UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, October 8, 2021

EU’s Balkan Billions Must Be Tied to Values, Kosovo Leader Says (Bloomberg)
Merkel speaks of ‘modest progress’ in resolution of Kosovo-Serbia problems (Telegrafi)
Lajcak meets EU ambassadors to UN during his visit to U.S. (media)
EU ambassador to Serbia: Pristina-Belgrade dialogue can produce results (Klan)
France blocking visa liberalisation, further EU enlargement, analyst says (Telegrafi)
"Lack of EU enlargement strategy can lead to conflict in Balkans" (RTK)
Kosovo war veterans plead innocent to witness intimidation (AP)
War Veterans’ Leaders go on trial at Hague Court, after leaking Court documents (BIRN)
Ministry of Health recommends extension of current anti-COVID measures (media)
COVID-19: No deaths, 30 new cases (media)

EU’s Balkan Billions Must Be Tied to Values, Kosovo Leader Says (Bloomberg)

The European Union should link the distribution of dozens of billions of euros earmarked for the six Balkan nations hoping to join the bloc to upholding the rule of law and fighting corruption, Kosovo’s prime minister said.

Premier Albin Kurti’s statements were a rare call for more EU oversight from a region growing increasingly dissatisfied with the bloc’s reluctance to speed up the process of accepting new members.

They also coincide with the European Commission confrontation of members Poland and Hungary, who are at risk of losing billions of euros in aid over democratic backsliding and breaching the rule-of-law.

“There shouldn’t be EU funds without EU values,” he said in an interview on the sidelines of a summit in Slovenia. “The EU should not abandon its transformative nature for a transactional one.”

Read more at: https://bloom.bg/3FvtGxO

Merkel speaks of ‘modest progress’ in resolution of Kosovo-Serbia problems (Telegrafi)

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she did not support the idea of giving a timeline to the Western Balkans countries for EU accession at yesterday's summit in Slovenia but that membership is possible when conditions are met.

Merkel also said that the resolution of the Kosovo-Serbia stalemate is not easy but there has been modest progress in this direction, Telegrafi quotes Tirana-based Top Channel as reporting. "The solution to this problem is not easy but certain small steps have been made in the right direction. The Berlin Process had a truly positive effect in the region. This can be seen when you look at the six cooperating with one another. The most recent project is the creation of a common regional market," Merkel said, adding that not all Western Balkans countries have agreed to every detail of such an arrangement.

Lajcak meets EU ambassadors to UN during his visit to U.S. (media)

The EU Special Representative for Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, Miroslav Lajcak, met in New York EU heads of mission at the United Nations.

"Thank you EUSR @MiroslavLajcak for an excellent exchange with EU Ambassadors as you start a visit to the UN. Full support to your efforts on advancing the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. EU-Western Balkans Summit this week showed the EU is strongly committed to our closest partners," the EU delegation tweeted after the meeting.

EU ambassador to Serbia: Pristina-Belgrade dialogue can produce results (Klan)

European Union ambassador to Serbia, Emmanuel Joffre, said that the recent summit in Slovenia sent a clear message to the Western Balkans countries.

Speaking to Belgrade's news agency Tanjug, Joffre said the recent agreement on license plates between Kosovo and Serbia in Brussels shows that the process of dialogue can be productive. "There is no alternative to dialogue. We saw that we managed to resolve a crisis with license plates some days ago. The EU has been set up to deal with crises. The latest agreement is an indicator that results can come out of the dialogue," he said.

France blocking visa liberalisation, further EU enlargement, analyst says (Telegrafi)

Bodo Weber, German expert on the Western Balkans, told RTV Dukagjini that the French President Emmanuel Macron is blocking the future enlargement of the European Union as well as visa liberalisation for Kosovo.

"There are serious disagreements among member states about the future of enlargement. The French President Macron is seriously against further enlargement of the European Union although he does not say this loudly. He is even influencing other countries to block the EU enlargement," Weber said, adding that Macron is also to blame for the lack of a visa liberalisation decision for Kosovo.

At the same time, Richard Caplan from Oxford University, said that the EU enlargement fatigue may carry consequences for the Balkans region. "EU has not yet given a timeline for enlargement and this can raise many questions in the minds of the people about how serious the European Union is about integration. The leaders want to have every bilateral dispute resolved before countries joining the EU," Caplan said. He warned that the wariness of the EU to expand towards the Western Balkans could play into the hands of Russia and China.

"Lack of EU enlargement strategy can lead to conflict in Balkans" (RTK)

U.S. political analysts on Balkans, Janusz Bugajski and Daniel Serwer said the EU is pursuing a wrong approach towards Kosovo. Bugajski pointed out that failure to provide an enlargement timeline for the Western Balkans countries shows the absence of an effective EU foreign policy which, he warned, could lead to new conflicts in the region. Serwer however thinks that the EU was right in not providing a clear accession timeframe for the Western Balkans.

Bugajski and Serwer both agreed that the failure of the EU to grant visa liberalisation to Kosovo is 'shameful'. "It is scandalous that Kosovo is the only country in Europe that does not have visa liberalisation. Such a policy creates resentment, anger and conflict, as Kosovars feel they are being treated by the European Union as second-class citizens… Unfortunately most EU leaders are not strategic thinkers or authentic Europeans, but are focused on their short-term domestic policies," Bugajski said. Serwer meanwhile noted: "It is shameful that the European Union has not yet fulfilled its commitment to lift visa regime for Kosovo. If the EU wants Kosovo to be serious in the dialogue process, it must move forward with visa liberalisation."

Kosovo war veterans plead innocent to witness intimidation (AP)

Prosecutors at a European Union-backed Kosovo war crimes court said that two leaders of a war veterans’ association who went on trial Thursday deliberately tried to undermine investigations by intimidating witnesses and publicizing leaked confidential documents.

Hysni Gucati, who was chairman of the Kosovo Liberation Army War Veterans Association when he was arrested last year, and his deputy, Nasim Haradinaj, were charged with obstructing justice and intimidation for allegedly revealing information that included the identity of potential witnesses at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers court.

“Mr. Gucati and Mr Haradinaj are vocal opponents of this institution, denigrating anyone who would recognize or cooperate with the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, or the specialist prosecutor’s office as spies, collaborators and traitors who betrayed their fellow countrymen,” Specialist Prosecutor Jack Smith told judges.