Vjosa Osmani’s alert on Thursday to both NATO and the EU against what is perceived as war threat from Belgrade after the Serbian President’s address to media, moved a chain of reaction from Pristina, Albanians and international supporters. What did Aleksandar Vucic say?
„I expect the European Union and NATO to respond to this threat for a violent war, made by Vucic,“ the acting Kosovo President and the president of the Kosovo Assembly, Vjosa Osmani tweeted last night.
Along with this message, she shared the DTT-NET English’s news piece, presented to be an independent online daily news media agency outlet on the Western Balkans region, with a contact address in Klina, Kosovo.
“Ex-Milosevic minister warns of Nagorno Karabakh type of conflict over Kosovo if compromise efforts fail“ – read the headline.
“The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, today warned that if a compromise is not reached with Kosovo through EU-mediated talks then the frozen conflict could be unfrozen in the future, pointing out to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, vowing that whatever happens with the talks in Brussels, Serbia will continue to strengthen itself economically and militarily too, as he put it, to defend the country at any moment from any potential aggressor,” this agency reported.
The text, however, does not specify where and on what occasion Vucic presented these claims, and there are no quotes.
Instead of a photo from the press conference, a photo of the Serbian and Russian president shaking hands at an earlier meeting was published, although the Russian president was not mentioned within the event or the article itself.
I expect the European Union & NATO to respond to this threat for a violent war, made by Vucic. https://t.co/Pcalosdf9x
— Vjosa Osmani (@VjosaOsmaniMP) November 12, 2020
The same news article was also shared by Daniel Serwer with the following message: „This is a threat to try to retake Kosovo by military force. NATO should make clear what the consequences of that would be.”
Kosovo diplomacy: Serbian weapons add fuel to fighting, Milosevic’s minister threatens NATO allies, Russia’s puppy
The Kosovo Minister of Foreign Affairs, Meliza Haradinaj Stubla also immediately reacted.
„After fueling the Nagorno Karabakh fight with Serbian made arms, Serbia’s Vucic, Milosevic’s Information Minister now threatens all NATO aligned neighboring countries that it will continue to prepare militarily for new Balkans wars!“ she tweeted, adding:
“The ‘Russia’s puppy’ policy and the approach is clearly against EU values and NATO security policies in the Balkans. All Russian-Serbian efforts to undermine the region’s peace, stability, and security are unacceptable for Kosovo and will surely fail like their infamous capitulation in 1999.”
Hoxhaj: Milosevic’s followers the only threat to regional stability
Acting PDK President and former Foreign Minister, Enver Hoxhaj also reacted last night.
“The only threat to regional stability and peace remain Milosevic’s followers in the Serbian government and security apparatus. Today’s comments by Vucic require a prompt response by the international community. The region can move forward only when Serbia faces the genocide it has committed under the Flag of Kosovo,” Hoxhaj wrote on Twitter.
Hoti: Vucic’s statements are not in favor of normalization
A somewhat more moderate reaction arrived from the Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti.
„Kosovo is committed to peace and stability in the region and beyond. The statements of the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic are not in favor of the normalization of relations between the two countries, reaching a final agreement and mutual recognition. They are contrary to all the obligations that Serbia has undertaken, under the guarantees of the international community, for lasting peace and economic development in the region. The Government of the Republic of Kosovo remains committed to its constructive role in favor of peace, stability, and prosperity of the entire region,“ he wrote in a Facebook post.
He also reiterated Osmani’s call for the EU and NATO to respond to „these provocations“, adding that the government in Pristina will continue to be committed to attaining membership in NATO, the EU, and all relevant international institutions as soon as possible.
„We will wait for Vucic“
According to the head of the AAK parliamentary group and Ramush Haradinaj’s brother – Daut Haradinaj, Vucic’s statement, but also the filing of indictments by the Specialist Chambers, is a „threat of war“.
He assessed the situation in Kosovo as serious and never seen before. Haradinaj described the dialogue with Belgrade, although there is no alternative to it, as a process that should not be rushed, that is, one which should be stopped, the online media in Pristina reported.
Amid the first hearings of the top members of the former „KLA“, but also top Kosovo politicians, before the Special Court, the former commander of this armed formation, Xhafer Gashi, said that the inhabitants of Kosovo would „stay and wait for Vucic“.
„We are here and we will wait for them as we expected them at the time. I would not like for that to happen because the war does not bring good, but we are here and we do not intend to leave,“ Gashi said on Thursday during a guest appearance on the talk-show Frontal on the T7 channel.
Citaku: Bring it on
Another former head of Kosovo diplomacy and a potential PDK candidate for president of Kosovo, Vlora Citaku called on the Serbian president to carry out his perceived intention.
„Is this a threat??! Bring it on,“ the former Kosovan ambassador to Washington tweeted.
Majko: Vucic avoids obligations from the White House and leads a double life in international relations
A reaction also arrived from Albania. Former Albanian Prime Minister, Pandeli Majko said that Vucic’s statement about the „frozen conflict“ and his comparison with Nagorno Karabakh was irresponsible, assessing that Vucic is thus avoiding the obligations signed in the White House.
„The statement of the President of Serbia by which he drew a parallel between the state of Kosovo with the status of the frozen conflict of Nagorno Karabakh is irresponsible! Serbia’s double life in international relations is a real threat to regional stability! President Vucic has determined that the conflict with the Albanians is not over yet and he considers it ‘frozen’,“ Majko wrote.
„Cold logistics minds in Serbia understand the readiness of Albanians in some countries if someone follows the idea of a conflict scenario. He will know the beginning, but not the end!“ he added.
These are only some of the reactions from Pristina. The assessments are all the same – Vucic threatens war. Also, Milosevic’s name and the „genocide“ of Serbia were mentioned in all of the reactions, while NATO and the EU have been urged to react.
Only a few online portals published Vucic’s original statement last night, as the majority of them listed comments and assessments of Kosovo politicians.
Petkovic: Albanian politicians are not having a polemic with Vucic, but with stereotypes about Serbs
The Belgrade-based Kosovo Office recently appointed head Petar Petkovic described the avalanche of reactions from Kosovo politicians as a “hysterical reaction from Pristina.”
It is not a matter of a polemic with the President of Serbia, but with stereotypes about Serbia that Pristina systematically cultivates, he issued through a press release last night.
„The frozen conflict has never brought anyone any good, and the fact that some politicians in Pristina perceive our aspiration for a compromise solution as a threat, it best shows the way many in Kosovo actually perceive dialogue,“ the press release also reads.
He pointed out that some Albanian politicians „still live in the 1990s“.
Instead, this official claimed the key message of President Vucic was that peace is the most important thing for Serbia and the Serb people and that the Albanian representatives in Pristina are equally interested in peace. They should welcome and support such a commitment from Belgrade, Petkovic stressed.
„Speaking about threats to peace and stability in the region, I must note that the greatest danger, in that sense, are precisely those who oppose the punishment of war criminals and those who form an army, although according to Resolution 1244 and the Kumanovo Agreement they have no right to do so. Well, let them recognize themselves!” Petkovic concluded.
Similar messages were sent by Srpska Lista, which came to the defense of the Serbian president.
Kosovo Serb Party: Vucic is bringing unrest to Serbs in Kosovo, for the umpteenth time
An entirely different reaction arrived from the north of Kosovo.
Vucic’s statement actually brings unrest among the remaining Serbs in Kosovo „for the umpteenth time“ – this party alerted.
„By comparing the situation in Kosovo with the one in Nagorno-Karabakh, he directly insults the intelligence of Serbs who remained in Kosovo and tramples on the Constitution of Serbia. Kosovo has nothing in common with the situation in Azerbaijan and the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 applies in Kosovo, the same one that Pristina and Belgrade constantly violate in some segments,“ this party wrote in a press release last night.
Recalling the presence of international security forces and their role as the guarantor of peace and stability, the Kosovo Serb Party added that another armed formation had been established – contrary to the constitution of Kosovo itself but with the tacit consent of Srpska Lista and official Belgrade.
„Now, two years later, frightening the remaining Serbs with a new war and conflict like the one in Nagorno-Karabakh, all for the sake of preparing the ground for Serbia’s recognition of Kosovo, is unacceptable for us and is a reflection of the complete amateurism of Serbia towards its interests and people in Kosovo,“ they added.
The Kosovo Serb Party assessed as particularly hypocritical the part of the President of Serbia’s statement in which he says that we should not leave a frozen conflict to „our children“.
„And at the same time, he does not say whether our children south of the Ibar should stay in ‘Greater’ Albania, or are they not as important in this SNS equation as some other children north of the Ibar?“ the party pointed out.
Djordjevic: Vucic threatens Serbs with ethnic cleansing
The leader of the Oslobodjenje movement, Mladjan Djordjevic presented a totally different interpretation of President Vucic’s statement. „Aleksandar Vucic is scaring the Serbian people,“ he declared.
„He is threatening us with ethnic cleansing and promises us a new Storm (cf. Oluja operation). He is doing everything against the status quo, because it is an order he received and because he agreed on it in his deals – to try to convince, bribe, and intimidate Serbs to give up Kosovo,“ reads a written statement from the Oslobodjenje movement.
Djordjevic further assessed that a „frozen conflict does not suit Vucic“ because he „promised to deliver Kosovo.“ He added that President Vucic, whom he described as a „puppet of the West“, should learn from the example of the Armenian Prime Minister who was „left to twist in the wind after flirting with Western powers“ and against whom there are ongoing protests over the lost territory.
„Citizens took over the parliament in Yerevan two days ago, and the prime minister ordered the arrests of opposition leaders,“ he said, adding that Vucic is „on the same path.“
„He decided to ignore our traditional allies, primarily the Russian Federation – the guarantor of Resolution 1244, which internationally recognizes Kosovo as part of Serbia. At the same time, Vucic is gradually delivering Kosovo and giving them full independence through the Brussels Agreement, the Washington Agreement, the Mini Schengen, and other actions.”
KFOR: Fully committed to the implementation of the UN mandate
NATO also reacted with a statement after being asked by media.
„The NATO-led KFOR mission remains fully focused on implementing the United Nations mandate, to ensure security and freedom of movement for all communities in Kosovo. We also continue to support the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, with the help of the EU, as the only permanent political solution for stability in Kosovo and the wider region of the Western Balkans,“ they said in a statement for RFE.
What did the Serbian president actually say?
It would be better if a solution for Kosovo is reached sooner than later, otherwise, a conflict is possible – reads the crux of Vucic’s statement to the media on Thursday, immediately after he met with Quint in Belgrade.
„Many might think that the situation around Kosovo is better than it was before due to the internal situation in Kosovo, because it is not possible to expect stronger pressure on Serbia by December, January by the great Western powers. But I need to tell you today that the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh has shown how a frozen conflict, when thawed, can escalate into a real catastrophe.“
At the same time, he pointed out that the most important message is the message of peace, dialogue, and the desire for Belgrade to continue the dialogue with Pristina, as well as that the best solution can be achieved through dialogue – whereby conflict would be avoided.
„The most important message for us is the message of peace and the message of dialogue, the message of the desire to continue the dialogue with Pristina, and to understand that the best solution is the solution that we can and must achieve through dialogue. And it is better to achieve it earlier than later because otherwise, some kind of conflict can happen to us. We have to take care of the future of our children, we have to take care of Kosovo, and I am completely sure that people in Europe will understand that.“
He did point out that Serbia must continue to strengthen economically and in a military sense to save the country from potential aggression.
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