• German Chancellor Scholz to stay in Kosovo today (media)
• Kosovo PM unimpressed with Serbian President’s energy deal offer (BIRN)
• President Osmani travels to Greece to attend SEECP leaders’ meeting (media)
• Kosovo war court extends ex-President Thaci’s detention again (BIRN)
• Thaci and others accept Assembly President Konjufca’s visit (RTK)
• Serbian List officials rejects invitations from the prosecution (RFE)
• Osmani visits KSF: “Kosovo’s present and future are in safe hands” (media)
• Kurti: We launched new online government services on e-Kosova platform (media)
• Interior Minister: 4,000 bullets confiscated at Jarinje border crossing (media)

German Chancellor Scholz to stay in Kosovo today (media)

One of the leading stories in the media this morning is today’s upcoming visit to Kosovo by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The German leader is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Albin Kurti and give a joint press conference after the meeting. Scholz will also visit German troops serving in KFOR.

Kurti said on Thursday that he expects a new and energetic start of the Berlin Process. “A new and energetic start where we are all equal and where the membership of all countries is accelerated, based on the respect for the rule of law, democratisation, the fight against corruption and dealing with the past, because in Serbia there is a regime that denies the Recak massacre and that has not done anything against war criminals who continue to roam freely there,” he was quoted as saying.

Klan Kosova quotes political commentators in Prishtina as saying that Sholz’s visit is expected to give a new impetus to the EU-facilitated talks between Kosovo and Serbia.

Telegrafi recalls that in early May, Scholz held separate meetings in Berlin with Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and that he called on Kurti to be constructive in the process of dialogue.

During his two-day tour in the region, Scholz will also stay in Belgrade, Skopje, Sofia, and Thessaloniki. A spokeswoman for the German Federal Government said the purpose of the visit is to bring countries of the Western Balkans closer to the European Union.

Kosovo PM unimpressed with Serbian President’s energy deal offer (BIRN)

Albin Kurti expressed disdain on Thursday about an energy deal suggested by Serbia’s Aleksandar Vucic in which lignite coal from Kosovo could be exchanged for electricity.

“This is an attempt by the authoritarian president of Serbia to move from the failed project of a territorial exchange to this one of a coal exchange,” Kurti told media.

During the Open Balkan summit in Ohrid, North Macedonia on Wednesday, Vucic had told media about plans to offer an agreement on purchasing lignite coal from Kosovo or exchanging it for electricity. The controversial idea of a territorial exchange to help normalise relations between Serbia and Kosovo was mooted in recent years but attracted strong criticism.

Vucic said that Serbia was “ready to offer Pristina an exchange in order to receive a considerable amount of quality lignite in exchange for electricity”.

He added that “if you do not want it this way, then it can also be done with money”.

Representatives of Kosovo did not attend the Open Balkan summit as the country refuses to join the recently-established Western Balkan countries’ mini-bloc. Only Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia are involved in the initiative so far.

Explaining Kosovo’s stance, Kurti said that his country would not be involved as the six Western Balkan countries are not “equal”.

“Our readiness for and interest in regional cooperation is expressed via our support for the [EU’s] Berlin Process [economic cooperation initiative] and our engagement in the Common Regional Market,” Kurti told media.

Kurti called on Serbia to open up to Kosovo first by recognising its identity documents such as passport and ID cards, before offering “alternative initiatives” such as the Open Balkan initiative or deals on energy exchanges.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/3zpMY7n

President Osmani travels to Greece to attend SEECP leaders’ meeting (media)

President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, will travel to Greece to take part in the summit of the heads of state of the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP). A press release issued by the President’s Office notes that Osmani will join leaders of 13 countries to talk about furthering cooperation with countries in the region and international partners to guarantee peace, security, stability, economic, political and social development in the region. The SEECP Summit will also focus on recent developments in Europe, including the war in Ukraine, as well as their impact on countries in the region. Osmani is scheduled to hold a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis, who is the summit host, and will attend the official dinner with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and EU Council President Charles Michel.

Kosovo war court extends ex-President Thaci’s detention again (BIRN)

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers war crimes court in The Hague extended the detention of ex-President Hashim Thaci and ex-parliamentary speaker Kadri Veseli, citing concerns that they might abscond or interfere with witnesses.

The pre-trial judge at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Nicolas Guillou, decided on Thursday that Hashim Thaci and Kadri Veseli should remain in detention ahead of their trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo.

Judge Guillou turned down a defence request for the release of Thaci and Veseli, who were two of the wartime leaders of the guerrilla Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA. The two men have been in detention for around a year and a half, since November 2020.

Judge Guillou concluded that “the risks that Mr Thaci (and Mr Veseli) will abscond, obstruct the progress of SC [Specialist Chambers] proceedings, or commit further crimes against those perceived as being opposed to the KLA, including witnesses who have provided or could provide evidence in the case and/or are due to appear before the SC, continue to exist”.

The so-called Special Court ruled that house arrest is also out of the question because Thaci and Veseli wield significant authority in Kosovo and because their defence teams have not introduced new arguments in their latest requests for their release.

Read more at: https://bit.ly/39cPN0W

Thaci and others accept Assembly President Konjufca’s visit (RTK)

Citing an unnamed source, RTK reported on Thursday that former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and other leaders of the former Kosovo Liberation Army, who are awaiting trial in the Hague, have agreed to a visit request from Kosovo Assembly President Glauk Konjufca. In an interview with RTK, Konjufca, who is visiting Vienna, confirmed that he will visit the former KLA leaders. He also said that what is happening with the Kosovo Specialist Chambers is an injustice toward the people of Kosovo and the war for liberation.

Serbian List officials rejects invitations from the prosecution (Radio Free Europe)

The Serbian List confirmed on Thursday that its high-ranking members have been summoned to appear before the Special Prosecution of Kosovo for violating Kosovo’s constitutional order, but they said they did not accept the invitations. The Serbian List said in a press release that the invitations were sent to party leader Goran Rakic, deputy leader Igor Simic, and another senior official.

“On behalf of the Serbian List, we stand behind the position that none of the persons included on that list, including our members, will respond to those invitations, because this is pure political persecution aimed at persecuting our people away from these lands. In the event any of the persons on the list are arrested, protests will be organised with all democratic and non-democratic means, including civil disobedience,” the Serbian List said.

Osmani visits KSF: “Kosovo’s present and future are in safe hands” (media)

President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, said during a visit to the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) on Thursday that Kosovo’s present and future are in safe hands. “During the visit to the KSF we discussed about implementing the mission of the army in the service of protecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic, advancing a professional military force that can cooperate with NATO forces, strengthening our defence capacities, and our readiness to become part of international missions alongside our partners, like the United States,” Osmani wrote in a Facebook post.

Klan Kosova quotes Osmani as saying, “we are working with the United States and other NATO countries to convince those four NATO member states that have not yet recognized Kosovo not to prevent Kosovo’s membership in the Partnership for Peace. Kosovo will be an added value and will be able to contribute.”

Kurti: We launched new online government services on e-Kosova platform (media)

Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, tweeted on Thursday that new online government services have been launched on the e-Kosova platform. “Together with Minister Svecla, we launched new online government services on @eKosovaplatform. Our path towards digitalization is linked with our modernization goals for public administration & our aim for better citizen services. Today was a step in the right direction,” he tweeted.

Interior Minister: 4,000 bullets confiscated at Jarinje border crossing (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Affairs, Xhelal Svecla, said on Thursday that Kosovo Police stopped a suspect of Serbian nationality at the Jarinje border crossing and found 4,000 bullets in the vehicle he was driving. “Another very successful and important action to strengthen the sovereignty of Kosovo. At the Jarinje border crossing, Kosovo Police stopped a suspect of Serbian nationality, who is a worker integrated from the parallel structures into the Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure,” Svecla wrote in a Facebook post.