• COVID-19: 14 new cases, two deaths (media)
• Opposition calls for Washington Agreement to be implemented (Koha Ditore)
• Government to prepare for all scenarios for Ujman Lake, experts say (KTV)
• US recommends ways to ease Kosovo-Serbia lake dispute (BIRN)
• Hoxhaj resigns as PDK Acting Leader ahead of party convention (Kallxo)
• Vlora Citaku says she will not run for PDK leader (Klan Kosova)
• UK reconfirms support for Kosovo – Serbia Dialogue (media)
• Haradinaj: If border with Montenegro not corrected, then arbitration (Klan Kosova)

COVID-19: 14 new cases, two deaths (media)

Kosovo has recorded 14 new cases of COVID-19 and two deaths from the virus in the last 24 hours. Six persons recovered from the virus during this time.

There are 171 active cases of COVID-19 in Kosovo, the Ministry of Health said in its daily update.

Opposition calls for Washington Agreement to be implemented (Koha Ditore)

The Kosovo government has yet to comment on the final report on Ujman/Gazivoda lake drafted by the US Department of Energy on Wednesday. The report on recommendations was not commented also by the government in Belgrade, although Serbian authorities said the materials were sent to relevant institutions to analyse and offer their suggestions. Opposition parties in Kosovo meanwhile have called on the government to implement all pledges signed in Washington.

The paper recalls that while he was in opposition, Prime Minister Albin Kurti was against the point on Gazivoda/Ujmani Lake to be included in the Washington Agreement. Former Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti, who signed the agreement at the White House on September 4, said on Thursday: “when the agreement was signed, all opposition parties criticised it with political motives that were not noble. Yesterday the government accepted the feasibility study for the Ujmani Lake. It was absurd to claim that the agreement violates the independence of Kosovo. Now I want to ask the government whether the feasibility study for Lake Ujman violates sovereignty? It would be wise to apologize. I told them then not to hurry and I say the same today because time is bringing everything to light. We will also request a parliamentary debate regarding the implementation of this agreement,” Hoti said.

Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) MP Enver Hoxhaj called on the Kurti-led government to implement all commitments signed with the US. “We support the Washington Agreement and urge the Government to implement it. Wherever America is involved, there is security for Kosovo in the political, energy and natural resources fields,” he said.

Government to prepare for all scenarios for Ujman Lake, experts say (KTV)

KTV quoted experts in Prishtina on Thursday as saying that the Kosovo government should prepare a platform related to Ujman/Gazivoda Lake, gather all data and the agreements and prepare for all options while discussing a solution for the lake.

Avdi Gjonbalaj, a former senior official of Hydroekonomia, said the government should prepare arguments on whether the Columbia River Treaty is adequate or not for Kosovo. “They (Serbia) can ask for whatever they want, but they have no legal or water rights at all,” Gjonbalaj said during a debate on Thursday. Afrim Lajci, an expert on waters, shared the opinion, adding that the government should be prepared for all possible scenarios to resolve the Ujman/Gazivoda issue. Lajci argued that the best scenario is if the case is treated based on international water law.

US recommends ways to ease Kosovo-Serbia lake dispute (BIRN)

The US Department of Energy has finalized a feasibility report on the management of the disputed Ujman/ Gazivode lake in accordance with the 2020 Washington deal signed by former US President Donald Trump, separately, with Kosovo and Serbia, as part of the two countries’ dialogue.

The US embassy in Pristina announced on Wednesday that it had delivered the report to the government of Kosovo, “fulfilling one of the September 4 (2020) Washington commitments”. The government of Serbia has also received the report, according to the embassy in Pristina.

The strategically important reservoir was created in the 1970s in the mainly Serb-populated north of Kosovo. It is claimed by both Serbia and its former province, which declared independence in 2008.

The report provided four recommendations to improve the security of the water supply system. First, infrastructure should be updated in accordance with World Bank recommendations. Second, the Supervisory control and data acquisition, SCADA, an internationally recognised centralized system of processing and controlling real-life data, should be introduced in collecting data from the Ujman/ Gazivode hydro-power plant. The report said this will help Kosovo’s public electricity Transmission, System and Market Operator, KOSTT, to manage electricity prices as well as supply. In addition, SCADA will clarify the necessary investments in infrastructure. Third, the report suggests implementation of commission and evaluation of the Iber river, which flows into the lake. The commission would be useful in the EU-led Kosovo-Serbia dialogue by bringing forward different management opportunities, including shareholding opportunities.

Read full article here: https://bit.ly/3zXYkgv

Hoxhaj resigns as PDK Acting Leader ahead of party convention (Kallxo)

Enver Hoxhaj resigned the post of Acting Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) because with the party’s convention scheduled to take place on July 3. The party’s chairmanship too has resigned.

“There are great expectations from the PDK, primarily from the structures and the citizens of Kosovo and this is why we cannot remain silent and close in. On the contrary, we need to lead change and an active opposition against this government which is trying to deny every state achievement only because it was made during the government of the PDK. We need to stop further degradation; we need to prevent Kosovo’s isolation and we must maintain good relations with our Western friends,” Hoxhaj told a press conference in Prishtina.

Hoxhaj also said: “we all need to do our best; we must open our doors for young professionals with national values and make sure that the elderly can give their contribution wherever they can. Our society has changed in 2021. The PDK must embrace this change but never forget the basis of its founders which derives from the fight of the KLA for freedom and independence”.

Vlora Citaku says she will not run for PDK leader (Klan Kosova)

Vlora Citaku, Kosovo’s former Ambassador to the United States, said in an interview with Klan Kosova on Thursday evening that she will not run for PDK leader in the party’s convention on July 3. Citaku said her long time away from the party’s structures is the main reason why she is not running for the post.

“I will not run for PDK leader not because I’m afraid of the race nor am I enthusiastic about the polls, although it is a good feeling when the public likes you, but I don’t make my decisions based on these premises. I said it earlier, the PDK doesn’t need a savior or a messiah, this political mindset needs to be removed from Kosovo’s political landscape,” she said.

Citaku did not rule out that she could run for the post in the next convention of the PDK after two years. “I will actively engage in the PDK and I am leaving the open possibility of running in the next elections, but for the time being I need to get more familiar,” she said.

UK reconfirms support for Kosovo – Serbia Dialogue (media)

UK Minister for European Neighborhood Wendy Morton said in a Twitter post on Thursday that she reconfirmed UK’s support for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia in a discussion with EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak. “We agreed to continue work together to build on opportunities to secure a comprehensive & sustainable normalisation agreement to benefit the entire region,” Morton said.

Haradinaj: If border with Montenegro not corrected, then arbitration (Klan Kosova)

Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), said on Thursday that the Kosovo government must form the state committee for border delineation. “The committee must be formed because the [border] demarcation with Montenegro has not taken place. The committee did not go out in the field to set the stones. The current border is the border that was there before the agreement,” he said.

The Kosovo Assembly adopted the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro in March 2018 when Haradinaj was Prime Minister.

Haradinaj also said that if Montenegro does not agree to mark the border then the issue must go to arbitration. “Montenegro is an ally but the issue must go to arbitration,” he added.