution should be seen as a blueprint for what Serbia needs to do next”, Bilcik told N1.

Brnabic: Resolutions come and go, it’s not the first, won’t be the last (media)

Resolutions come and go, this is not the first and it won’t be the last, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said after the European Parliament (EP) on Thursday adopted its Resolution on Serbian elections.

In a post on the X social media platform, Brnabic quoted the Thursday statements by Serbian opposition politicians in Strasbourg - February 8, 2024, in Strasbourg: Marinika Tepic: “I call on you to support the requests of the pro-European opposition for a mission to be sent to investigate all those irregularities and issue recommendations that both the government and the opposition would have to fulfill”. Radomir Lazovic: “I don’t want to hide it, we are pleased that this happened, this Resolution is what we were hoping for”.

Resolutions come and go, this is not the first and it won’t be the last, but it will be forever remembered that there were political parties and people in Serbia who sought the abolition of their own country’s sovereignty, Brnabic said in a post on X social platform.

Dacic: EP Resolution is non-binding political declaration (N1, BETA)

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said on Thursday that the European Parliament resolution on the mid-December elections is a non-binding political declaration, N1 reports.

He said the resolution is not binding for the European Commission and European Union member states and recalled earlier European Parliament resolutions calling to recognize Kosovo and impose sanctions on Russia.

“The resolution is full of wilful assessments, accusations against Belgrade and that makes it a political pamphlet”, he said, adding that it has the political role of “assisting their favorites in Serbia … the parties and coalitions which are expressly anti-Serbian”. Dacic also said there is no evidence to support opposition claims of election fraud.

International Media

Impatient Kosovo ‘Not Taking Serbian Community Needs into Account’ (BIRN)

The beginning of 2024 brought new real-life changes for Serbs living in Kosovo: a new monetary regulation issued by Kosovo’s Central Bank will effectively stop them from receiving salaries and pensions in Serbian dinars in future, while some so-called “parallel” institutions, where some of them worked, have been shut down.

Marko Prelec, International Crisis Group Senior Balkans analyst, says the situation in which Serbia still operates institutions in Kosovo was long ago recognised as a problem, but “it has just never been possible to complete [resolving] it”.

“I think [Prime Minister Albin] Kurti’s government has just run out of patience and decided that they’re going to go ahead and do it unilaterally,” Prelec told BIRN.

“The problem is that the Serbian community of Kosovo is existentially dependent on those Serbian institutions,” he added.