LOCAL PRESS 

Petkovic: Brussels agreement important, we insist on its implementation (RTS/Tanjug) 

The Brussels agreement is a cornerstone that enabled the survival and stay of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, opened space for Serbia to develop, says the Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Petar Petkovic and points out that Belgrade will not give up insisting that the agreement be implemented, i.e. for Pristina to establish the Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO), which, he says, is the main part of the document and the only obligation of the Pristina side. In a statement for Tanjug, Petkovic said that eight years had passed since the signing of the Brussels agreement, “or more precisely 2,922 days since Pristina has been violatingd it, considering that the main part of it, the heart of the agreement - the formation of the ZSO - has not been fulfilled”. “Precisely with the Brussels agreement, we used to say no even when they asked us, Vucic, and he did not agree to that, for Kosovo to become a member of the UN, for the part related to the police to be worse. We managed to push it all out, to fight for the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija and fight for the Brussels agreement,” Petkovic said. “We negotiated there, made decisions and signed agreements, and everything that was signed and agreed, including the Brussels agreement, Belgrade fulfilled. Pristina did not fulfill its obligations, and that is primarily the responsibility of the EU,” Petkovic said. He reminds that the EU signed the agreement, but did not put the necessary pressure on Pristina to fulfill its obligations. That is why, he points out, it is important that the Brussels agreement be implemented and Belgrade will insist on that.

Cooperation between Serbia and Kosovo chambers of commerce and regional initiatives (Beta)  

The chambers of commerce in the region have been cooperating well and have been

trying to remove barriers to the exchange of goods and services, a manager in the Serbian Chamber of Commerce Mihailo Vesovic and Kosovo Chamber of Commerce President Berat Rukiqi said on 19 April. In an interview with Beta, they described as important the initiatives for regional cooperation, which were aimed at improving competitiveness of all economies in the Western Balkans, attracting investments in these markets and joint projects. “The relation between the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce

practically started in 2013, through a technical dialogue, brokered by Eurochambers, and picked up intensity after 2017, when essential cooperation began,” Vesovic said. “We maintain normal relations with all chambers of commerce in the region, which mainly deal with cooperation among businesses, and we are very focused on removing all barriers and on the

placement of Kosovo products in regional markets, including the one in Serbia,” Rukiqi said.

Loud silence of West to announcement on “Great Albania” (Politika) 

The daily argued that the Western centers of powers unofficially assessed as a cheap political marketing or pre-election bluff “the threat of Ramush Haradinaj” from January that Albania and Kosovo will merge by 2025 unless Serbia recognizes Kosovo. However, the daily argued, this was more than a political marketing knowing that last week media published Slovenian ‘non-paper’ which, among other things, foresees creation of ‘Great Albania’. “Even more concerning is obvious absence of clear reaction of the international community and the EU to such dangerous ideas on change of borders and ethnic structures of countries in the Balkans. To be honest, they did react when it comes to possible merging of Republika Srpska (RS) entity with Serbia, but they were silent with regard to creation of Great Albania although such ideas represent a direct threat to peace and stability in this area,” the daily argued. The daily reminded that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told B92 last weekend that “nobody said that Serbia is for merging with the RS yet everyone strongly reacted against it while everyone is silent about Great Albania”. Diplomat Zoran Milivojevic said that it is interesting to see that the West is silent about everything Albanians do, so this might be interpreted as a silent consent. Milivojevic argued that Albanians are loyal allies and they are those who implement western interests in the Balkans through enlargement of NATO and opposing to Russia and China “so the West tolerates everything”. Analyst Srdjan Graovac reminded that the idea on Great Albania dates back to the end of 19th century and it is a part of Albanian national plan. Graovac assessed that the reactions on Great Albania are not as loud as those to Great Serbia because the West deems that Serbia should be treated as an ally of Russia and any thought on expansion of its territory and influence is perceived as a potential threat to the West.

Serbian and British Armies together in UN Mission in Cyprus (Politika) 

On the occasion of the sending of the military police department of the Serbian Army to the United Nations peacekeeping operation in Cyprus (UNFICYP), after a three-year break, a military ceremony was held in the “Banjica” barracks in Belgrade. Previously, from 2011 to 2018, a unit of the Serbian Army of the rank of infantry platoon participated in this mission, reads the announcement. The Military Police Department will be engaged as part of the British contingent in this mission, which will be the first joint engagement of our and the British Army after World War II. The Chief of the Peacekeeping Operations Centre, Colonel Mirjana Milenkovic, presented the flag of the Republic of Serbia to the Commander of the Department, Senior Sergeant Viktor Urosevic, with the message that they conscientiously and responsibly perform all assigned tasks in the mission, present the character and work of Serbian Army members and build good relations with all participants in the mission. The ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to Serbia Sian Macleod, and representatives of the Serbian Defense Ministry and Army.

Vulin: Serbs should live in one state, Serb national issue should be solved by uniting all Serbs in one state (TV Pink) 

Serbian Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin commented the non-paper on retailoring of borders in Western Balkans which sparked many negative reactions. Vulin said that he does not understand why borders in the Balkans should be unchangeable. “Why shouldn’t the Serb national issue be finally solved by uniting Serbs in one state,” wondered Vulin, and added that he would not be surprised by the existence of the non-paper if it is real. However, noted Vulin, such non-paper would provide evidence for hypocrisy of the official Brussels. “They see us in the Balkans as toys. Those who believe that the EU wishes us well are very wrong…National issues in Balkans are obviously solved by uniting a nation. In a single political structure. In one state,” said Vulin for TV Pink. He underlined that in his opinion, Serbs need to have a single state. Asked to comment critics of the idea of new borders, Vulin said that those who criticize such ideas are “Serbs by chance” who criticize everything that is positive for Serbia. Vulin said that he respects Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H)’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the Dayton Peace Agreement. However, he reminded, even B&H politicians say that it is a non-functional state.

Inzko: Do not open Pandora’s box with ‘non-paper (Politika/Tanjug) 

 

High Representative Valentin Inzko commented on the ‘non-paper’ on the Balkans and warned about the danger from “dissolution” of B&H by saying: “Nobody should open that Pandora’s box. Do not allow that to happen”. Inzko added that changes to borders might result in severe consequences and added that, in his opinion, the situation is clear – dissolution of B&H or secession of a part of B&H is not possible. “I would never sign anything like that,” Inzko said and added that B&H needs a long-term approach because it takes time for recovery from war and from hundreds of thousands of killed people. Inzko also added that “there are many Nelson Mandelas,” such as one Hasan Ahmetlic from Tesanj who renovated Catholic church on his own expense.

Logar: Discussion on alleged ‘non-paper’ is of use to nobody (Politika) 

 

Slovenian Foreign Minister Anze Logar stated on Monday that a discussion on alleged ‘non-paper’ on change of borders in the Western Balkans is of use neither for B&H nor Slovenia. Following a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Ministers, Logar assessed that everyone will have to decide what is in their best interest – to carry out a political propaganda or do everything in their power to make sure Slovenia presides in a good manner and contributes to progress in the Western Balkans. Logar noted that none of the Foreign Ministers asked any questions about the ‘non-paper’ at the meeting. He also announced that the ministers will discuss the Western Balkans in May.

REGIONAL PRESS 

 

Kovacevic: RS ruling coalition to discuss information that possibility of peaceful disintegration of B&H is being discussed at numerous important addresses within the EU (Srna/RTRS)

The RS ruling coalition will hold a meeting at Mrakovica on Tuesday on the current political situation in the RS and B&H, at which they will discuss political topics of vital importance for the future of the RS, SNSD Spokesman Radovan Kovacevic told Srna . Kovacevic said that one of the key topics would definitely be information that the possibility of peaceful disintegration of B&H is being discussed at numerous important addresses within the EU, as well as the need to definitely launch an initiative to start talks between the RS and the Federation of B&H (FB&H) in that context. “I have to deny the claims of those who announced that personnel issues will be discussed at the meeting of the ruling coalition tomorrow. That is not on the agenda at all. Important political topics of vital importance for the future of the RS are on the agenda” Kovacevic emphasized.

SNSD RS MPs submit initiative for dialogue with FB&H on future of B&H; SNSD members believe that either the ultimatums in B&H will stop or process of peaceful dissolution will begin (N1)

N1 reports on new problems between Banja Luka and Sarajevo. The problem was created because SNSD has included on the agenda of the regular session of the RS parliament the initiative for beginning a dialogue with the FB&H on the future of B&H. The FB&H authorities say that this initiative is just like “lighting fire near a fuel tank”. SNSD members believe that either the ultimatums in B&H will stop, or the process of peaceful dissolution will begin. “We want cooperation. We want dialogue. We do not want ultimatums. We do not want our powers to be taken away. We do not want an order policy from Sarajevo, in which there is no development of the RS. Our president (SNSD leader Milorad Dodik) has already said that if there is no agreement, then we want a peaceful and dignified parting,” says SNSD representative in the RS parliament Vlado Djajic. Strong reaction followed from Sarajevo. SDP B&H says that this is an escalation of anti-state policy. They call on the international community for help. “Metaphorically speaking, it seems to me that Dodik and the SNSD are lighting a fire among the gas tanks. It is high time they were warned by the highest international officials to stop with the brutal anti-Dayton rhetoric and moves,” says SDP B&H member Denis Becirovic. SDA members are much more relaxed. They say they have attended similar RSNA sessions in the past. “It is known that there is at least one special RS parliament session a month. Since there were no sessions for some time, there was a need to schedule another kind of show of the ruling coalition; where the necessary conclusions will be drawn and which will never be implemented,” claims SDA member Edin Ramic. The opposition in the RS does not believe in the real intentions of SNSD either. Without an introductory word, they are not sure what this initiative is about, but that the final conclusion will lead to any split, they believe, is not a realistic scenario. “One option is for SNSD to come to the session prepared. That they agreed on these talks between the RS and the FB&H with its coalition partners SDA and HDZ B&H. Another option is that this is all another colorful lie. To make a great story that should take people away from the story of crime, which they have been conducting for the past 15 years in the RS”, underlines PDP member Igor Crnadak. N1 reminds that RSNA session was scheduled for 27 April, when SNSD is expected to reveal the details of the mentioned Initiative. SNSD’s Igor Zunic stated that the initiative underlines that it is necessary to always reiterate that B&H was created with approval of the RS and the FB&H, as well as the three constituent peoples, and only with their approval it can continue to exist. SDS’s Nedeljko Glamocak stated that SNSD is just deceiving the public again. Instead of SNSD’s initiative which is full of empty words, said Glamocak, the RS, FB&H and constituent peoples should launch dialogue on how to procure vaccines.

Jansa condemns protest in Sarajevo as extremist (RTRS)

Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa condemned the protest outside Slovenian Embassy in Sarajevo held on Saturday as extremist. The protest was motivated by the non-paper on dissolution of B&H which is allegedly promoted by Slovenian officials. The gathering was organized by the organization ‘Vjera, narod, drzava’ (Faith, people, state) which is considered radical Islamist organization. The daily reported Jansa’s statement and commented that massive media coverage of the non-paper has the goal to undermine the Croatian non-paper on electoral reform and draw attention away from the real priority issue in B&H – change of the Election Law.

Bogovic: I never heard anything about change of borders in Western Balkans (Dnevni avaz)

Slovenian Representative in European Parliament Franc Bogovic told the daily that during the current or the previous mandate he never heard a single idea concerning the change of borders in the Western Balkans, nor anything like that is contained in the alleged document of “suspicious authenticity”. Commenting the non-paper which certain media brought in connection with Slovenian authorities, Bogovic said: “This unofficial diplomatic document- non-paper, I can only asses it as yet another political construction, probably by side of Slovenian socialists from the opposition, assisted by the colleagues in the region, which are making huge effort and undertake activities to ruin the reputation of current Slovenian Government ahead of upcoming Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU”. He stressed that as a human being, MEP and Vice President of Slovenian People’s Party he actively supports all countries of the Western Balkans on their EU path and he is strongly dedicated to their European future. “In example of Bosnia and Herzegovina, however, I advocate peace and respecting of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the war in this region. Every unilateral searching of solution for open challenges would only mean creating of new problems,” said Bogovic.

Covic: Fabricated documents aimed at diverting attention from fundamental political issues (Dnevni list)

Dnevni list reports that the coordination of HDZ B&H President Dragan Covic and officials of the HNS (Croat People’s Assembly) and HDZ B&H from the FB&H level held a session on Monday. Key topic of the meeting was the Law on Elections of B&H and political talks pertaining to the Law on Elections. It was stated that all the media spins and fabricated affairs that are being pushed into the public and media space in past several days are a classic example of deception, aimed at diverting attention from fundamental political issues. It was also stated that the issue of reform of the electoral legislation is a fundamental political issue, the issue that should remove all sorts of discrimination and domination. The officials also discussed the Coronavirus pandemic related issues and concluded that all existing capacities must be clearly directed towards securing security and health for the population, and that healthcare institutions must have all the necessary resources to maintain the stability.

Djokic: Law on Elections should be changed to eradicate political anomalies (Dnevni list)

President of Socialist Party (SP) Petar Djokic said that one should approach changes to the B&H Law on Elections rather seriously and in systemic way, stressing that the changes must eradicate many political anomalies and abuses of will of the citizens. According to Djokic, there are many obvious problems, which have undermined the citizens’ trust in the election and the post-election process and the very democracy in the country. For starters, argued Djokic, fundamental changes must go in direction that the political parties, and not individuals, are owners of mandates. Otherwise, warned Djokic, we will continue to have political trades and calculations of corrupt politicians. The SP leader went on to say that only the political parties, as democratically elected representatives of people, have the legitimacy to decide on changes to the Law on Elections of B&H, adding that any form of imposition of other solution would cause new problems in B&H.

Organizing Committee for Marking 26th Anniversary of Srebrenica Genocide requests from OHR to impose law banning denial of genocide (FTV)

The first meeting of the Organizing Committee for Marking 26th Anniversary of Srebrenica Genocide took place at the Srebrenica Memorial Center on Monday. Hamdija Fejzic was appointed a President of the Organizing Committee. "We are sending a message to Valentin Inzko. He promised us that he will adopt the law banning the denial of genocide and a letter will be sent to him from this meeting to remind him of what he promised," Fejzic said. The Committee issued a request towards the Office of the High Representative (OHR) to impose the law banning denial of genocide. It was concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic will affect the marking of this years’ anniversary of genocide committed against Bosniaks in Srebrenica.

B&H’s Commission for Cooperation with NATO unanimously adopts draft document ‘Program of Reforms 2021’ (Hayat)

B&H’s Commission for the Cooperation with NATO unanimously adopted the draft document ‘Program of Reforms 2021’, in Sarajevo on Monday. Chairman of B&H’s Commission for the Cooperation with NATO Josip Brkic confirmed that this move ensures further administrative procedure for the document and that after technical arrangements the document will be forwarded to B&H Council of Ministers (CoM), the Legislative Office and B&H Ministry of Finance and Treasury for their opinion. He added that the document represents a political-legal framework that defines the cooperation between B&H and NATO. According to Brkic, the draft Program of Reforms was divided into two parties; the first part concerns political commitment of those who are included in the cooperation with NATO, while the second part clearly defines institutions that need to conduct activities for implementation of this document. Brkic stated that there is a series of activities that need to be done and they could be grouped into three or four most important clusters including political reforms, economic reforms, judicial reforms and security reforms. He stressed that these reforms greatly match the reforms on the EU path of B&H. Representatives of B&H’s Commission for the Cooperation with NATO reminded that the Program of Reforms 2021 is structurally identical to the Programs of Reforms 2019 and 2020 that were submitted with NATO, noting that it is unrealistic to expect that the Program of Reforms 2021 will be implemented this year. Deputy Chairman of B&H’s Commission for the Cooperation with NATO Muhamed Smajic stated that many activities included in the draft document ‘Program of Performs 2021’ are underway and they are already being implemented through the Programs of Reforms 2019 and 2020. Deputy Chairman of B&H’s Commission for the Cooperation with NATO Mirko Okolic said that the Program of Performs 2021 will be available to the public, reminding that the most important change in this document compared to the Program of Reforms 2020 is that it does not mention the integration but the cooperation with NATO. He stressed that full consensus is necessary on this issue in B&H and the current consensus is that B&H has the cooperation with NATO, concluding that anything more than that needs to be agreed politically.

B&H lacks any progress in implementation of GRECO recommendations referring to judiciary officials and parliamentarians (Oslobodjenje)

The level of implementation of recommendations issued by the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body GRECO has been dissatisfactory for years, reports the daily. GRECO once again warned Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) authorities that they have failed to fully implement any of the 15 recommendations form the Fourth Round of Evaluation Report. Eight of the recommendations refer to prevention of corruption among judges and prosecutors, and seven recommendations refer to prevention of corruption among parliamentarians. Asked to clarify GRECO’s findings, B&H Ministry of Justice told the daily that GRECO concluded that nothing has been done to strengthen the integrity system for parliamentarians, there are no rules for interaction of parliamentarians with third parties and there is no possibility of counseling and training on corruption prevention for members of B&H Parliament. B&H authorities still need to adopt the Law on Conflict of Interest and create a credible and independent system for prevention of conflict of interest and property checks for parliamentarians. As far as the judiciary system is concerned, the changes to the Law on High Judicial and prosecutorial Council (HJPC) have not been adopted yet, and separate departments and subcommittees for judges and prosecutors within HJPC have not been established yet. Criteria for assessment of work of judges and prosecutors have been expanded to include chief prosecutors at the state and entity level, but guarantees of non-interference of legislative and executive authorities in the assessment process still need to be put in place. B&H has the obligation to provide GRECO with a report on implementation of recommendations by September 30. B&H Council of Ministers adopted the Information on Adoption of the Second Report on B&H’s Compliance with GRECO Recommendations in the Fourth Round of Evaluation and tasked the Security Ministry with reminding all relevant institutions of the obligation to implement the recommendations.

A-SDA representative in B&H House of Representatives Jasmin Emric participated in GRECO meetings in Strasburg as member of B&H delegation. According to Emric, the main reason why B&H has not implemented the GRECO recommendations yet is lack of political accountability. He underlined that a proposal for Law on Conflict of Interest was prepared years ago, but it failed to pass B&H House of Peoples for political reasons. B&H Ministry of Justice is now working on a new version, but Emric said that he possesses information that the new version will not be in line with the GRECO recommendations. HJPC member Selim Karamehic stated that implementation of the recommendations is slow because the process of adoption of necessary legislation is too slow. He reminded that HJPC presented its proposal of changes to the Law on HJPC already in 2018, but the changes have not been adopted yet.

 

Only Krivokapic and Leposavic got acquainted with content of agreement with SPC (Pobjeda)

 

The fundamental agreement between the Serbian Orthodox Church, SPC, and the government of Montenegro, prepared by Justice Minister Vladimir Leposavic, while the Belgrade Patriarchate finalized it in line with its interests, has been solely seen by Montenegrin Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapic, reports Pobjeda daily. DPM Dritan Abazovic didn’t see it either even though he’s the chairman of the Commission on political system, internal and foreign policy and should know all about it. According to Pobjeda, Krivokapic found out about its details at the meeting in the Zdrebaonik monastery following the phone call with Patriarch Porfirije. After that, the PM stated that the document was ready for signing. However, the SPC management has doubts with its adoption in the parliament, believing that the Civic Movement URA might refuse to vote for it. Abazovic says he didn’t see anything disputable in signing the fundamental agreement with the SPC. He stresses that he still hasn’t got acquainted with the content of that document. “The position of me and URA is that all religious communities should operate within a single legal system of Montenegro. The signing of the Fundamental Agreement is only the final act of the SPC being within the unified legal system of Montenegro. The SPC has already signed the fundamental agreement with Croatia, I think it was in 2002, and it should also sign it with the Government of Montenegro, I don’t see anything disputable there,” Abazovic has pointed out. He adds that the document must be adopted at the cabinet meeting. Abazovic couldn’t specify when the document will be available to the public.

 

Mickoski: Bulgaria has no right to demand any additional concessions from us (TV Klan)

VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski said in Monday’s interview with TV Klan that Bulgaria has no right to demand any concessions from the Macedonian people or the Republic of Macedonia. Mickoski stressed that the time for granting concessions is over. “I think that they have absolutely nothing to ask from us, neither as a nation, nor as a state. The concessions are over, that’s it. Now we need to have delivery and get what we deserve. We have become a NATO member, we need to start negotiations with the EU,” said Mickoski.

 

DP secretary for Kavaja wounded by a firearm inside electoral office (Tirana Times/VoA)

The secretary of the Democratic Party for Kavaja Bledar Okshtuni was wounded with a firearm while being at the electoral offices of the DP in Kavaja, making this the most violent episode registered before the parliamentary elections of 25 April so far. The person who shot Okshtuni is Ndriçim Jonuzi, who holds also the surname Tahiri. Jonuzi had been previously convicted in Italy, and had served 8 years in prison in Albania, says VoA. The police stated that Jonuzi is “suspected to have entered inside the electoral offices of a political party after a conflict for weak motives, and have wounded with a firearm in the leg the citizen Okshtuni, who is now in the Hospital of Durres, under the surveillance of doctors.” The Democratic Party reacted immediately after the episode, saying that it was provoked and politically driven. According to VoA, “the candidate for deputy of PD, Grida Duma which covers exactly the area of ​​Kavaja, said that Jonuzi, accompanied by two other people in the uniform of the Municipal Police, asked Okshtuni to remove the car and then entered the electoral office and shot him. According to Ms. Duma, the aggressor Jonuzi is also a businessman who has won tenders from the Municipality of Kavaja, which is run by the Socialists.” The leader of the DP went after the incident in Kavaja, declaring that “Kavaja has faced a serious event, an assassination attempt against the DP, against the Alliance for Change, by a Prime Minister who knows that on Sunday will lose, and Kavaja and Albania will win.” President Meta also travelled to Kavaja, and accompanied by Duma declared that the Prime Minister did not have any respect for the constitution, and urged him to go to SPAK. “You should reflect and go to SPAK to confess! Every person that makes a political crime will have to respond. There are no mitigating circumstances.” Prime Minister Edi Rama also condemned the event, considering it “intolerable” adding that “the perpetrator should be handcuffed as soon as possible! The politicization of this event is as bad as the event itself! Lulzim Basha must join me to support justice without inciting tension, while Ilir Meta must stop the idiotic campaign of tension!" wrote Rama on Twitter.

Basha accuses PM of assassination attempt (ADN)

After traveling urgently to Kavaja on Monday evening due to the shooting in his party’s electoral office, Chairman of the Democratic Party (DP) Lulzim Basha described the wounding of the secretary of this party as an assassination attempt on the DP and democracy. In a statement to the media, Basha publicly blamed Prime Minister Edi Rama for the event, while emphasizing that the latter was afraid of losing on 25 April. Among other things, he called on the citizens of Kavaja not to be afraid. "Tonight, Kavaja has faced a serious event, an assassination attempt against the Democratic Party, against the Alliance for Change by a prime minister who knows that on Sunday he loses. Kavaja wins and Albania wins. He has lost all human boundaries, today he is silent while his people with violence and assassination against democracy, show that this regime has come to an end. They want to intimidate Kavaja, PD, the coalition for change, they want to shut us up. They have never shut our mouths, we are not afraid of them, they will get the deserved answer with a vote on Sunday because Kavaja knows very well, such acts have marked great turns, the overthrow of dictators and dictatorships, they show fear by a man and a handful of people. Albanians are determined to remove them and unite to bring about change," said Basha.

 

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA SOURCES 

Serbia’s Marko Đurić urges ‘just solution’ to bitter Kosovo dispute (The Washington Diplomat, by Larry Luxner, 19 April 2021)  

March 26, 2018, is a day Marko Đurić, Serbia’s new ambassador to the United States, will never forget. On that Monday, Đurić—at the time chief negotiator for Serbia’s Office for Kosovo and Metohija—was meeting with local Serbs in the town of North Mitrovica when he was violently detained for having crossed into Kosovar territory illegally. A rather shocking video of the incident, which has been shared on YouTube more than 370,000 times, speaks for itself.

“Authorities were duly notified that I was coming. So was the EU,” Đurić said in a recent phone interview, insisting that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and his Kosovar counterpart, Hashim Thaçi, specifically discussed the upcoming negotiations over a dinner in Brussels three days before the confrontation took place. “Nevertheless,” he said, “they sent 250 heavily armed special unit members accompanied by 17 armored vehicles, basically stormed the roundtable venue and brutally beat up the democratically elected president of the Serbian community. They arrested and kidnapped me, brought me to Prishtinë and paraded me on the main streets while filming with cellphones. It was quite traumatic. They put a knife to my throat.” Vučić condemned the incident, as did the European Broadcasting Union and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), though Kosovo’s then-deputy prime minister, Enver Hoxhaj, justified Đurić’s arrest on the grounds that his “unauthorized presence” in Kosovo had breached EU agreements between the two sides. Looking back three years later, Đurić (pronounced DJOO-rich) said he never wanted to put himself in the spotlight—and that he prefers to bear the ordeal with dignity. “But it is unprecedented to treat an envoy like this,” he complained. “Since the time of the ancient Persians, envoys have been treated with respect. They violated something that has been sacrosanct for millennia.” Even so, said the 37-year-old ambassador, “I don’t possess a single grain of hatred or resentment toward the Albanians or any nation. Of course, I do not forget and do not appreciate those political leaders who, by doing such a thing, did a disservice not only to myself but to their own cause.”

Đurić aims to ‘increase trust’ between Washington, Belgrade 

Đurić’s great-grand uncle is Nikola Pašić, who served as prime minister of both Serbia and Yugoslavia in the early 20th century. Đurić arrived in Washington last December with his wife and three daughters, presenting his credentials as ambassador in a Jan. 18 virtual ceremony.

Born and raised in Belgrade when it was still the capital of Yugoslavia, he also lived for a time in Israel; his maternal grandmother was interned in Auschwitz during World War II and was one of the few members of her family to survive the Holocaust. “During the 140 years of diplomatic relations between Serbia and the United States, we’ve been allies in both world wars,” Đurić said. “Serbia lost one-third of its population in World War I fighting against the Axis powers. During World War II, we also fought side-by-side against the Nazis. And the first uprising in occupied Europe against the Nazis happened in Serbia.” Đurić is vice-president of the Serbian Progressive Party, which has 750,000 members—making it Europe’s largest political party by membership. At present, it holds 157 seats in the National Assembly, while the ruling coalition (of which it forms a part) occupies 188 of 250 seats. As ambassador, says Đurić, one of his priorities is to deepen Serbia’s ties with the United States and “increase the level of trust” between Washington and Belgrade. “We would love to see a US president visit Serbia,” he said, noting that the last president to set foot in Belgrade was Jimmy Carter in 1980, shortly after the state funeral of Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito. Đurić has met three presidents already: Donald Trump last September, Barack Obama in 2013, when the ambassador was serving as Vučić’s foreign policy advisor, and Joe Biden when he was vice president in 2013, and again in 2016 when he visited Belgrade. From an economic point of view, Serbia—with a population of 6.9 million—has fared well despite the difficulties caused by Europe’s coronavirus crisis. Unemployment has fallen from 26% to 8% in the past seven years, while foreign debt is down from 79% of GDP to 56%—though that’s still not enough to satisfy the requirements of European Union membership. “For the last three years in a row, we have had more foreign direct investment than all the surrounding countries combined. This is the result of serious incentives we offer, and a generally favorable investment climate,” Đurić said, naming Germany and Italy as Serbia’s top sources of FDI. “We would love the US to be one of the pillars of Serbia’s future economic growth, and we believe this could also create a more fertile ground for political relations to flourish.” To that end, Đurić wants to make the Serbian Embassy in Washington “an entry point for businesses on both sides,” and to see the elimination of all artificial barriers and borders that prevent the free flow of goods, services and capital throughout the Balkans. “It’s extremely frustrating to have people waiting for hours at border crossings every 80 to 100 kilometers,” he said. “We want to create a regional Balkan mini-Schengen Zone that would replicate what was done in Western Europe.”

A permanent solution to the Kosovo question? 

But economic progress is unlikely to happen until resolution of the political impasse between Serbia and Kosovo, a once-autonomous province that unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008. As of mid-April, 117 countries have recognized Kosovo as a sovereign nation, including the United States; the latest to do so was Israel, on Feb. 1. “We were very disappointed with this decision,” Đurić said. “Historically, Serbia and Israel have always been on the same side. This is a huge emotional and political wound for us.” On March 22, Kosovo’s parliament named Albin Kurti prime minister, more than a month after the country’s snap elections. Đurić said that’s going to make progress even more unlikely. “I expect it will be difficult to work with the new government because Kurti, immediately upon his election, said that dialogue with Serbia will not be among his priority. I think this is a big mistake, because Kosovo needs a solution to this conflict even more than we do. We have a growing economy, while in Kosovo the unemployment rate is 30%. Unfortunately, this new government has set their red lines at an impossibly high level. They just want to have it all.” In our interview, Đurić dismissed suggestions that Kosovo will eventually prevail and win the backing of countries that have still withheld diplomatic recognition—a list that includes China, Cyprus, Greece, India, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Spain and Ukraine. “For Serbs, Kosovo is the cradle of our identity. It is the place where our medieval kings and saints are buried. It is also a place where very resilient Serbian communities still survive as a minority. Serbs consider Kosovo part of our territory,” he said. “At the same time, Serbia is very much aware of the realities we face. We are open for discussion on a compromise to resolve the Kosovo issue and bring lasting peace and stability to the region.” Quoting Martin Luther King Jr., Đurić urges a “just solution” in which both sides will come out equally satisfied.” “We want to do this in a way that won’t leave wounds on both sides, at least partly satisfying our mutual ambitions,” he said. “This will definitely not be an easy task. But we need to start talking. It’s better to talk a thousand days than be in conflict for one single day.”