Thaçi: Kosovo to make sure there is no delay in implementation (Tribuna)

Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi met on Wednesday with EU ambassadors working in Kosovo, and briefed them on the implementation process of the Brussels agreement. Thaçi said after the adoption of the implementation plan, the government adopted and then sent to Parliament the law for ratifying the agreement for normalization of relations with Serbia. He said Deputy Prime Minister Edita Tahiri would be coordinating the working groups for the implementation of the agreement. “The groups are in Brussels and I believe we are going to have positive results,” Thaçi said.

Thaçi assured EU ambassadors that Kosovo will make sure there is no delay in the implementation of the agreement and said he expects Serbia to do the same. “I expect Serbia to act the same way, although latest actions such as the Ohrid conference are direct evidence that Serbia has yet to embrace the substance and spirit of the agreement.”

Blomeyer: Serbia must know there is no going back (dailies)

German ambassador to Kosovo, Peter Blomeyer, said on Wednesday that Serbia must know there is no going back and that the implementation of the Brussels is the only path that leads towards integration in the European Union. “The Serbian side realizes there is no turning back and now they are asked to implement the 19 April agreement on the field. This is the only way to move toward the European Union,” he added.

Hodzic calls for transparency in implementation of Brussels agreement (Koha)

The Kosovo Government’s Administrative Office in northern Mitrovica has started preparations for the implementation of the Brussels agreement between Kosovo and Serbia prime ministers. Office chief Adriana Hodzic said she believes the new agreement is good for both communities living in this part of Kosovo. “In order to win the trust of the citizens, the implementation of the Brussels agreement should be very transparent,” Hodzic said.

EU: All suspicions for war crimes should be investigated (Koha)

Koha Ditore reports on the front page that the European Union has called on the Kosovo government and parliament not to interfere in the work of the judiciary. The EU recalls Article 4 of the Constitution of Kosovo which talks about the separation of powers and guarantees the independence of the judiciary.

“We can only repeat that a clear distinction should be made between judicial powers, executive powers and legislation powers. This distinction is outlined in Article 4 of the Constitution of Kosovo, which notes that the principle of separation of powers is most important,” the office of European Union in Kosovo told the paper.

The EU office also said discussions on an ongoing judicial process that is not yet completed are unacceptable as was the case with the Kicina trial.

“Both cases in European interpretation of rule of law are considered political interference in the judiciary. In such cases, the Parliament and every responsible politician should not be involved in effort which could be interpreted as efforts to influence or annul a judicial decision, the same as to influence the perceptions of judges about their independence. These statements came after political statements and criminal prosecution of the so-called “Drenica Group”. Government, Assembly and political parties have said that the arrested ones are innocent. They have said this without the start of judicial process. EU said that unfortunately Kosovo does not represent the only example of such attempts for intervention,” but this can also be seen in some EU member states.

Thaçi: Parliament decides on PTK (Koha)

Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi said on Wednesday that the privatization of the Kosovo Post and Telecom (PTK) will depend on the decision of Parliament. Thaçi made the remark one day after Parliament Speaker Jakup Krasniqi called on foreign diplomatic offices in Pristina to stop the privatization of PTK, citing lack of trust in Kosovo’s institutions.

“The Government has adopted a report of government commission for the privatization of 75 per cent of PTK shares. According to procedures and the Constitution and laws of Kosovo, the same decision has been forwarded to Parliament as the institution that has the final say on the matter. I expect the Assembly, with respect to all procedures, to discuss the matter and make a final decision,” Thaçi said.

Surroi: Kosovar politics most criminalized in Europe (Koha)

Publicist Veton Surroi said on Wednesday in an interview for KTV that Kosovar politics is the most criminalized in Europe. Surroi, who heads the board of the Foreign Policy Club, said he warned that negotiations between Kosovo and Serbia would produce something that will continue to be negotiated for months and even years. Surroi said it was bad luck for Kosovo to have a weak negotiating structure in the talks.

Surroi also said the government displayed an unprecedented intervention in the work of the judiciary in the case of the Drenica Group. Surroi said court and history will prove if the war and its individuals were innocent.

Pacolli informs about arrival of verbal note from Tanzania (Koha)

The office of Deputy Prime Minister Behxhet Pacolli informed on Wednesday that it has received the verbal note of recognition from the Republic of Tanzania. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has yet to issue information in relation to this verbal note.

Government sees amnesty as tool for integration of Serbs (Koha)

Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuçi accepted on Wednesday that the amnesty law will be a tool for integrating Serbs in Kosovo institutions and called for consensus on the issue. “We should acknowledge the fact that we have an additional issue for amnesty and which has to do with the integration of the Serb community in the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo,” Kuçi said at a government meeting. “The Republic of Kosovo, the Government, has already approved a working group and we have a draft law on amnesty. I think it will be proceeded very soon to the Government and then to Parliament.”

Kosovo sets visa regime for 87 countries (Koha)

From the 1 of July, citizens of 87 countries will need to request visas in order to enter Kosovo. The Minister of the European Integrations, Vlora Çitaku, said that visa regime will not be applied on the U.S. and EU countries. “EU citizens will be able to come to Kosovo with biometric identification cards,” she said. According to her, by the end of the year, Kosovo will implement the entire visa regime, creating thus a safe system of control of entrances and exits. She said that the project will be launched as a pilot project at the General Consulate in Istanbul, from where many passengers from Asia and Africa arrive in Kosovo. “Kosovo should establish a good system of defense from asylum seekers, a system of reintegration of our citizens, who are refused illegal staying in the EU, we have to fight corruption and organized crime, but we should also prepare to become members of Schengen zone, applying visa regime for the third countries, citizens of which can use Kosovo as a platform for illegal emigration, further to EU,” said Çitaku.