Albanian Language Media:

• Kallas: Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, one of main paths towards EU expansion in WB (Albanian Post)

• Kurti: Kosovo is target of hybrid attacks (RTK)

• Konjufca: We are living in uncertain times (RTK)

• Lajcak: Resolving fate of missing persons important and urgent (media)

• What are the relations of eventual U.S. Secretary of State with Kosovo (media)

• Maqedonci and Blitt discuss KSF’s participation at International Security Forum in Halifax (media)

• Minister Rizvanolli being interviewed by Special Prosecutor’s Office (media)

• Bugajski: Trump could accept dominating role by Serbia in the region (media)

• CEC joins Network of Francophone Electoral Institutions (media)

Serbian Language Media: 

• Djuric: Trump’s victory sparked hope, Serbia’s fight for Kosovo depends on economic capabilities (Kosovo Online, Tanjug, TV Pink)

• Post of Serbia received nine eviction orders to vacate premises in northern Kosovo, it says premises are their ownership (KoSSev)

• EC report on Kosovo: Relations between PR and Serbs remain difficult, desecration of SOC sites and attempts to appropriate religious objects (KoSSev)

• EULEX: No expected results in handling of high-profile judicial cases (N1, BETA)

• Lajcak discussed missing persons issue with ICRC president (Blic, Radio Mitrovica sever)

• Serbian Democracy opens municipal branch in Leposavic (social media)

• The water from Lake Badovac suitable for drinking (KoSSev, KiM radio)

International: 

• IMF reaches staff-level agreement on the third reviews of Kosovo’s Stand-By Arrangement and Resilience and Sustainability Facility 

  Albanian Language Media  

Kallas: Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, one of main paths towards EU expansion in WB (Albanian Post)

Kaja Kallas, candidate for the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security during the hearing at the European Parliament, has promised to engage the EU enlargement process. She also mentioned the issue of Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. “The Western Balkans is a very important region, very close to our neighbourhood. We have two paths. One is the path of expansion – we need a success story – and the other path is of course Belgrade-Pristina dialogue where all the predecessors have invested a lot of time to bring stability to the region,” she said.

Kallas, a former prime minister of Estonia, has been chosen to lead the EU foreign policy for the next five-year term. One of her tasks will be to mediate the dialogue for the normalisation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, which has stalled in the last year, the news website reports.

Kurti: Kosovo is target of hybrid attacks (RTK)

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, during his speech at the solemn session of the 36th Session of the Regional Assembly of Europe, of the Parliamentary Assembly of Francophonie, said that despite the desire to advance from an associate member to a full member of the World Organization of Francophonie, Kosovo has not been able to fulfil all the tasks necessary to gain this status.

"It is understandable that not everything depends on the decisions of Kosovo, bearing in mind that there should also be some political evaluations related to the criteria of good neighbourly relations. In this regard, we all know the historical and security features of the challenges that affect the entire region, despite Kosovo's proven willingness to contribute to all aspects of regional cooperation," he said.

Kurti said that in the current hybrid global war we are living in, there can be no genuine democracy, prosperity for all and proper cooperation without effectively dealing with information manipulation and cyber-attacks. "And here you will learn that Kosovo is not an exception as a target of such attacks", he said.

Kurti mentioned that although Kosovo has about 93 percent Albanian population, it still lives a high degree of respect for many languages ​​and multiculturalism, while mentioning that out of 120 parliamentary seats, 20 are reserved for ethnic minorities. He has further indicated that Kosovo intends to apply again after two years for the status of a member with full rights of the francophone organisation.

Konjufca: We are living in uncertain times (RTK)

Kosovo’s Speaker of the Assembly, Glauk Konjufca, during the proceedings of the 36th Session of the Regional Assembly of Europe, of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie, which is being held for the first time in Kosovo, thanked them for the support to the amendment proposed by the Kosovar delegation to condemn the attack in the north of Kosovo.

"I thank you for the support you gave to our amendment proposed by our delegation to condemn the terrorist attack in the north of Kosovo that happened in September of last year with the aim of preventing the destabilisation and threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country. When we talk about stability and security, with Russia's hybrid war which has increased insecurity in our region, we cannot remain indifferent to such destabilising efforts as what happened last year in Banjska if we want to cultivate a real sense of security,” Konjufca said in this meeting.

Konjufca expressed his happiness that the Assembly of Kosovo is the host of the 36th Session of the Regional Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie. This first session in Kosovo was opened by Anne Lambelin, Regional Delegate of APF for Europe.

Lajcak: Resolving fate of missing persons important and urgent (media)

EU Special Representative for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, Miroslav Lajcak, met on Monday in Geneva with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric. “We discussed our EU efforts in the Dialogue in support of the ICRC’s work in the region. Resolving the fate of the remaining missing persons is an important and urgent humanitarian issue,” Lajcak wrote in a post on X.

What are the relations of eventual U.S. Secretary of State with Kosovo (media)

Several news websites report that the U.S. Senator Marco Rubio is rumoured to have been chosen by President-elect Donald Trump for the post of Secretary of State. He has been part of U.S. politics since 2010 and there are only a few cases of his relation to Kosovo. There is only one post on Twitter from February 2021 where he mentions Kosovo. “Senator Rubio welcomes Israel and Kosovo for furthering diplomatic relations. This is an important step for both countries and also for international peace and security,” he tweeted at the time.

In a speech published on his webpage in September 2011, Rubio talked about the U.S. role in the world and mentioned the U.S. military intervention in the Balkans. “U.S. armed forces were some of the biggest world forces in the previous century. They stopped Nazism and communism and others from ethnic cleansing by the Serbs. They helped the birth of democracies from Germany to Iraq. They delivered aid and carried out countless missions for our country,” he said.

In 2018, Rubio met with then Kosovo President Hashim Thaci. A press release issued by Thaci’s office at the time noted that they discussed “about the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force and the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia”. “We talked about the possibility of furthering bilateral cooperation, the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force, Kosovo’s Euro-Atlantic future, and for using the momentum to reach an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia which ensures Kosovo’s membership in NATO, the EU and the UN. On all these matters, Kosovo has full support from both Republicans and Democrats,” Thaci said.

Maqedonci and Blitt discuss KSF’s participation at International Security Forum in Halifax (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Defense, Ejup Maqedonci, met with Canada's ambassador in Zagreb, Jessica Blitt. They discussed the participation of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) in the International Security Forum in Halifax.

"The Republic of Kosovo remains steadfast on its path towards integration into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Canada is among the countries on which the Republic of Kosovo relies on their support for the realisation of this aspiration of the country", it is stated in Maqedonci’s announcement. He added that he also informed the ambassador about the developments in the Ministry of Defense and the Kosovo Security Force.

Minister Rizvanolli being interviewed by Special Prosecutor’s Office (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Economy Artane Rizvanolli is being interrogated at the Special Prosecutor’s Office of Kosovo. She was seen entering the prosecution building together with her lawyer. The reasons for the interviewing are unknown, however her name was mentioned in several messages of former KEK head Nagip Krasniqi, media report.

Koha news website reports that the Special Prosecutor’s Office has not responded to their query on the case. 

Bugajski: Trump could accept dominating role by Serbia in the region (media)

Several news websites cover an interview that Janusz Bugajski, political commentator on the Western Balkans gave to Montenegrin newspaper Pobjeda, highlighting that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump could accept a dominating role of Serbia in the region and reduce support for the sovereignty of Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro. 

Bugajski argued that the Western Balkans will not be a high priority in the foreign policy of the new U.S. administration because of major international problems and that this could enable Russia to spread its influence in the region. 

“Trump could accept a dominating role by Serbia and reduce support for the sovereignty of Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro. Trump’s officials could favor an agreement with Serbia that would allow the northern municipalities to join Serbia,” he said.

CEC joins Network of Francophone Electoral Institutions (media)

The Central Election Commission (CEC) has announced through a press release that it has been unanimously accepted as the youngest (36th) member of the Network of Francophone Electoral Institutions. According to CEC, the decision was made on October 25, 2024 at the General Assembly held in Cotonou, Benin. The chairman of the CEC, Kreshnik Radonoqi, was notified through a letter sent by the General Secretary Jean-Francois Blanchet. 

"We are pleased to inform you that the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of the Republic of Kosovo has been accepted unanimously during the last general assembly of RECEF", the announcement states.

Serbian Language Media 

Djuric: Trump’s victory sparked hope, Serbia’s fight for Kosovo depends on economic capabilities (Kosovo Online, Tanjug, TV Pink)

Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric stated that Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. elections has sparked a lot of hope among our people in the region and globally, but that Serbia’s fight for Kosovo depends on its ability to position itself as a significant economic partner, reported Kosovo Online in English.

When asked about the details of the conversation between Vucic and Trump, Djuric, appearing on TV Pink, said it’s important for Serbia that Vucic was one of the first leaders to speak with Trump.

“This conversation didn’t happen by chance; it’s the result of Serbia’s focus on resolving regional relations”, said Djuric.

When asked if there’s a possibility that Serbia could host Trump in Belgrade, Djuric said it was one of the topics of discussion between Vucic and Trump.

“The last U.S. president to visit Serbia was Jimmy Carter in October 1980. The fact that 44 years have passed without a U.S. president visiting Serbia was something I used as an argument when extending invitations. Since Serbia has a strong appetite for enhancing economic cooperation, I’m certain Trump would be more warmly welcomed in Belgrade than anywhere else in the region”, Djuric said.

When asked if Serbia expects a stronger role from the new U.S. administration on issues in Kosovo, Djuric said that this Serbian administration has invested more in supporting Serbs in Kosovo than any previous administration.

“The budget for the Office for Kosovo and Metohija will be a record high, funding social benefits for our people living in Kosovo as well as schools and hospitals. The main heroes in the story of the survival of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija are our people who endure pressure and hardships there. As for the future American administration’s policy, it was amusing to see how panicked they were in Pristina, with posters of Trump and Grenell plastered everywhere. For us, it’s important that the voices of Serbs will be more heard. The international community faces a significant test with Kosovo. Let’s start by showing this through support for the most vulnerable ethnic community in Europe today, the Serbs in Kosovo, and finally implement the Brussels and Washington agreements, which Kurti seems to want to ignore”, Djuric emphasised.

He added that they established a Serbian-American business council in Washington two years ago in cooperation with the American Central European Business Association.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/ysvpp2fc

Post of Serbia received nine eviction orders to vacate premises in northern Kosovo, it says premises are their ownership (KoSSev)

Kosovo police have issued nine eviction orders to the Post of Serbia, requesting the latter to vacate the same number of premises located in northern Kosovo, KoSSev portal reported.

It is about premises closed in a police action on the same day, at the beginning of August. Serbian Post offices have been sealed, including three in Mitrovica North, two in Zvecan, one in Zubin Potok and three in Leposavic. Until last week no new developments occurred in relation to this issue, and on November 8 the Post of Serbia removed its inventory from a premise known as the main post office in Mitrovica North. The action was observed by Kosovo police.

Post of Serbia explained afterwards it was about the premise they were renting and removal of inventory from there was a necessary step. It also said back then and underlined today it will not be the case with other 8 premises in the north, confirming that it is about premises owned by the Post of Serbia.

“In the eviction orders to remove inventory, issued by Kosovo police, it is claimed that Post of Serbia is not the owner of the premises, but local self-government, currently under administration of Albanian authorities, which is part of pressure aiming to force us leave the premises and remove inventory”, Post of Serbia said in a statement.

It added they will not remove the inventory from those premises, and if violent attempts to take over them occur, they would inform all relevant domestic and international institutions in order to protect the rights and interests of Post of Serbia and its employees. It also recalled that postal objects north of the Ibar River had been closed by the prosecutor's decision and that court proceedings were underway. 

EC report on Kosovo: Relations between PR and Serbs remain difficult, desecration of SOC sites and attempts to appropriate religious objects (KoSSev)

The European Commission has published a recent report on the entire region, including Kosovo. The document had been delivered to Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani last week, KoSSev portal reports. Recalling abolishment of dinar, illegal expropriation in the north, closure of Serbian institutions the report assesses that relations between Kosovo Government and the Serbs remain difficult. The report added there were “acts of desecration targeting the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC)” but also that representatives of Pristina authorities did not use the full constitutional name of the SOC in their public addresses.

The report also said that the security situation in the north of Kosovo “required significant resources of Kosovo police”, while in reference to the Banjska armed incident from last year it said “the reaction demonstrated the high level of professionalism of Kosovo police”.

Attempts to appropriate religious objects

While the report welcomes final registration of Visoki Decani Monastery land in Kosovo cadastre, the European Commission also recorded several events causing concern over religious freedom.

“Kosovo police deported a monk of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) serving as an Abbot for 13 years, citing “reasons of national security”. There were acts of desecration targeting the SOC and attempts to appropriate and undermine the identity of the religious objects. At the same time, the authorities did not use the full constitutional name of the SOC in their public statements”, reads the report.

Construction works on Serb properties without expropriation  

The report also deals with illegal expropriation of properties owned by Serbs. Although this topic is covered briefly and with few sentences only, one could link it with the confiscated properties owned by Serbs in Leposavic and Zubin Potok municipalities, aiming to construct Kosovo police bases.

“The concern was caused by the decision of the (Kosovo) government to carry out the process of expropriation without respecting legal procedures, which impacted non-majority communities in several municipalities ... .The access to illegally confiscated properties of non-majority communities remains mostly unaddressed. The authorities started construction works on the properties of the non-majority communities without carrying out expropriation procedures in the four municipalities”, the report said. It also noted that several court’s verdicts were passed in favour of Serb complainants, adding that Kosovo Government, among others, did not offer justification for the legitimate public purpose of these expropriations. “New draft law on expropriation should reflect principles deriving from Ahtisaari’s plan”, the report said.  

The report also notes that 75 police officers from the Serbian community are deployed in the north, but very briefly and without precise details adds that Kosovo police should ensure that composition of the police reflects ethnic composition of the population in the municipalities. It also said there are no “cases of prisoners mistreatment” and that Kosovo authorities “demonstrated commitment to prevent mistreatment and torture” in prisons and detention centres. This part of the report, KoSSev portal writes contradicts the claims of official Belgrade, which on several occasions in 2023 accused Pristina of mistreating detainees. Arrest of one of the two Serbs in front of municipal building in Zvecan, and his remain in detention were followed with claims of his ill treatment by security bodies, including those of physical torture. The recent accusations came last Thursday, when the Office for Kosovo and Metohija said a Gorani detainee was beaten up by prison guards in Podujevo.

The full report is available at: https://shorturl.at/Nb0s4

EULEX: No expected results in handling of high-profile judicial cases (N1, BETA)

Hubert van Eck Koster, the chief of the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) Case Monitoring Unit, said Monday that the handling of high-profile cases has not yielded expected results and that some of the cases are at risk of reaching statutory limitation, N1 reported.

Presenting the EULEX Justice Monitoring Report, he said that, in the period from September 2022 to May 2024, 230 out of 821 monitored court hearings were unproductive, and that still too many hearings take place without any meaningful progress causing unnecessary delays to the proceedings.

“Concerning the handling of high-profile, often corruption cases, many of them unfortunately did not show meaningful progress. The risk with some of these cases is that they may actually reach statutory limitation. The courts continue to be reluctant when it comes to applying the necessary sanctions foreseen in the law”, Eck Koster said.

In addition, he said EULEX observed overuse of detention on remand during criminal proceedings, which continues to be applied systematically without proper substantiation, and is often extended automatically.

He explained that the mission also looked at the excessive length of detention on remand. In its 2021 report it was mentioned that there were in total 37 persons being detained for two years or more, while in the current period the number of persons detained for more than two years increased to 61, added Eck Koster.

He noted that progress has been made in prosecuting war crimes and tackling gender-based violence. EULEX Head of Mission Giovanni Pietro Barbano said the report focuses on assessing the implementation of prior recommendations, highlighting areas where progress has been made and calling attention to critical gaps that still persist.

Lajcak discussed missing persons issue with ICRC president (Blic, Radio Mitrovica sever)

The special envoy of the European Union for dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, Miroslav Lajcak, announced yesterday that he spoke with the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric Eger, about the issue of missing persons in Kosovo, reported Blic. 

- It was a pleasure to meet with the President of the ICRC in Geneva. We discussed the EU's efforts in dialogue and support for the work of the ICRC in the region. Solving the fate of the remaining missing persons is an important and urgent humanitarian issue - stated Lajcak in a post on X. 

ICRC announced on its website that, to resolve the issue of missing persons, it primarily supports families in their search to determine the fate and whereabouts of missing members of Kosovo. 

- Carrying out our humanitarian mission, we remind the authorities of their obligation to provide answers to the families, and we also ask for the support of the international community in order to achieve results. The ICRC provides support to the local Red Cross in Kosovo through training, financial assistance, and technical assistance. Also, we visit all prisons in Kosovo - announced the ICRC.

Serbian Democracy opens municipal branch in Leposavic (social media)

Serbian Democracy officially opened a branch on Monday in Leposavic municipality and presented the head and deputy head of their municipal branch on social media.  

“Vladimir Radosavljević was born in 1985. He lives in Leposavic with his wife and three children. He works as a master mechanical engineer (teacher). Vladimir is the president of the Leposavic Municipal Board! Aleksandar Acković was born in 1998. He is engaged in sheep farming and studies at the Faculty of Agriculture in Lešak. Aleksandar is the vice president of the Leposavić Municipal Board!”, Serbian Democracy said in a post on Facebook.

The water from Lake Badovac suitable for drinking (KoSSev, KiM radio)

After a little more than a month, the water from Lake Badovac can be used for drinking again, announced the Kosovo Public Health Institute.

Water from this lake was previously not for human consumption due to elevated manganese levels.

However, according to the results of new analyzes carried out in the last four days, the level of manganese has decreased, so the water is currently within the standards intended for human consumption.

"Based on these results, the water can be used for drinking," stated the Kosovo Public Health Institute.

However, they recommend the Regional Water Supply Company "Pristina" to continue monitoring and provide water in the required quantity and quality.

The areas that are supplied with water from this lake, in addition to Pristina, also include places like Caglavica, Gracanica, Laplje Selo, Kisnica, Susica, recalled KiM radio.

International

IMF reaches staff-level agreement on the third reviews of Kosovo’s Stand-By Arrangement and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (IMF)

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, led by Mr. David Amaglobeli, visited Pristina during October 28 – November 11, 2024, to hold discussions on the 2024 Article IV Consultations and the Third Reviews of Kosovo’s Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) Arrangement. At the conclusion of the mission, Mr. Amaglobeli issued the following statement:

“The IMF team and the Kosovo authorities have reached staff-level agreement on policies to complete the Third Reviews under the SBA and the RSF arrangements. The agreement is subject to approval by IMF Management and the Fund’s Executive Board, which is scheduled for mid-December. The completion of the Third Reviews will make available an additional SDR 13.35 million (€16.4 million) under the SBA and at least SDR 15.5 million (€19.1 million) under the RSF. The authorities have indicated that they intend to continue treating the SBA as precautionary, not drawing on the resources.”

“Kosovo’s economy continues to perform well, supported by robust private consumption and higher public investment, offsetting the impact of a widening trade deficit and softening remittances. We project growth to reach 4¼ percent this year and 4 percent next year. Headline inflation has significantly declined, reaching 0.4 percent year-on-year in October 2024, driven by a slowing in the growth of food and transportation prices. The external current account deficit widened to 2¾ percent of GDP in the first eight months of 2024 from 1½ percent of GDP in the same period last year, due to growing imports of goods and services, fueled by higher domestic demand. Private sector credit grew at double digits, deepening the financial sector and providing additional support to the economy. The banking sector remains healthy—profitable and well-capitalized with low levels of non-performing loans.”

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/OTVFL