Albanian Language Media: 

• Kurti: We will not accept Serbia's abnormal behavior (media)
• Hoxha: We presented evidence that Spahiu not part of police since 2022 (media)
• CEC: Local election campaign begins on September 13 (media)
• US thanks Kosovo for supporting Trump priority to deport foreign nationals (AP)
• Kosovo decides to accept 50 immigrants from the US (media)
• Trendafilova: Too early to predict conclusion of Thaci et al trial (media)

Serbian Language Media: 

• Vucic thanks Zelenskyy for respecting Serbia's territorial integrity (Tanjug, media)
• KFOR deputy commander visited the municipality of Gracanica (KiM radio)
• Roundtable in North Mitrovica to address suspension of child benefits for Kosovo Serbs (KoSSev)
• Djuric met Akolozo: Serbia and the Central African Republic united by respect for International Law and the UN Charter (Kosovo Online)

Albanian Language Media 

Kurti: We will not accept Serbia's abnormal behavior (media)

Kosovo’s caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti has reacted regarding the arrest of Arbnor Fatmir Spahiu, a former member of Kosovo Police special units, by Serbian authorities at the Hungary-Serbia border crossing. "Since the moment of the arrest of our citizen, Arbnor Fatmir Spahiu, by Serbian authorities at the Hungary-Serbia border crossing, our institutions have been maximally committed to his release as soon as possible," Kurti said. He added that "Serbia's abnormal behavior towards the citizens of the Republic of Kosovo should not and will not be accepted as normal."

Hoxha: We presented evidence that Spahiu not part of police since 2022 (media)

Kosovo Police General Director Gazmend Hoxha said on Wednesday that Arbnor Spahiu, a former member of Kosovo Police special units, has not been part of the police force since 2022. Spahiu has recently been arrested by Serbian authorities and charged with aggravated murder in the Banjska case. “He resigned from the Kosovo Police in 2022. The accusation that the media reported on about his alleged participation in the Banjska operation is not accurate at all. He has not been part of [police] operations since 2022. He has been living with his wife in Germany since 2022,” he added.

Hoxha also called on all Kosovo police officers and those that are no longer part of the police force to avoid any travel through Serbia.

CEC: Local election campaign begins on September 13 (media)

The Central Electoral Commission has set the deadlines and plans for the main activities in the local elections. The campaign will begin on September 13 and will continue until October 12. Parties have until June 23 to declare whether they have pre-election coalitions. They also have until that date to register for non-participation in the elections. Parties have time to submit lists of candidates from June 26 to August 13. The postal voting period will be from September 17 to October 11, while the application period to register for postal voting starts from July 23 to August 29.

US thanks Kosovo for supporting Trump priority to deport foreign nationals (AP)

The U.S. Department of State has welcomed Kosovo’s decision to accept and temporarily shelter up to 50 migrants deported from U.S. territory. The Department expressed its gratitude to Kosovo following the decision to receive foreign nationals who have been expelled from the United States, noting that this aligns with a high priority of President Donald Trump’s administration, which aims to carry out “the largest deportation operation” in U.S. history. “We welcome cooperation on one of the Trump administration’s top priorities,” the State Department stated, praising Kosovo’s readiness to help facilitate the return of these individuals to their countries of origin.

“We are grateful to Kosovo, our partner, for receiving third-country nationals deported from the United States and for facilitating their safe return to their home countries,” the State Department added in a statement to CBS News on Wednesday.

Kosovo decides to accept 50 immigrants from the US (media)

The government of Kosovo decided to accept up to 50 immigrants from the United States of America within a year. “The decision to provide temporary and immediate protection to fifty (50) persons has been approved, within the framework of cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Kosovo and the United States of America. Persons subject to this Decision, during their stay in the Republic of Kosovo, will act in accordance with the legislation in force and will enjoy the rights defined by the legislation in force,” the government decision states.

Kosovo’s caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti wrote on Facebook on Wednesday that their selection will be made from a proposed list, for those who meet certain criteria regarding the rule of law and public order.  “The United States of America remains our steadfast ally and the Republic of Kosovo will always be their reliable partner. We are forever grateful for their continued assistance and cooperation, and we highly appreciate their support in defense and development, especially in our journey towards Euro-Atlantic integration”, Kurti said.

Trendafilova: Too early to predict conclusion of Thaci et al trial (media)

The President of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Ekaterina Trendafilova, in an extensive interview with RTK, has stated that during the pre-trial detention of the accused in the Thaci and others case, there were continuous rulings justifying why they remained in detention. She emphasized that it is not accurate to say that the accused have been held for nearly two and a half years without a trial. According to her, from the moment of the arrests based on arrest warrants and confirmed indictments, the proceedings against them have been in the preparatory phase. “This phase, called the pre-trial phase, is part of the process, and an accused person may be held in detention during this preparatory stage if there are grounds for continued detention, such as risk of flight, interference with witnesses, or committing further criminal offenses,” Trendafilova said.

“The assessment of whether the duration of detention is reasonable must be made on a case-by-case basis, depending on the specific circumstances. But what I want to emphasize is that during the period you referred to, the process was ongoing—not in the courtroom, but in terms of preparation for trial—and every two months, reasoned decisions were issued justifying why detention had to be continued.”

Trendafilova also noted that it is still too early to predict when a verdict will be delivered in this case. “The defense teams have indicated that they will submit a joint motion to dismiss the charges, and we need to wait and see what the trial panel will decide on their motion. Depending on the outcome, if the charges are not dismissed, the victims' counsel is expected to present their evidence and arguments, which will take approximately one week.”

“After that, we will see how much time the defense teams believe they will need to prepare their evidence and arguments, and what deadlines the Trial Panel will set. Once the defense presentation of evidence is complete, the trial judges will begin their deliberations on the judgment,” said Trendafilova.

Serbian Language Media

Vucic thanks Zelenskyy for respecting Serbia's territorial integrity (Tanjug, media)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said he had had very successful meetings at the Ukraine-Southeast Europe summit in Odessa on Wednesday and that he had thanked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for fully respecting the UN Charter and the territorial integrity of Serbia and for the fact there had been no representatives of Pristina at the summit.

Vucic said it was a great gesture and that Serbia would know how to appreciate it.

"There was no Pristina or Pristina representatives here," Vucic told Serbian reporters in Odessa.

Ahead of a bilateral meeting with Zelenskyy, Vucic said they had already met and had had a long discussion during lunch.

"I have also spoken with all the others. I also had a short bilateral discussion with Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, with the Croatian PM and the PM and the president of Montenegro, as well as with the Bulgarian PM and the Romanian president. I invited Nicusor Dan to visit Serbia soon, which I believe will happen." He said the discussions were good, open and friendly.

"We discussed important issues with Ukraine, because we must resolve the issue of our trade relations and a FTA through the World Trade Organisation," he said.

Vucic noted that the message about territorial integrity had been very important, but that Serbia had abstained in a vote on a declaration adopted at the summit as the document was "not easy or simple for us."

KFOR deputy commander visited the municipality of Gracanica (KiM radio)

Brigadier General and Deputy Commander of KFOR in Kosovo Cahit Irican visited Gracanica municipality with the KFOR delegation yesterday, where he met with Mayor Ljiljana Subaric and her adviser Sasa Danic. 

Subaric informed the guest that the population of the municipality of Gracanica feels unsafe and is in constant fear of institutional and administrative pressures from the central levels of government. She stated that the municipality of Gracanica was institutionally marginalized because in many cases it was not even consulted when important decisions on its territory were made, the announcement of this municipality read.

As an example, she cited the decision of the Government of Kosovo to start the construction of the "Kosovo Residential Center for Autism, Down Syndrome and Disability for Children and the Elderly" in Gracanica, without the consent of the municipality, on its property, and that the municipality had to initiate legal actions in order to stop that process and legally regulate it.

She asked KFOR to be more involved in the field as a higher level of protection of the population because, as she said, the population does not have enough trust in the Kosovo police.

KFOR Deputy Commander Cahit Irican said that KFOR remains committed to its mission of creating a safe and peaceful environment for all citizens, stating that "geography is the destiny of people" and that there was not a single country in the world where only one nation lives, therefore, according to him, respect and understanding were the keys to peace and progress.

The Deputy Commander visited the municipality as part of his official visits to Kosovo municipalities to inform himself about the current general security situation in a conversation with the leaders, according to the announcement of the municipality of Gracanica.

Roundtable in North Mitrovica to address suspension of child benefits for Kosovo Serbs (KoSSev)

A roundtable discussion on the ongoing issue of suspended child benefit payments—affecting hundreds of families, primarily from the Serb community in Kosovo—will take place today in North Mitrovica. The event will be held at the Centre for Civic Energy (CEC), starting at 11 a.m.

The discussion will gather representatives from the Kosovo Agency of Statistics (including Director Avni Kastrati), the Ombudsperson Institution (Deputy Niman Hajdari), civil society members from the Mitrovica region, and affected citizens.

A representative from Kosovo’s Ministry of Finance, Labour and Transfers is also expected to attend.

The NGO ACDC roundtable is being organized as a response to the halting of child benefit payments by the Ministry of Finance. These suspensions have had a significant impact on numerous families across Kosovo, particularly in Serb-majority areas, this NGO underlined.

According to ACDC’s announcement, the goal of the discussion is to “foster dialogue between institutions and affected communities to address key concerns and strengthen cooperation on the issue of child benefits.”

The session will be moderated by Ines Aljevic Mihajlovic, a parent personally affected by the benefit suspension, reported KoSSev.

Djuric met Akolozo: Serbia and the Central African Republic united by respect for International Law and the UN Charter (Kosovo Online)

Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Marko Djuric met yesterday with the Minister of Trade and Industry of the Central African Republic, Thierry Patrick Akolozo, who was leading his country’s delegation at the First Planning Meeting for International Participation at the Specialized Expo 2027.

Minister Djuric emphasized that, in addition to sincere friendship and a shared commitment to enhancing cooperation in all areas of mutual interest, the two countries are also connected by their independent and sovereign conduct of foreign policy, as well as their respect for the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations. He noted that Serbia highly values its decades-long friendship with the Central African Republic and the positive momentum of political dialogue at high and highest levels, the strongest confirmation of which was last year’s official visit by CAR President Faustin-Archange Touadéra.

Regarding economic ties, Djuric welcomed the joint initiative to deepen the contractual framework between the two countries in economic cooperation, noting that such efforts would give renewed impetus and energy to their overall relations.