Rohan: Brussels agreement, step towards implementation of Ahtisaari (Koha)
In an interview for the paper, renowned Austrian diplomat and former UN envoy, Albert Rohan said that the Brussels Agreement between Pristina and Belgrade is another step toward the implementation of the Ahtisaari Plan and that there is no alternative to the dialogue in Brussels.

Rohan insists that the Ahtisaari Plan was a successful project. “The Ahtisaari Plan was fully successful with regards to its implementation by the Kosovar leadership. The plan lags behind in areas where Belgrade is involved, especially in the northern part of Kosovo. In this respect, the Brussels agreement is another step towards the full implementation of the Ahtisaari package,” Rohan told the paper.

€1.7 million for “police region of MUP” (Koha)
The paper reports that Kosovo’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) has planned to implement five activities in 2014 in the function of the implementing the April agreement between Kosovo and Serbia. The activities include the financial infusion for the police region in the northern part of Kosovo.

The Kosovo Police Regional Directorate is now being called “the police region of MUP” because it will be dominated by Serbian security structures that operated illegally in Kosovo. And the agreement has produced this new directorate.

The agreement also conditions the dissolution of Serbian Interior Ministry’s structures in Kosovo with the recruitment of members of these structures in Kosovo Police.

For the functionalization and full operationalization of the Kosovo Police Regional Directorate for northern part of the country, MIA has planned to allocate €1.744.000 million. Except this, MIA will fulfill four tasks, which derive from the agreement Kosovo – Serbia: Functionalization of civil registration centers and offices of registry; functionalization of firefighter units, the start of building permanent points of IBM with Serbia; and functionalizing of municipal councils for security and community.

Northerners prepare oath without symbols, government is uninformed (Koha)
One day before the constitution of the municipality of northern Mitrovica, Albanian assembly members were officially informed by Adriana Hodzic that inauguration invitations will not contain state symbols.

On the other hand, officials of the Kosovo Ministry for Local Administration said they were not informed about this and insisted that they would not allow any scenario that violates Kosovo laws.

Meanwhile, Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Edita Tahiri has travelled to Brussels on Wednesday to discuss the latest developments in northern Kosovo.

Sadri Ferati, former Minister for Local Government, told Epoka e Re that he was optimistic that mayors of the four northern municipalities will swear in according to Kosovo laws.

The paper also quotes Oliver Ivanovic, former state secretary at the Serbian Ministry for Kosovo, as saying that the inauguration of municipal assemblies in the northern part of Kosovo should be done without state symbols.

EULEX restructuring was not initiated by the Kosovo Government (Tribuna)
A report from the European Court of Auditors is the cause the EU rule of law mission, EULEX, is undergoing a restructuring process in 2014, the paper writes today. The report had found that the money the EU member states invested in EULEX was going to waste because there was never a serious effort from Brussels to make the mission more effective and less costly.

This argument is presented in the EU strategy for transforming EULEX stressing that it is the auditors’ report the reason the mission is being restricted in addition to the challenges that have derived from the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. The strategy, however, makes no mention that the reason behind EU’s move has to do with demands of the Kosovo Government for restructuring EULEX.

Gashi: Ukë Rugova has no tendencies for post of LDK leader (Epoka e Re)
In an interview for the paper, Dardan Gashi, one of the founders of the Ibrahim Rugova List, said he was optimistic that the List would join the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and that Bujar Bukoshi and Ukë Rugova will have decision-making roles in the LDK.

“I am very optimistic that our goals will be achieved. Bujar Bukoshi was prime minister from the LDK and one of the founders of the party. It is therefore logical for him to return in his place. It would make no sense for Bukoshi to start from scratch in the LDK. I am optimistic that this will be achieved be it through a decision of the party’s chairmanship or through elections in LDK,” he said.

Gashi also said neither Bukoshi nor Ukë Rugova have tendencies to run for the post of LDK leader. “LDK has its leader. He is Isa Mustafa,” Gashi added.

Lutfi Haziri removes UNMIK fences in Gjilan (Zëri)
Zëri reports that UNMIK mission that once was very much present in Gjilan has turned this city in the city of fences, putting fences everywhere, at the police regional building, District Court in Gjilan, and even in their parking places. “All fences that are preventing free movement of citizens will be removed,” said Lutfi Haziri, new mayor of Gjilan.