Kosovo: How Bad is It - Read the Press

Nothing better now than to read the press. From today's UN/OSCE media summaries:


Thaçi: Belgrade stands behind these burnings (dailies)

Dailies report that Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi blames Belgrade for the burning of the border point in Jarinje, in the north of Kosovo. “Belgrade is behind the. These violent actions are ordered, coordinated and lead by the most senior political structures of Serbia’s Government,” said Thaçi at the press conference held in the late hours of Wednesday. He added that actions of the day again revealed publicly Belgrade’s policy towards Kosovo.” He said that it is clear that violent, criminal mobs, motivated and financed by Belgrade are trying to challenge the integrity of Kosovo. “But we will not fall into their trap. I call on you to remain calm and trust us and to believe in the institutions of the Kosovo state, KFOR and NATO. I guarantee rule and law will return. Trust in us. Remain calm. We will not back down. There will be progress for Kosovo,” he said.

Thaçi: EULEX fails to implement its mission (dailies)

All dailies report that after the Government meeting yesterday, Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi criticized the international community, especially the EULEX mission for failing to support the action aimed at establishing control in the two customs point in northern Kosovo.

Zëri quotes Thaçi as saying that the EU mission is failing to implement its mandate, for which Kosovo invited it. He also added that since the end of the war, internationals never tried to establish order in the Serb-inhabited northern part of Kosovo. “We have failed in northern Mitrovica for 12 years. This situation must change and the only way this can happen is by making righteous decisions as we have done in the last two days, in close cooperation with the international community and other authorities in charge of rule of law. For 12 years now, the international community has failed to launch a single action to establish law and order in that region of the Republic of Kosovo. The current situation cannot be tolerated and no justification from anyone is acceptable. Reality itself speaks beyond any political statement,” Thaçi is quoted as saying in Koha Ditore.  Express reports on the front page that Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuçi was even more direct than Thaçi, saying that EULEX should either operate throughout the territory of Kosovo or leave.  

State able to control customs in the north for only two days (Koha Ditore)

Koha Ditore reports that the Customs point in Jarinje at the border with Serbia, was set on fire Wednesday evening, only a few hours after the Government of Kosovo announced successful completion of the mission of the Police Special Units to take control of it and the border in Bënjak. EULEX Police Officers left around 19:00 hours when they saw uniformed, masked men coming down the hill to occupy border point 1. Based on the sequences offered by Serbian public TV, the first to set flames was a man dressed completely in black and wearing a mask on his face. Around 100 of them embarked on the border point and burned and demolished it completely. After the border point was ablaze some of the men removed their masks and shirts to celebrate. They spoke in Serbian.

Groups of Serbs tried to realize the same scenario Gate 31, in Bënjak, however members of the French KFOR got in their way. Sources of the newspaper said that Serbs failed in the three efforts to take control at this border point. They did manage to set fire twice, however KFOR members extinguished it. At about 22:00 hours, KFOR managed to regain control of the burned border point. This information was confirmed by a press release issued by KFOR, in the late hours.

Under the headline Rescue comes from Americans, Zëri reports that EULEX and KFOR left the border points under the mercy of aggressive Serbs late during the night, Americans then went and blocked it with chains.

EULEX enabled the burning of the point, says Express adding that EULEX members ran away like cowards, Americans, Germans and French, took over border points 1 and 31.

Source: The Quint, NATO and even Tadic knew (Zëri)

Zëri quotes international sources as saying that the Quint countries and NATO were informed about the police actions aimed at establishing order at Gates 1 and 31 in northern Kosovo. Sources told the paper that even Serbian President Boris Tadic was informed and in fact agreed in silence that Kosovo and Serbia should start restoring order at customs checkpoints and along the border in order to meet one of the criteria for countries aspiring to join the European Union.

The source said that the actions of the Government of Kosovo enjoyed strong support from Western powers and that further details will be explained in the coming days. According to the source, not only Kosovaars but internationals too could no longer stand the situation at the border which provided a save haven for criminals in the heart of Europe. The source said he was surprised by the EULEX mission.

·         Checkpoint Jarinje in northern Kosovo set on fire (TV B92-online, Beta, Tanjug, dailies)

The checkpoint of Jarinje on the administrative line between Kosovo and central Serbia has been set on fire, reports said.

The incidents, described as serious, started at after 19:00 CET.

"A group of several dozen young men" was identified in reports as the perpetrators that set the checkpoint facilities on fire.
American KFOR troops moved in to the checkpoint in armored vehicles after 20:00 CET.
There have been no reports of casualties.
KFOR commander Erhard Buehler said that the situation in the north was under control, and that there was no information anyone was injured during the incidents.
In Belgrade, Serbian Police Director reassured KFOR and EULEX that Serbian police would prevent the arrival of extremists from central Serbia to Kosovo.
Serbia will not allow for violence in northern Kosovo and will offer support to members of KFOR and EULEX, said Veljović.
Previously, Tanjug news agency was describing chaotic scenes from and around Jarinje just before 20:00 CET. One of the news agency's cameramen was assaulted and injured on the Leposavić-Jarinje road.
A Polish KFOR unit withdraw from the crossing, while American soldiers in armored vehicles are blocking the Jarinje-Kosovska Mitrovica road near Lešak.
Meanwhile residents of Leposavić "en masse" headed toward the crossing in their cars.
Earlier, Beta news agency reported that shots from automatic weapons were heard, and that Molotov cocktails were also thrown at a nearby KFOR camp, after which an explosion was heard.
Thick black smoke was seen rising from that area, according to this.
The attackers were described as "young men wearing hoods".
Several hundred people were at the checkpoint.
According to reports, the young men were Serbs who came "from the direction of Kosovska Mitrovica". They asked those gathered at the administrative line post to step away, and then started to demolish and burn the facilities.
Serbian President Boris Tadić reacted quickly to the news by calling for an immediate end to violence at Jarinje.
"Hooligans who are causing violence are not the ones who defend the citizens or the state of Serbia," said Tadić, and called on all Serbs in Kosovo to show restraint.
Minister for Kosovo Goran Bogdanović and Belgrade Kosovo talks team chief Borislav Stefanović, who were at Brnjak, arrived at Jarinje.
Bogdanović strongly condemned the violence and called on Serbs not to allow groups of extremists to cause clashes.
His state secretary at the ministry, Oliver Ivanović, told Beta news agency that the key to peace in the north was in the hands of KFOR, and said the NATO-led force should occupy main positions "and not allow Kosovo police special units to arrive at this part of the province".
Ivanović also stated that the incident was "expected, because Serbs are not a nation that will allow anyone to humiliate and degrade them".
Stefanović condemned the attacks as a criminal act that took place "when we were on the brink of finding a solution".
"Minister Bogdanović and I will together with municipal president and with Serbs who support us do everything to resolve this matter so that nobody uses it against us," said he, and added: "A long, difficult night is ahead of us."  
The two checkpoints were last set on fire in early 2008, after ethnic Albanians in Kosovo unilaterally declared independence.
The crisis in northern Kosovo started late on Monday when the Kosovo Albanian authorities decided to attempt to take over Jarinje and Brnjak.
Speaking at Brnjak earlier in the day, Serbian officials called on KFOR to honour an agreement reached on Tuesday, that was supposed to diffuse the flare-up in tensions and violence.

·         Agreement reached: KFOR takes over Jarinje(Tanjug-online)

The meeting of KFOR commander Erhard Buehler, representatives of the Serbian government, and the municipal president of Leposavić ended with an agreement that only KFOR will control the Jarinje administrative crossing until further notice, KFOR spokesman Hans Dieter Wichter told Tanjug. He explained that members of the U.S. contingent of KFOR are at Jarinje as security, while the scene is being cleared and the fire put out. KFOR will perform the control at the crossing, primarily to avoid any arms smuggling, the spokesman said. Wichter underlined that all those using the crossing would be warned they are doing so at their own responsibility until it is fully restored. He specified members of the Kosovo police would still remain at the Brnjak administrative crossing. Head of the Belgrade negotiating team Borislav Stefanović confirmed early on Thursday for Tanjug that agreement had been reached with KFOR commander Erhard Buehler that KFOR takes over Jarinje administrative crossing. "Despite the very unfavorable situation extremists have bought us in by setting fire on Jarinje, we have been given strong guarantees that there will be no incursion of Kosovo special police units and that there will be no attempt of bringing Albanian customs officers to the administrative crossing," Stefanović said. "Basically, we are supposed to discuss several more details during the day, because we find as unacceptable everything except what things looked like three days ago," Stefanović concluded in the statement for Tanjug. Serbia’s Minister for Kosovo Goran Bogdanović told Tanjug early on Thursday, after an agreement was reached with KFOR commander Erhard Buehler that KFOR will take control of the Jarinje administrative crossing, that he was hoping for a positive outcome and a resolution to the crisis provoked by the Kosovo police special forces’ attempt to take over administrative crossings in northern Kosovo. "We will continue the talks tomorrow. We will also talk about the Brnjak crossing. We are hoping for the best solution and outcome which will serve the interests of the people in northern Kosovo,“ Bogdanović said. He added he would not give up the efforts to bring the situation on the ground back to the way it was two days ago.

·         Thachi blames Serbian authorities for riots (Tanjug-online)

Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Taci accused late Wednesday, at an extraordinary press conference, the parallel structures of Serbia in northern Kosovo of organizing the riots and setting on fire the Jarinje crossing, and said that there will be no compromise in respect of the presence of Kosovo police at administrative crossings in northern Kosovo. Reciprocity in trade relations between Kosovo and Serbia will be realized. We have problems and difficulties in that respect, but under no circumstances and at no cost will the decision on reciprocity be withdrawn, Tachi said. He said that Pristina's cooperation with KFOR as excellent.