UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, October 4, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

Kurti: EU, NATO can together attain more than either can achieve on its own (media)
Kurti: Russia’s victory in Ukraine would encourage expansionist Serbia (media)
Rohde: Unwavering support for stability, prosperity of Kosovo and region (RTK)
Rafuna: Security measure on Serbian goods should be removed (Albanian Post)
Sources: Prosecution interviews Muharremi ‘over state reserves case’ (media)
€1.1 million tender signed to build police station in Zubin Potok (Paparaci)
National Health Institute: Don’t use water from Badoc for drinking (RFE)

Serbian Language Media:

Djuric: Serbia is future-oriented and has a policy of extending a hand to everyone (RTS, Danas, FoNet)
Trial of four Serbs accused of attacking municipal election commission premises in Mitrovica North continues (Kosovo Online, Radio KIM)
Lawyer in Municipal Election Commission case: Today’s witness completely negated indictment (Kosovo Online)
Reaction of Serbian Democracy officials to placement of new signboards in Zvecan (social media)
Andjelkovic: Removal of Cyrillic signs in Zvecan is a continuation of Kurti’s provocations (media)
UNSC to discuss UNMIK report on October 30 (RTV, Kosovo Online, Tanjug, media)
Representatives of the Office for KiM in Warsaw on illegal expropriation in the north (Kosovo Online)
Molliqaj: Kurti-led government instrumentalized Kosovo police (Kosovo Online)
PM Vucevic: Serbian Govt against opposition’s legislative proposal on lithium (N1)
Manojlovic: Vucic timed meeting with Scholz to avoid session on lithium (N1)

Opinion:

Breaking the stalemate: How Kosovo’s constitution holds the key to the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities (Prishtina Insight)

International:

Kosovo’s leader says Russia prevailing in Ukraine would threaten 25 years of peace in the Balkans (AP)
Kosovo’s premier hits back at western criticism over treatment of Serbs (Bloomberg)
Ex-diplomat says Serbia and Kosovo ‘buying time’ in relations (Balkan Insight)
Why companies are moving to the Western Balkans (emerging-europe.com)

Albanian Language Media

Kurti: EU, NATO can together attain more than either can achieve on its own (media)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in a post on X today that “Sweden and Finland’s recent accession to NATO serves as an example of EU countries’ increasing willingness and desire to join NATO. Indeed, the EU needs NATO in this century perhaps even more than in the previous one. By contrast, in the Western Balkans, it is the NATO countries that are seeking to join the EU. As I conclude my first visit to Poland, I emphasize once again that unity is our strength. Euro-Atlantic integration is the most powerful response to the threats we face, and it offers the surest path to a unified, secure, prosperous and democratic Europe”.

Kurti also said that “in northern Europe the EU wants to join NATO, whereas in the Western Balkans, it is NATO that wants to join the EU. There is then at least this performative or behavioral demonstration of the thesis that peace and security on the European continent is best served through enlargement of both organizations. The EU and NATO can together attain more than either can achieve on its own”.

Kurti: Russia’s victory in Ukraine would encourage expansionist Serbia (media)

Most news websites cover an interview that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti gave to the Associated Press, highlighting his remarks that “Russia’s victory in Ukraine would encourage an expansionist Serbia”. See more at: https://shorturl.at/fANfR

Rohde: Unwavering support for stability, prosperity of Kosovo and region (RTK)

German Ambassador to Kosovo, Jorn Rohde, said in his address at the reception on the Day of German Unity, that they are working hard for the upcoming summit of the Berlin Process to be a success for both Kosovo and the region as a whole. “Our friendship with Kosovo as all other relations have had some challenges. But among friends, honest, open dialogue and the readiness to accept advice are the foundations of true force. Germany and Kosovo share relations built on trust and respect that through open exchanges we can always find a way forward. A way that can result in the full Euro-Atlantic integration of Kosovo. The Berlin Process will celebrate its 10th anniversary and we are working hard to make the upcoming summit, on October 14, a success for Kosovo and the whole region by focusing on the full functionalization of CEFTA and the ability for real free trade in the region,” he said.

Rohde said that “relations between the two countries are not only between our governments but are deeply rooted between the two peoples”. “Germany is home to the biggest Kosovar diaspora in the world with nearly 600,000 members and is still growing. We have long lasting ties through culture and family friendships. We have stood by Kosovo’s side at times of challenges and opportunities. Last year we increased our contingent in KFOR, by bringing more soldiers to contribute to peace and security in Kosovo. This reflects our unwavering commitment to ensure stability and prosperity in Kosovo and the whole region,” he said.

Rafuna: Security measure on Serbian goods should be removed (Albanian Post)

Chairman of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, Lulzim Rafuna, in an interview with the news website on Thursday, said that the Kosovo government should lift its security measure on the import of Serbian products. “The chamber has called for this assessment, and we believe that the security measure should be removed so that we are not excluded from the table of CEFTA [Central European Free Trade Agreement],” he said.

Rafuna also said that when discussions are held about CEFTA “we need to be at the table and we should not forget that CEFTA is linked to the Berlin Process and the Common Regional Market”. “It will also be linked with the Growth Plan of the European Commission, where Kosovo is expected to benefit €900 million,” he argued.

Sources: Prosecution interviews Muharremi ‘over state reserves case’ (media)

Citing sources in the Special Prosecution of Kosovo, Albanian Post and Nacionale report that Ridvan Muharremi, a Kosovo Albanian businessman, is being interviewed as a suspect by the special prosecution about the scandal with the state reserves. Both news websites note that Muharremi is considered to be close to Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti. He was engaged by the government to find companies where goods for the reserves would be bought, but although the payments were made, a considerable amount of goods was never delivered to Kosovo.

The Special Prosecution said in a statement later in the day that Muharremi was interviewed “in the capacity of a defendant” on a criminal matter that the prosecution “is investigating”.

€1.1 million tender signed to build police station in Zubin Potok (Paparaci)

Kosovo Police signed today contracts for the construction of premises of a police station and the Agency for Civil Registration in Zubin Potok. After a previous procedure was annulled, the police’s procurement office chose the winning consortium in a retendering process. The total amount of the contract is €1,1 million. The news website notes that “the tender includes works on the construction of an important project for the security infrastructure in that part of Kosovo, especially given the strategic importance of Zubin Potok, a zone in the north of Kosovo with sensitive security challenges”.

National Health Institute: Don’t use water from Badoc for drinking (RFE)

Kosovo’s National Public Health Institute has recommended that the water from Badoc Lake should not be used for drinking and only for cleaning purposes. The recommendation was made after sample analysis from the water showed high concentrations of manganese. Last year too, the Institute had recommended that the water from Badoc should not be used for water because of higher manganese concentrations. The Institute said that the presence of manganese in Badoc is a constant phenomenon that mainly happens when the seasons change.

Serbian Language Media

Djuric: Serbia is future-oriented and has a policy of extending a hand to everyone (RTS, Danas, FoNet)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric told RTS this morning that Serbia fundamentally belongs to Europe, adding ''we are Europeans as much as Germans, but we do not forget our friends from Africa, Latin America, and Asia, and thanks to such a policy, 27 countries have changed their position on Kosovo''.

Djuric said that with the performances of the Serbian delegation and President Aleksandar Vucic at international forums and at the UN, it was shown that ''we are one of the few countries that has an active dialogue with both Western and Eastern countries''.

"Of course, we know where we belong, Serbia is on the European course," he added.

After the meetings in New York and Washington, as well as in Brussels, the Minister of Foreign Affairs believes that the interlocutors with whom he spoke better understand the situation in Kosovo and the position of the Serbian people.

"The suffering of our people in Kosovo and Metohija is enormous, and I use every meeting to bring our interlocutors closer to what our people are going through. We took the diplomatic struggle to addresses that traditionally supported Pristina. Today, both Washington and Brussels know about Belgrade's request, to return to the previous state. First of all, this implies the return of Serbs to the police in the north of Kosovo, the holding of elections in the municipalities in the north, and not that they are led by people who have the support of 0.03 percent of the citizens, as well as that Serbian judges and prosecutors get their positions in the system. I'm not an optimist on that issue and I think Kurti's regime will always look for a way to make the Serbs' life harder," Djuric told RTS.

According to Djuric, Kurti did not expect such a strong and well-thought-out resistance, primarily from the Serbs from Kosovo who did not want apartheid implemented by the Pristina regime.

When it comes to announcements that Pristina could lift the ban on the entry of goods from central Serbia, he said that the Kurti regime's blockade affects the most vulnerable.

"These are ordinary people, and this is not a question of whether you are going to buy 'Kravica' milk or someone imported from who knows where, but it also leads to the closing of shops and the loss of jobs," said Djuric.

Trial of four Serbs accused of attacking municipal election commission premises in Mitrovica North continues (Kosovo Online, Radio KIM)

The trial of Milun Milenkovic Lune, Dejan Pantic, Aleksandar Vlajic and Momir Vakic, accused by Special Prosecution of committing “terrorist act” in relation to their alleged involvement in the attack on Municipal Election Commission premise in Mitrovica North in December 2022, continues today at the Basic Court in Pristina, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Witnesses B.H. and N.F proposed by the prosecutor in this case will be interviewed today. One of them is a member of Kosovo police and the other one is a member of the Central Election Commission (CEC).

Lawyer of Milun Milenkovic, Miodrag Brkljac objected today to the presence of Kosovo police investigator Adnan Imeri in a hearing as disputable. As the lawyer said, given that Imeri was not invited at the main hearing, he can not be present and sit next to the prosecutor today, because his presence, as the lawyer said, could be interpreted as a sort of pressure against other witnesses that should be interviewed in this process. The Court accepted the request from the defense and requested the investigator to leave the session, explaining that he was engaged in an investigative phase, and could be proposed potentially as a witness in the future.

The four Serbs are accused of “terrorist act” in compliance with other unidentified persons and it relates to their alleged involvement in the attack on premises of Municipal Election Commission in Mitrovica North, on December 6, 2022, when during the protest of local Serbs two bombs and two shock bombs were thrown. One of the bombs did not explode, Serbian media reported earlier. The four Serbs pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Milun Milenkovic was arrested in June 2023, and remains in detention ever since then. Aleksandar Vlajic who is a former member of Kosovo police is also in detention. Other two Serbs accused in this case, Dejan Pantic and Momir Vakic are under house arrest. Milenkovic’s lawyer proposed his client be released on bail several times, but the requests were not approved.

Radio KIM reported later that a member of Kosovo special police who testified today said he could not identify persons involved in the protest and attack as they were carrying masks and scarfs, but that he remembers their physical appearance. Asked if he knows defendants, the witness responded that he knows them all, as he grew up in the northern part of Mitrovica. “(…) I worked with Vlajic in the Kosovo police. Momir I know for 40 years, others I used to see around (in the town).” The hearing of another witness from CEC had been postponed.

Lawyer in Municipal Election Commission case: Today’s witness completely negated indictment (Kosovo Online)

The witness in a trial of four Serbs accused of “terrorist act” in relation to their alleged involvement in the attack on Municipal Election Commission premise in Mitrovica North in December 2022, did not confirm today that any of the four defendants took part in this event, lawyer Ljubomir Pantovic said, after the hearing, Kosovo Online portal reported.

“I would say that a witness today, not only did not confirm the indictment, but I think that he completely negated it as raised by special prosecution. You have heard his testimony, in no way he confirmed that any of the defendants took part in this event. I would say that the beginning of the hearing had ingloriously started for the prosecution, but we are at the beginning only, and shall see what would happen next. In a week's time, there would be a new hearing and witnesses”, he added.

The hearing of the second witness today had been postponed as the defense did not receive his statement beforehand.

“After that we have four witnesses of defense, followed by presentation of material evidence. This is one of the rare cases, at least during my 29 years of work, I have not seen that prosecution did not propose a single witness in the indictment, but it was done afterwards, which is very unusual, because it is about a serious criminal act where four people are being accused”, Pantovic said.

Reaction of Serbian Democracy officials to placement of new signboards in Zvecan (social media)

Ivan Orlovic, vice-president of Serbian Democracy said in a post on Facebook that the alphabet of the Serbian community is Cyrillic. He made those remarks reacting to the placement of new signboards at exit/entry of Zvecan, which in addition to typographical errors in the Serbian, enlarged font of the Albanian which is used first, also included the Latin alphabet. The previous signboards written in Serbian in Cyrillic had been removed.

“To remind all those who do not know or deliberately do not want to know: the alphabet of the Serbian language is Cyrillic. Albanian, Serbian and their alphabets are in official use in Kosovo and have equal status. In addition to errors SREČAN PUT instead of SREĆAN PUT (Have a safe journey), DORODOŠLI instead of DOBRO DOŠLI (Welcome), the inscriptions are written in Latin — instead of Cyrillic.

Even the Albanian language is emphasized with a larger font.

Also, the recommendation of the Commissioner for languages, where Serbian should be in the first place, was not followed”, reads the post he published.

His party colleague, Stefan Veljkovic shared Orlovic's post with a message: “Institutional violence against Serbian language”.

Andjelkovic: Removal of Cyrillic signs in Zvecan is a continuation of Kurti’s provocations (media)

Post of Serbia Director and SPS official Zoran Andjelkovic said today removal of Cyrillic traffic signs by current municipal authorities in Zvecan was continuation of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s provocations towards the Serbs in Kosovo, Euronews in Serbian reported.

He added that although Kurti invents new provocations every day in the north of Kosovo, the Serbs in the area are aware of it. “It’s not a question of who is bothered by the Cyrillic signs, it’s a question of who is bothered by the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, and then again we have the answer that Kurti’s regime is bothered by everything that is Christian in Kosovo and that has a Serbian sign”, Andjelkovic said.

Signs with the Cyrillic inscriptions “Welcome to the municipality of Zvečan” and “Have a safe journey” near Zvecan were removed yesterday, and new ones were installed, on which wording in capital letters in Albanian was placed first, followed by smaller font letters in Serbian and English. In addition to typographical errors in Serbian, also the Latin alphabet was used instead of Cyrillic.

UNSC to discuss UNMIK report on October 30 (RTV, Kosovo Online, Tanjug, media)

The UN Security Council will discuss the new, six-month report of the UN SG Antonio Guterres on work of UNMIK, on October 30, Radio Television of Vojvodina (RTV) reported.

The session will take place in the CET afternoon hours, and is called by Switzerland which is presiding over UNSC this month, says the announcement published on UN SC website.

Previously, UNSC member states should receive this report, which will be presented in a session by the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) and Head of UNMIK, Caroline Ziadeh. The last session was held on April 22, this year, and Serbia was presented by President Aleksandar Vucic.

Representatives of the Office for KiM in Warsaw on illegal expropriation in the north (Kosovo Online)

As part of the Serbian delegation led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the representatives of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Bojana Andjelkovic and Branislava Mitrovic, pointed out the illegal expropriation in the north of Kosovo at the Conference on the Human Dimension in Warsaw, reported Kosovo Online.

This year, the conference is being held in cooperation with the chairman of OSCE, Malta, in the period from September 30 to October 11, 2024. The ten-day conference is dedicated to human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as the implications of current events and trends for the security of the region.

The Office for KiM said that a presentation "stated in detail the facts related to the implementation of illegal procedures for the expropriation of real property of the Serbian people, and illegal and illegitimate procedures implemented by the authorities in Pristina".

"On that occasion, in a clear and unambiguous way, they presented data on the violence to which the Serbian people in Kosovo are exposed, and in this way, through illegal expropriation procedures, which are carried out primarily with the aim of building illegal police bases. In this way and in front of this forum, once again the attention of international factors and the present world public has been drawn to the terror to which the Serbian people in Kosovo are exposed daily," reported Kosovo Online, citing the Office for KiM website.

Molliqaj: Kurti-led government instrumentalized Kosovo police (Kosovo Online)

President of the Social Democratic Party, Dardan Molliqaj said today that the Albin Kurti-led government, as none before it, has instrumentalized Kosovo police, adding that opening of the Ibar River bridge in Mitrovica, without consent from the international community, could lead to isolation, Kosovo Online portal reported citing Pristina-based Reporteri.

“There is no doubt that Kosovo police are instrumentalized by authorities, as none of them did it before. There was criminalization, bad relations in the police, but there was no instrumentalization”, he said.

Asked if he expected the Ibar River bridge in Mitrovica to be opened soon and if Kurti could do it, Molliqaj said it will happen only when the international community agrees to it, and if opposite it could lead to isolation or creation of autonomy in the north.

PM Vucevic: Serbian Govt against opposition’s legislative proposal on lithium (N1)

Prime Minister Milos Vucevic said the Serbian Government opposes the opposition’s draft law proposing a ban on lithium and boron extraction in Serbia, N1 reported.

Vucevic told an interview with Euronews Serbia that the Government has sent this opinion to the Parliament, where a session on the opposition’s proposed law is scheduled for October 7. He said he is prepared to attend the session and take part in the debate, despite the fact that he would also be visiting North Macedonia during the day on October 7.

Vucevic said he does not think that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic should attend the session because that was not proposed by those who requested the lithium debate. Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic has called for a session on October 7 to discuss the opposition’s proposal to ban lithium and boron mining in the country. The agenda will include the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Mining and Geological Exploration, which was submitted by 86 opposition MPs.

Manojlovic: Vucic timed meeting with Scholz to avoid session on lithium (N1)

Go-Change movement campaigns director Savo Manojlovic accused Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic of deliberately avoiding the Serbian Parliament session on lithium by scheduling a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Hamburg at the same time, N1 reported.

Majojlovic wrote in a post on the X social media platform that “while Vucic will be posing for photos with Scholz, MPs of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) will be “staging a circus” in Parliament”.

Vucic said Friday that he would have canceled all his meetings to attend the Parliament session on lithium, but that the opposition MPs did not invite him. The Go-Change campaigns director also criticized those who claim that the only obstacle to mining is the corrupt government, suggesting that with a change in leadership, exploitation could be done safely.

“According to Serbia’s leading experts, any form of mining has harmful environmental consequences. Moreover, comparisons with Germany are irrelevant, since nothing is being mined there yet, and the process of extracting lithium is completely different”, Manojlovic added.

Opinion

Breaking the stalemate: How Kosovo’s constitution holds the key to the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities (Prishtina Insight)

Opinion piece by Jason Steinbaum, Paul Williams and Sindija Beta

For nearly 12 years, the establishment of the Association of Serb Majority Municipalities has been a hurdle between Kosovo and Serbia. By following Kosovo’s Constitution, this seemingly complicated issue is actually straightforward and resolvable.

Kosovo and Serbia have been locked in a frozen conflict since the former declared independence in 2008. While the two countries have struck limited agreements in the years since, the overall dispute remains as bitter as ever.

One of the largest points of contention between Kosovo and Serbia has been the establishment of an Association of Serb Majority Municipalities (ASMM). Serbia has long pressed for the creation of the ASMM, a body aimed at coordinating municipalities with a Serb majority within Kosovo. Likewise, towns and cities in Kosovo with a majority population of ethnic Serbs have long professed a desire to create an association among them. Kosovo promised that an ASMM would be formed when it signed the First Agreement of Principles Governing the Normalization of Relations (First Agreement) in 2013 that declared that “there will be an Association/Community of Serb majority municipalities (ASMM) in Kosovo.”

The agreement was reached more than a decade ago, and the ASMM was never created. Governments led by four different political parties have come and gone in Kosovo while the ASMM remains unestablished. Democratic and Republican Administrations in the U.S., as well as officials from the European Union, have been unable to shepherd the project to fruition.

Today, the absence of the ASMM is a major stumbling block in the Dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, and a cause of significant frustration among U.S. and EU leaders.

The failure to establish the ASSM, despite its obvious consequences, raises four key questions:

What process does the Kosovo Constitution (the Constitution) lay out for creating municipal associations?

Has that process been followed?

What obligations does Kosovo have regarding the establishment of the ASMM?

Would adhering to Kosovo’s constitutional process provide a pathway to creating the ASMM and resolving this long standing issue?