• Borrell: We support visa liberalization for Kosovo (media)
• Baerbock: Kosovo, Serbia to be supported in normalization process (Koha)
• U.S. supports Kosovo's CoE membership bid (Telegrafi)
• Op-ed: The time to incentivize the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue is now (BIRN)
• In U.S., Kurti meets students at Michigan University (media)
• Haradinaj: Demarcation issue cannot be closed by one side (media)
• Kosovo tightens sanctions against Russia (euronews.al)
• Croatian President: Kosovo is an internationally recognized state (media)
• Entry to US banned for several Afghan refugees in Kosovo (euronews.al)
• RTK plans to apply for EBU membership by year’s end (Nacionale)
• COVID-19: 7 new cases (media)

Borrell: We support visa liberalization for Kosovo (media)

EU High Representative Josep Borrell said on Monday that they support visa liberalization for Kosovo. He said that the European Commission has presented it several times as an issue and has announced that all the criteria for liberalization have been met. “We support visa liberalization for Kosovo,” he said.

Borrell said EU Foreign Ministers discussed on Monday about the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, adding that all preliminary agreements must be respected. He said another meeting between Prime Minister Albin Kurti and President Aleksandar Vucic could be held before summer. “We must create trust between the parties, we must bring a good atmosphere within the meetings. We hope that we will be able to hold another meeting between the Prime Minister of Kosovo and the President of Serbia before summer,” he said.

According to him, they also talked about the consequences of the war that Russia has started in Ukraine. "We have also invited the Foreign Ministers of the Western Balkans where we discussed their future and their path to the European Union. We have supported the allies who have imposed sanctions on Russia. Serbia is one of the countries that has not imposed sanctions on Russia and should do so as soon as possible. We expect the candidates for EU membership to join the EU foreign policy," he said.

Borrell has said that being neutral today is a false concept. According to him, putting both Russia and Ukraine in the same position, blurs the difference between the attacker and the attacked. He said Albania, Montenegro, northern Macedonia, have joined in EU policies, and because of this may be more threatened by Russia. “Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo have also joined this initiative. Kosovo did not even have to do it because it was not recognized by many European countries. We have sent a message to the strategic partners of the Western Balkans to be more strategic. I want to make it clear that we need to start negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania. I hope this will happen very soon. These two countries have met all the criteria, and this delay is hurting us all,” he said.

Koha Ditore covers as its leading story the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the EU and their meeting with Foreign Ministers from the Balkans, highlighting that “many EU countries want visa liberalization for Kosovo”. The paper also notes that more than ever before, EU ministers in informal meetings on Monday highlighted the urgent need for visa liberalization. The ministers also clearly called on Serbia to impose sanctions on Serbia arguing that “you cannot be with Putin’s regime and build a European future at the same time”.

Baerbock: Kosovo, Serbia to be supported in normalization process (Koha)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Monday that Kosovo and Serbia should be supported in the process of normalizing relations. “It’s the road they should make together to maintain the European perspective,” Baerbock told a news conference ahead of the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

Baerbock said the EU should not only continue to support the Western Balkans, but also deliver on its promises. She said it was important to open membership negotiations with Albania and northern Macedonia early in the summer, calling it an important security and geopolitical issue.

U.S. supports Kosovo's CoE membership bid (Telegrafi)

The United States, through its Embassy in Pristina, has expressed support for Kosovo's efforts to join the Council of Europe.

"The United States remains committed to supporting Kosovo as it takes its deserved place as a sovereign and independent country alongside its neighbours in European and Euro-Atlantic institutions - including Kosovo's membership at the Council of Europe. Decision to join these programmes and organisations requires the consent and approval of these institutions and their member states, not only of the United States of America," said Erik Brassil, Embassy's spokesperson.

Op-ed: The time to incentivize the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue is now (BIRN)

The Kosovo-Serbia dialogue process is lagging again. The last time that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti met withing the framework of normalization of relations facilitated by the European Union was in July 2021.

Their only two meetings were described as unconstructive, difficult, and unstatesmanlike.

To incentivize the process, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz invited both Vucic and Kurti to Berlin on the same day for bilateral meetings and for a joint informal dinner in lieu of a proper meeting as part of the dialogue.

The meetings also served for the Chancellor to reiterate EU membership prospects for the region against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and Russia’s increasing influence and its potential destabilizing effects in the Balkans.

Ukraine war creates new dynamic

Germany deemed the timing of the meeting an opportunity to reiterate EU support for the region and bring new impetus to the dialogue process. This reads as determination to further strengthen Germany’s and the European Union’s sphere of influence in this part of Europe.

Read full opinion piece here: https://bit.ly/3PBF7t8

In U.S., Kurti meets students at Michigan University (media)

As he continues his visit to the U.S., Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti stayed in Michigan on the invitation of the Albanian Students' Organisation and held an open discussion with students at the Michigan University.

Kurti is said to have spoken about the work of the Kosovo Government noting that its priority is opening new jobs and underlined in this context the importance of foreign investments, especially from the United States. Kurti also spoke about the fight against crime and corruption and the progress he said Kosovo has made in economic and democratic indicators, a press release issued by the Government of Kosovo said.

Haradinaj: Demarcation issue cannot be closed by one side (media)

Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), commented on a statement by Montenegrin Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic who said that the border demarcation between the two sides is a closed matter. Haradinaj said in a debate on TV Dukagjini that the demarcation is completed when there is compliance between the two parliaments. “The border issue cannot be closed by one side; there is no border that can be marked unilaterally. We don’t deal with that they have voted. Our side has voted three documents at the same time,” he argued.

Kosovo tightens sanctions against Russia (euronews.al)

Kosovo’s government has increased its sanctions against Russia, in compliance with the sanctions set in place by the United States and the European Union, this Monday. The deputy minister of foreign affairs and the diaspora, Kreshnik Ahmeti, stated that during today’s government meeting, Kosovo has decided to side with the policies followed by the US and the EU in regards to the sanctions against Russia. The latest package of sanctions includes bans for Belorussia as well. Kosovo’s sanctions will include freezing the assets of all individuals sanctioned in the territory of Kosovo, banning their operations in Kosovo’s financial market, and banning travel and access to funding for all sanctioned individuals.

Croatian President: Kosovo is an internationally recognized state (media)

Croatia will send to Kosovo a group of 37 soldiers, who will join the KFOR troops. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, who attended the farewell ceremony, reiterated that Kosovo is an internationally recognized state.

“Kosovo is an internationally recognized state. Serbia does not accept this and as things stand it will not accept it. But we do not interfere in politics more than what we did many years ago when we recognized Kosovo," Milanovic said.

He said that his state's action did not come "to harm Serbia" because they do not pursue such a policy, but as he said "to reward Kosovo".

The NATO peacekeeping mission KFOR has 3,746 troops in Kosovo, coming from 28 countries.

Entry to US banned for several Afghan refugees in Kosovo (euronews.al)

The United States has banned the entry of 16 Afghan refugees that are currently living in a military base in Kosovo. The news was confirmed by US news agency ‘Axios’ which cites 2 American officials. This is the first time that the Biden administration refuses Afghans that have been temporarily sheltered outside of the United States. These refugees are going through a vetting process before they can ultimately enter the United States.

This inspection is being carried out for security reasons so that these individuals can be correctly identified and so that it can be proved that they didn’t have any connections to the Taliban or any other terrorist organization.

The US Department of State is assessing 2 possibilities for the Afghan refugees who will be denied entry to the United States.

RTK plans to apply for EBU membership by year’s end (Nacionale)

RTK Director General Shkumbin Ahmetxhekaj said that Kosovo’s public broadcaster plans to apply for membership in the EBU by the end of the year. “The joint plan of the management of RTK is to officially apply for membership in the EBU perhaps at the end of this year or next year,” Ahmetxhekaj told the news website.

COVID-19: 7 new cases (media)

Seven new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. There are 328 active cases with COVID-19 in Kosovo.