RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
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RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 12, No. 15, Part II, 23 January 2008

DATE 'SET' FOR KOSOVA'S INDEPENDENCE. Kosova and its international allies have already set a date for Kosova to declare its independence and the date will be made public "in the coming days," Kosovar Prime Minister Hashim Thaci told reporters on January 22. Thaci emphasized that the decision was "coordinated" with the European Union and the United States. Thaci will be heading to Brussels on January 25 to meet with the EU's foreign-policy chief, Javier Solana, the secretary-general of NATO, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, and the Dutch diplomat who will head the EU's planned mission to Kosova, Peter Feith. The general expectation to date has been that Kosova will declare itself a state shortly after Serbs choose their next president on February 3. AG

SERBIA SELLS KEY ENERGY FIRM TO RUSSIA'S GAZPROM. The Serbian government agreed on January 22 to sell Serbia's largest energy company, Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), to the Russian energy giant Gazprom. Details of the deal will be agreed on January 25, when Infrastructure Minister Velimir Ilic flies to Moscow. The price for the controlling, 51 percent stake in NIS is one of the key details yet to be agreed, the government said, but the deal is expected to include cash -- Gazprom has so far offered to pay 500 million euros ($725 million), according to the highest figure reported -- as well as a commitment from Gazprom to route a gas pipeline through Serbia and build a storage unit, local media reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 14, 2008). The importance of the deal was underscored by several ministers, with Ilic describing it as "Serbia's most important strategic deal" and Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica declaring that it will "secure stable and regular energy supplies...for the next few decades." However, the government's smallest party, G17 Plus, refused to vote because, as its leader, Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic, stated, "the agreement remains incomplete and can be improved." Dinkic has consistently criticized the perceived rush to a deal, arguing on December 29 that "I am in favor of negotiations with the Russians -- but for negotiations, and not to go with our hands up" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 14, 2008). Among the details that have yet to be settled is where the pipeline will run, with uncertainty about whether it will be part of the main South Stream pipeline -- which will run to Italy -- or an offshoot pipeline (see "RFE/RL Newsline," October 11, 2007). Russia and Serbia's neighbor, Bulgaria, in mid-January agreed that part of the South Stream pipeline should pass through Bulgaria. The EU expressed concern on January 10 about a possible NIS-Gazprom link-up, saying that the European Commission "hopes that the sale of an important asset such as the Serbian oil company will be open and driven by objective, commercial and economic interests" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 14, 2008). AG

KOSOVAR SERBS BACK NATIONALIST FOR PRESIDENCY. Figures from Serbia's January 20 presidential election suggest that the winner of the first round, the nationalist Tomislav Nikolic, won particularly strong support among ethnic Serbs in the disputed province of Kosova. Nationally, Nikolic secured 39 percent of the vote, but in Kosova his support was 42 percent, the news service Balkan Insight reported. Nikolic chose to make the ethnically divided and sensitive town of Mitrovica one of his last campaign stops in an effort to accentuate his credentials as a defender of Serbia's sovereignty over Kosova, and his position as an extreme nationalist is deemed a significant factor in his first-round victory, even though both he and his chief rival, President Boris Tadic, insist on Serbia's continued sovereignty, reject the possibility of going to war over Kosova, and reserve the right to send troops into Kosova to protect the Serbian minority (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 22, 2008). AG

HOLLYWOOD STARS BACK SERBIA OVER KOSOVA. Two of Hollywood's brightest stars, George Clooney and Sharon Stone, have voiced support for Serbia's attempt to retain sovereignty over Kosova, German and local media have reported in recent days. Clooney told the Serbian-language, Frankfurt-based daily "Vesti" on January 19 that "I will, with my colleague and friend Sharon Stone and her childhood friends, who are of Serb origin, organize a protest soon over the attempt to have Kosovo declare independence," the paper quoted him as saying. The Serbian news agency Tanjug reported on January 21 -- citing unnamed foreign media -- that two other stars, Sean Connery and Richard Gere, have also voiced support for Serbia's case. AG

PROGRESS CLAIMED IN MACEDONIA'S NAME DISPUTE. The latest round of talks aimed at settling Greece's dispute over Macedonia's name ended on an optimistic note on January 21, with the UN's mediator, Matthew Nimetz, saying, "we are definitely making progress." He added that an agreement on the 16-year dispute might be within reach following what he described as "the best meeting so far, with both parties demonstrating willingness for ironing the differences." He did not indicate whether any new compromise proposals were made. At Greece's insistence, Macedonia has been referred to in most international forums as the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" for most of its existence as an independent state and, although over two-thirds of the UN's members recognize Macedonia under its constitutional name, "the Republic of Macedonia," Greece's public stance has hardened over the past year, with Athens threatening to veto Skopje's attempt to join NATO and the EU. Going into the meeting, there was no indication that either side would compromise, the news agency Makfax reported. However, Macedonian media reported that Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki suggested during the talks that the two countries should first make a public declaration of friendship in which Macedonia would state that it has no claims on or aspirations to Greek territory. Despite repeated Macedonian avowals to the contrary, Greece believes that Skopje's insistence on the use of the name Macedonia hides a longer-term determination to lay claim to the northern Greek province of the same name. In December, Macedonia also proposed the creation of a historical committee to address points of difference in the two countries' historiography. Macedonia is willing for Greece to refer to Macedonia using a name of its choice, but insists on being able to use its constitutional name with the rest of the world. The latest meeting, which was held in the Macedonian town of Ohrid, is part of an attempt to instigate more regular contacts between the two countries' negotiators (see "RFE/RL Newsline," November 6, and December 5, 12, and 20, 2007). Further talks will be held in Athens in two weeks' time. AG

RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
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RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 12, No. 14, Part II, 22 January 2008

NATIONALIST WINS FIRST ROUND OF SERBIA'S PRESIDENTIAL BATTLE... Tomislav Nikolic, leader of the extreme nationalist Serbian Radical Party (SRS), won the first round of Serbia's presidential election, defeating his chief rival, President Boris Tadic, by four percentage points. Nikolic's tally in the January 20 vote was a substantial 39 percent, well above his figures in pre-election polls, but despite his success in attracting late deciders he may struggle to secure the 50 percent needed to become president. With the difference between Tadic and Nikolic so tight and with relatively few votes to be gained from supporters of the other seven presidential candidates, Serbia faces two weeks of tough campaigning, intense political calculation, and substantial soul-searching before the second and final round, which will be held on February 3. The challenge for Nikolic is to avoid his fate in the runoff of the June 2004 elections, when the supporters of candidates defeated in the first round overwhelmingly threw their support behind Tadic, enabling him to come from four points behind to win by eight points. Key to the outcome of the runoff could be the turnout of liberals -- whose support secured Cedomir Jovanovic fifth place, with 5.6 percent of the vote -- and winning over the 7.6 percent who supported Velimir Ilic, a government minister who, controversially, decided to run against the candidate of the government's largest party, Tadic of the Democratic Party (DS). Zoran Lucic, the head of the think tank and occasional pollster, the Center for Free Elections and Democracy (CeSID), said that his institution's research indicates that three in four of Ilic's supporters will back Tadic. Nikolic can count on the support of the 6 percent who voted for Milutin Mrkonjic, the candidate of the party founded by the late Slobodan Milosevic, the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS). AG

...DESPITE OPPOSITION OF BOSNIAN SERB LEADER... Among those who championed President Tadic's cause was Milorad Dodik, the prime minister of the Republika Srpska, the Bosnian Serb-dominated autonomous region of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Dodik said on December 6 that it is important for Serbia to be led by a man who "does not have to carry the burden of previous events, as Tomislav Nikolic would certainly bear." As president, Nikolic would, Dodik predicted, "spend his entire mandate proving he is not what people abroad think he is": an extreme nationalist in the mold of Milosevic. Dodik reiterated that message on December 17 while on the campaign trail for Tadic. The founder of the SRS, Vojislav Seselj, remains the party's leader despite currently being on trial in The Hague, where he is accused of inciting murder and ethnic cleansing during the 1990s; recruiting, indoctrinating, and supporting paramilitaries; and helping ethnic cleansing. Nikolic, whose time as the head of a municipal cemetery has earned him the sobriquet "the gravedigger," is Seselj's longtime deputy, and when the SRS and Milosevic's SPS joined forces in the late 1900s he became first the vice president of Serbia and then the vice president of Yugoslavia. Since Milosevic's ouster, Nikolic has not sought to reform his party in the manner seen in Croatia, where the party of late President Franjo Tudjman, the Croatian Democratic Community (HDZ), has recast itself and remained in power. AG

...AS VOTERS TURN OUT IN LARGE NUMBERS. With turnout shaping up to be a key factor in who emerges as Serbia's next president, one of the key figures to emerge from the first round was that 61 percent of the Serbian electorate went to the polling stations. The relatively high percentage of the 6.7 million voters who cast votes suggests that a repeat of the 2002 election fiasco, when apathy resulted in fewer than 50 percent of voters voting and obliged the Central Election Commission to hold fresh elections, is unlikely. The heightened interest may in part be thanks to unseasonably benign weather on January 20, but it is also being attributed to voters' concern at the probability that Kosova will soon declare independence and to the strength of opinions about whether Serbia should strengthen its relationship with the EU. The relatively high turnout is generally thought to have particularly helped President Tadic, whose support base is less disciplined than Nikolic's. The importance of the elections, which Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said could delay Serbia's membership of the EU by a "generation or more," may also have boosted the turnout of moderates (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 11, 2008). However, Nikolic was boosted by heavy turnout in northern Serbia and the suburbs of Belgrade. With much riding on convincing the supporters of unsuccessful candidates to vote again, Nikolic may benefit from the strength of nationalist sentiment, given hard-line nationalists' record of turning up to vote. AG

CONTACT GROUP MEMBERS DISCUSS BALKANS. The foreign ministers of the four European members of the Contact Group, the six-member group leading attempts to resolve Kosova's status, met in Slovenia on January 19 to discuss the future of Kosova and the geopolitical situation in the Balkans. No details of the meeting were given and no statement was issued, but Cristina Gallach, the spokeswoman for EU foreign-policy chief Javier Solana, told AFP beforehand that "the meeting was planned as an exchange of views on the Balkans." The informal meeting of the British, French, German, and Italian ministers came on the eve of Serbia's presidential election, which could have a significant bearing on Brussels' relations with Belgrade, and a week before a summit of EU leaders at which the EU's relationship with Serbia will be discussed, as well as details of the EU's plan to deploy a mission to Kosova. The three-hour meeting was chaired by Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the EU, and was also attended by Solana and EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn. The other two members of the Contact Group are Russia and the United States. AG

SERBIAN CRIMINAL GANG SENTENCED TO NEARLY 500 YEARS IN PRISON. Twenty-five members of Serbia's most notorious criminal gang, the Zemun clan, were sentenced on January 18 to a total of 465 years in prison for 18 murders, three kidnappings, and two acts of terrorism, AP and local media reported. The group's leader, Milorad "Legija" Lukovic-Ulemek, was given the maximum term, 40 years. One man was cleared of the charges against him. These crimes are separate from the most infamous crime in which the group was involved, the assassination of Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic in March 2003. Lukovic-Ulemek was also sentenced to 40 years for his role in Djindjic's murder. The 11 others sentenced for Djindjic's assassination included members of the Zemun gang and members of a paramilitary group founded by the late President Milosevic, the Red Berets, which was also led by Lukovic-Ulemek (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May 24, and June 22, 2007). Lukovic-Ulemek has also been sentenced to 40 years for the murder of former President Ivan Stambolic in May 2000, and to 15 years for a 1999 attempt on the life of Vuk Draskovic, an opposition leader during the Milosevic era who was subsequently Serbia's foreign minister (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 20, 2007). The Zemun clan's continued links with figures within the Serbian establishment came under the spotlight again in mid-2007 when the police arrested a former Belgrade district prosecutor, Rade Terzic, on July 20 on suspicion of belonging to the group (see "RFE/RL Newsline," July 23, 2007). The Serbian authorities said that eight members of the gang remain on the run, AP reported. AG

Partia "Lëvizja e Legalitetit"
Bulevardi "Zog I", Tiranë.
legaliteti@gmail.com
Tel&Fax: +355 4 230076

Tirane, me 20 janar 2008

Deklarate per mediat

Dalim sot para jush në emër të Forumit Rinor të Partisë "Lëvizja e Legalitetit" për të prezantuar diçka nga vizioni dhe platforma që ky forum ka për integrimin e brezit të ri në politikën vendim-marrëse të vendit me qëllim zgjidhjen me racionalitet të problematikës që shqetëson brezin e ri.

Forumi Rinor i PLL ka bindjen se pjesëmarrja me e gjerë e rinisë në jetën politike të të gjitha niveleve është kthyer në domosdoshmëri jo vetëm për të shfrytëzuar idetë, energjitë dhe resurset që zotëron kjo moshë, por edhe për të dëshmuar me prova se politika e re ka nevojë për njerëz të rinj.

Forumi Rinor i PLL beson se një brez i ri, i arsimuar me dije bashkëkohore, i edukuar me vlerat më të larta të kombit dhe familjes, do të jetë një garanci e plotë që e ardhmja e vendit të kalojë në duar të sigurta. Ne gjykojmë se është detyrim i klasës politike aktuale, që në këtë periudhë tranzicioni,  globalizmi dhe zhvillimesh të vrullshme,  të krijojë kushtë të favorshme për integrimin e brezit të ri në jetën politiko-shoqërore të vendit dhe të mundësojë largimin e tij prej idealeve të rreme dhe shpesh të paqarta.

Forumi Rinor i PLL dëshiron të theksojë se e gjen veten plotësisht në programin e Legalitetit, ndjehet krenar që është organizatë partnere e kësaj partie dhe se do të punojë për një prezantim më të mirë të vlerave të PLL dhe të periudhës së artë historike të Mbretit Zog tek rinia shqiptare, sepse këto janë vlera për të cilat sot shoqëria ka nevojë më shumë se kurrë.

Në të njejtën kohë ne do të kërkojmë dhe do të dëshmojmë se jemi të gatshëm dhe të aftë  të marrim mbi supe përgjegjësi politike, ku secili prej nesh të ketë mundësinë për të vendosur një gurë në rrugën e madhe të integrimit Euro-Atlantik të Shqipërisë.  Ne ftojmë të gjthë të rinjtë shqiptarë që të bëhen pjesë aktive e këtij procesi.

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http://www.kohajone.com/

Berisha: PR, s’do te njihet me si parti e pronave

“Partia Republikane nuk do te njihet me si partia e pronave, por si partia e te drejtave dhe lirive”. Kjo eshte fjala pershendetese e Kryeministrit Berisha ne 17-vjetorin e Partise Republikane, e cila shkaktoi humor dhe duartrokitje te forta ne te njejten kohe. Cdo gje ishte e pergatitur, mungonte thjesht prania e Kryeministrit qe ceremonia pershendetese te fillonte. Megjithese me vonese, kreu i ekzekutivit u prit nga kreret e Partise Republikane, te rreshtuar perpara hyrjes ne salle, Fatmir Mediu, presidenti i nderit, Sabri Godo dhe gjithashtu themelues te tjere, ku binte ne sy edhe prania e Zerina Kukes. Gjate ceremonise u vu re edhe perfaqesues te partive te koalicionit, Partise Bashkimit te se Drejtave te Njeriut dhe Partise Agrare Ambientaliste, perfaqesuesit e ketyre partive megjithese jane ftuar per te qene te pranishem, ato kane munguar. Por mungonin kreret. Aleatet besnike te republikaneve, demokratet dhe reformatoret, nuk mund te mos mungonin ne festimin e 17-vjetorit te aleatit te tyre te ngushte. Nga reformatoret ishte i pranishem kryetari i kesaj partie, njekohesisht minister i Arsimit, Genc Pollo, si edhe deputeti i kesaj partie, Tritan Shehu. Po ashtu edhe nga demokratet kishte te pranishem, ku vihej re prezenca e Besnik Mustafajt, Gazmend Oketes, Bujar Nishanit dhe i ftuari i nderit, pa te cilin festa nuk mund te fillonte, Kryeministri Sali Berisha. Pas fjales pershendetese, zevendeskryeministri Oketa, Kryeministri Berisha dhe presidenti i nderit Godo zhvilluan nje bisede 30-minuteshe te ulur ne ambientet e salles.

D. Dedej

Ndarja, kush janë tre klanet në PD

Berisha, Topalli dhe Topi Figurat kryesore të PD, si Topalli e Bode, përballë të rinjve të KOP dhe mbështetësve të presidentit Topit Anëtarët dhe "kokat" e tre grupeve që po përpiqen të marrin drejtimin e partisë. Planet për qeverinë e re dhe zgjedhjet e 2009 TIRANË- Pas konsumimit të më shumë se gjysmës së mandatit qeverisës, PD është përfshirë nga lufta e brendshme e klaneve, pavarësisht se nuk ka ende një shpallje e dukje të qartë të tyre në publik, të paktën në nivel e profil të lartë. Por nga dita në ditë, ndarja sa vjen e bëhet më e prekshme edhe për publikun. Anëtarët e vjetër të PD, prurjet e reja të 2005-ës, kryesisht KOP-i dhe mbështetësit e presidentit Topi janë tashmë tre grupet që janë përshirë në garën për më shumë pushtet e dominim. Të pakënaqur me copën e tortës së marrë secili nga këto grupe synon shtrirjen e fuqizimin në qeveri e pse jo, edhe në drejtimin e ardhshëm të PD-së. Tre grupet Në llogoren kryesore në PD, janë të rreshtuar disa prej figurave kryesore. Lista nis me Kryetaren e Kuvendit dhe nënkryetaren e PD-së, Jozefina Topalli, ministrin e Financave, dhe Sekretarin e Përgjithshëm, Ridvan Bode, ish-zv/kryeministrin dhe Sekretarin për Çështjet Ligjore në PD, Ilir Rusmalin, ministrin e Transporteve, Sokol Olldashi, njëkohësisht kryetar i FRPD dhe kryetar i degës së PD-së, Tiranë dhe kryetarin e grupit parlamentar të PD-së, Astrit Patozin. Pra, e thënë troç, janë qëndrestarët e djeshëm dhe njerëzit kryesorë që drejtojnë sot për sot në PD, por që në dy vite e gjysmë qeverisje kanë grumbulluar edhe ndonjë qejf-mbetje ndaj Berishës. Duket se marrëdhëniet e disa prej tyre me këtë të fundit, nuk janë aq të mira si dikur. Ata nuk janë më kryesorët, për shkak edhe të daljes në skenë të shumë të rinjve, që kanë marrë mjaft pushtet. Për shkak të pozicioneve po kyçe të disa prej tyre edhe në qeveri, aktiviteti i tyre partiak nuk ka qenë në nivelet e duhura. Kjo ka sjellë një parti apatike, aktiviteti i së cilës ka lënë për të dëshiruar këto dy vite e gjysmë qeverisje. Përplasjet me Kryeministrin të disa anëtarëve të kësaj rryme siç ishte ajo e Rusmalit, që arriti deri në dorëheqje , "fërkimet" e Bodes që nuk lë rast pa u shfaqur jo aprovues para kamerave për "bujaritë" e Berishës janë vetëm një shfaqje e vogël në publik, e krisjes mes këtij klani dhe Kryeministrit. Të rinjtë e KOP Përballë rrymës së mësipërme dhe në garë me të janë KOP-ët, që në zgjedhjet e 2005-ës u trumbetuan si suksesi i PD-së. Por ndërsa emërtimi mbetet KOP, disa prej të rinjve të futur në qeveri këto dy vite kishin të përbashkët njohjen me vajzën e kryeministrit Berisha. Karrierën e tyre, ndryshe nga shumë te tjerë e ndërtuan duke u bërë anëtarë të qeverisë, pa qenë ende njerëz aktivë (si elita e vjetër) në strukturat e Partisë. Burimet nga selia blu flasin pikërisht për një luftë "klanesh", që më së shumti konsiston në rolin që do të kenë anëtarët e këtij grupi në PD sepse pikërisht në këtë periudhë do të fillojë një ristrukturim total i strukturave, duke nisur nga organet drejtuese. Dhe "gara" ka filluar, nëse shikohet me shumë kujdes lëvizja e figurave të selisë blu, nëpër festimet e përvjetorit të 17-të ë krijimit të degëve të PD-së nëpër rrethe. Në një krah udhëton dhe troket gotat me zyrtarët lokalë dhe militantët, Topalli e Bode, e në anën tjetër, jo më larg se dje u pa edhe Basha në festën e degës së PD-së në Kavajë. Janë pikërisht figurat e reja si Lulëzim Basha apo edhe Majlinda Bregu, të cilët edhe pse anëtarë të Kryesisë së zgjedhur nga anëtarët e Këshillit Kombëtar të PD-së, kërkojnë që të kenë një vend më të rëndësishëm në jetën politikë të partisë, ashtu siç në fakt e kërkojnë dukshëm edhe në qeverisje. Në këtë grupim me ambicie serioze janë edhe emra të tjerë të rinjsh si ministri i Drejtësisë, Enkelejd Alibeaj, apo edhe zv/ministrja e Brendshme, Iva Zaimi. Mbështetësit e Topit Përkrahësit e Topit që dolën hapur gjatë kohës së zgjedhjes së tij si President, janë edhe sot njësoj të pakënaqur me mos-integrimin e tyre në qeverisje dhe për këtë fajësojnë Berishën. Këta deputetë, rreth 25, në aspektin numerik janë një armë shumë e fortë në duart e Presidentit, si dhe një barrierë po kaq e fortë për Berishën. Ai është i kontrollueshëm dhe i ndikueshëm nga këta deputetë. Ky grupim që imponoi edhe dorëheqjen e Rusmalit duket se do të ndjekë në politikë modelin e Presidentit, kur ai ishte kryetar i grupit parlamentar të PD-së dhe i papërfshirë në qeveri; oponencën ndaj fenomeneve të caktuara të qeverisjes. Pra të kritikojnë nga pak, me qëllim që të nesërmen disa prej tyre të jenë një potencial në parti, por edhe në qeverisje. Berisha Në anën tjetër, Kryeministri dhe kryetari i PD-së, Sali Berisha duket se nuk e ka më fuqinë e dikurshme. I ndodhur përballë faktit se ai duhet të mos lejojë shpërthimin e luftës mes grupeve, deri tani Berisha është marrë më shumë me uljen e tensionit dhe shuarjen e sherreve. Por qoftë për aspektin numerik të votave, qoftë për atë të figurave dhe personaliteteve që tashmë ai ka në llogoren tjetër, ai nuk mund të drejtojë dot më me dorë të hekurt si dikur. Deputetët e PD që drekuan me Topin Adrian Kollozi Albert Faruku Aleksandër Biberaj Aurel Bylykbashi Mevlan Xhindoli Besnik Mustafaj Dashamir Sula Edmond Spaho Edi Paloka Engjëll Cara Fatos Beja Genc Juka Gëzim Karapici Gazmend Oketa Idriz Xhumara Lulzim Basha Majlinda Bregu Ndriçim Babasi Osman Metalla Pal Dajçi Safet Sula Rrahim Kaleci Sali Shehu Anëtarë të KOP-it që kane ende poste: Albert Gajo, zv-Ministër i Integrimit Aleksandër Sallabanda, Ambasador i Shqipërisë në SHBA Maksim Cikuli, Këshilltar pranë Topit Lulëzim Basha, Ministër i Jashtëm Majlinda Bregu, Ministre e Integrimit Ylli Pango, Ministër i Kulturës Florion Mima, zv-Ministër i Financave Tauland Bino, zv-Ministër i Mjedisit Myqerem Tafaj, Këshilltar për Arsimin i Berishës Fatbardh Kadilli, Këshilltar për anti-korrupsionin Enkeleid Alibeaj, Ministër i Drejtësisë Prurjet e reja Iva Zaimi - Zv-Ministre e Brendshme Edit`h Harxhi - Zv-Ministre e Jashtme Sekretariati i PD-së Ridvan Bode Sekretar i Përgjithshëm Astrit Patozi Nënkryetar Jozefina Topalli Nënkryetare Ilir Rusmali Sekretar për Çështjet Ligjore Ferdinand Poni Sekretar për Pushtetin Lokal Besnik Mustafaj Sekretar për Marrëdhëniet me Jashtë Ilir Bano Sekretar i Burimeve Njerëzore Flamur Noka Sekretar Organizativ Gent Strazimiri Sekretar për Partneritet Edmond Spaho Sekretar për Ekonominë

RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
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RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 12, No. 13, Part II, 18 January 2008

UN MISSION CHIEF SAYS KOSOVO 'READY' FOR STATEHOOD. "Kosovo's institutions are ready for the next step," the head of the UN Mission in Kosova (UNMIK) told the UN Security Council and the media on January 16. Joachim Ruecker did not say what the "next step" is, but he has previously backed a UN-commissioned report that recommended that Kosova be granted "supervised independence." Ruecker gave his assessment of progress between January and November 2007, the latest in regular reviews of progress in Kosova, behind closed doors, but in later comments to the press and in a statement issued by his office Ruecker stressed that Kosova is meeting standards set by the international community and that parliamentary elections held in November showed the "political maturity" of Kosova's politicians and population. The tenor of Ruecker's speech was generally positive, noting greater freedom of movement for the ethnic-Serbian minority, an increase in the number of refugees returning to their homes, a "calm" security situation, and the "success" of November's elections. However, Ruecker also stated that more needs to be done to help refugees, noted persistent demonstrations to protest against poor living standards, expressed concern at the lack of political involvement on the part of ethnic Serbs, and voiced concern at the "troubling emergence of radical fringe groups." Ruecker made similar comments to the Kosovar media in the days leading up to the UN meeting. AG

KOSOVAR PREMIER ADDRESSES UN... Hashim Thaci, Kosova's newly elected prime minister, was also given an opportunity to address the UN Security Council on January 16 despite attempts by Serbia to prevent him speaking, an argument that it based on Kosova's status as a province rather than a state, international media reported. Belgrade similarly -- and unsuccessfully -- tried to prevent Kosovar President Fatmir Sejdiu from addressing the UN in December (see "RFE/RL Newsline," December 6 and 18, 2007). Thaci used the opportunity to reiterate Kosova's consistently and often repeated message to the international community -- that Kosova is ready to become a state. "Independence of Kosovo will bring peace and stability to the whole region," he told journalists after emerging from the council's closed-door meeting. He also added that "it is clear" there is no "consensus" within the Security Council and that the UN should back "supervised independence" for Kosova, as the UN's special envoy, Martti Ahtisaari, proposed in March. "Its implementation under European Union and NATO supervision is the best way forward," Thaci said, adding that Kosova's government "will guarantee such implementation." AG

...WHILE SERBIA WARNS OF ACTION TO PROTECT KOSOVAR SERBS. Earlier on January 16, in a hearing open to the public, Serbian President Boris Tadic warned the UN Security Council that "if any violence were to break out in Kosovo, and if KFOR [the NATO-led peacekeeping force] could not react and protect the Serbs in an appropriate way, we are ready, and I underline with the agreement of competent international institutions and exactly in respect for international law, to help and provide protection to the threatened population." Tadic's warning echoes comments made recently by his rival in Serbia's presidential election, the ultranationalist Tomislav Nikolic (see "RFE/RL Newsline," December 18, 2007, and January 9 and 11, 2008). Both Tadic and Nikolic say, however, that they will not lead Serbia into war in order to keep Kosova. On the subject of Kosova's final status, Tadic disagreed with Ruecker's positive assessment of the situation in Kosova, called for a compromise solution, and urged Kosova not to push ahead unilaterally toward independence, warning -- as Serbia and its chief supporter, Russia, have done repeatedly -- that independence for Kosova could act as a dangerous precedent. He also called on the Security Council to order the resumption of direct talks on Kosova's future. The Security Council did not debate Ruecker's report or pass any resolution, but after the meeting U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad stated that "the Security Council no longer has any role in the issue." His Russian counterpart, Vitaly Churkin, criticized Ruecker's report as flawed, threatened that Kosova would not be able to join the UN or "other political international institutions" if it declared independence, and reiterated that only the UN Security Council can legitimate a declaration of independence. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon did not attend the meeting. He has argued that the status quo in Kosova is unsustainable, a position that has earned him criticism from Serbian and Russian officials. AG

SERBIA MAINTAINS BAN ON U.S., BRITISH ELECTION MONITORS. Serbia's Central Election Commission voted on January 17 to ignore a ruling by the Supreme Court and continue to bar U.S. and British citizens from monitoring Serbia's presidential election, local media reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 14, 2008). Nine of the commission's members reportedly wanted the ban to be reviewed, but they were defeated by the 14 members who opposed their motion and four who abstained. Those who wanted the decision to be reassessed included representatives of two of the three governing parties -- the Democratic Party (DS) and G17 Plus -- and the small Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The third governing party, the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) of Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, refused to consider complying with the ruling, and joined the Serbian Radical Party (SRS) and the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), which was established by the late Slobodan Milosevic. The Supreme Court ordered the ban to be revoked on January 16, five days after it was imposed. AG

MONTENEGRO CALLS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. For the first time since independence, Montenegrins will go to the polls to vote for a new president on April 6, the speaker of parliament, Ranko Krivokapic, decided on January 17, the news service Balkan Insight reported the same day. President Filip Vujanovic, who was elected in May 2003 when Montenegro was still joined in a union with Serbia, has already said that he will run for reelection. Other candidates who have already announced their plan to run are Andrija Mandic of the Serbian List, the second-largest party in parliament, and Nebojsa Medojevic of the reformist Movement for Changes, one of the four biggest parliamentary parties. Krivokapic said he chose April 6 as the date because "Montenegrin citizens have the right to celebrate state and religious holidays without election procedures," referring to Labor Day on May 1 and Easter, which falls on April 27 for Orthodox Christians and March 23 for non-Orthodox communities. AG