Bogdanovic calls on EULEX to prevent violence

BRUSSELS, June 7 (Tanjug) - Serbian Minister for Kosovo-Metohija Goran Bogdanovic called on EULEX officials in Brussels Monday to prevent all types of violence in Kosovo and also work on establishing better communication and coordination with Serbian authorities.

Bogdanovic met with EULEX Head Yves de Kermabon and Director-General for External and Politico-Military Affairs at the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU Robert Cooper to discuss all open issues between Belgrade and EULEX, as well as the situation in the province, the Ministry for Kosovo-Metohija said in a statement.

According to the statement, Bogdanovic insisted that the EULEX Mission fully honor its mandate and its authorities but that it remain status neutral.

In a candid discussion with Yves de Kermabon, the officials discussed issues related to the justice system, police and customs, but also the operation of Serbian cell phone carriers in Kosovo.

"In the last few months, Pristina has made a series of one-sided moves in a show of violence against Serbs who live south of the Ibar River, with the aim of putting more pressure on them and making the position of the remaining Serb population even more difficult," Bogdanovic said.

He stressed that any plan for the integration of northern Kosovo is unacceptable to Kosovo Serbs and official Belgrade, it is said in the statement.

NATO to discuss troop reduction in Kosovo

BRUSSELS, June 7 (Tanjug) - NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in Brussels on Monday that the coming meeting of NATO defence ministers June 10-11 will be used to discuss a troop reduction in Kosovo.

The representatives of the countries whose troops are involved in the NATO mission in Kosovo (KFOR) will discuss the future of the mission, says an announcement posted on the NATO website.

The first step in turning KFOR into a smaller, more mobile deterrent force has already been completed successfully, Rasmussen told a news conference ahead of the meeting.

The secretary general described that as encouraging, especially since the meeting will review the next step to be taken, probably over the course of this year.

The decision to reduce the number of NATO troops in Kosovo, which was made in July 2009 and resulted in a drop from 15,000 to 10,000 stationed troops in January this year, was explained to be a result of an improved security situation in the territory.

EU Council to extend EULEX mandate until 2012 Tuesday

BRUSSELS, June 7 (Tanjug) - The Council of the European Union will extend the EULEX Mission's mandate until June 8, 2012, the Council announced in Brussels.

EU Special Representative in Kosovo Pieter Feith and Head of EULEX Kosovo Yves de Kermabon are scheduled to hold a news conference Tuesday, at which they will address the latest political events and EULEX activities.

The session of the Council of the EU is set for Tuesday morning, it is said in the statement.

The main objective of the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo - EULEX, the EU's single largest civilian mission, is to support Kosovo authorities - the police, courts and customs services in particular - in respecting the law.

The Mission's mandate started February 4, 2008 and expires August 31, 2010.

Petkovic: Parliament should discuss Kosovo-Metohija issue

BELGRADE, June 7 (Tanjug) - Spokesman of the opposition Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) Petar Petkovic said on Monday it is "high time that the Serbian parliament opened a debate on Kosovo-Metohija" and qualified as impermissible the fact that ever since the setting up of the current authority, an important matter, such as the southern Serbian province, has still not been discussed.

Petkovic said that with his interview for the Belgrade daily Danas and his "most direct and most straightforward words about the connection that exists between the issues of Serbia, Kosovo and the EU," British Ambassador in Belgrade Steven Wiordsworth "confirmed the reality of the European Union's policy towards Serbia."

"In the interview, he (Wordsworth) said that Kosovo and Serbia's further EU integration are interdependent, very much so, and that the two represent a unique process, as well as that the claims by the current authorities that Kosovo, on the one hand, and the EU integration, on the other, represent two separate paths are simply not true," Petkovic told a news conference.

Strpce declared most successful in big cleanup

BELGRADE, June 7 (Tanjug) - The Serbian Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning declared Strpce in Kosovo the most successful municipality in the big cleanup of Serbia, which managed to attract 15 percent of the country's population Saturday.

"The people who responded have shown that taking care of the environment is not something we should leave for some better and happier time," said Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning Oliver Dulic.

He said he is "especially pleased that a municipality in Kosovo-Metohija has been declared the most successful, because people there have a poor living standard and a host of other problems" and noted that the Ministry will reward Strpce by donating it a new garbage truck.

Strpce Municipal President Zvonko Mihajlovic said that the cooperation between the local authorities and sanitation companies is excellent, but that volunteers from schools, the civil defense and environmental activists from the organization Pearls of the Sar Mountain also jointed the cleanup effort.

Petkovic: Parliament should discuss Kosovo-Metohija issue

BELGRADE, June 7 (Tanjug) - Spokesman of the opposition Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) Petar Petkovic said on Monday it is “high time that the Serbian parliament opened a debate on Kosovo-Metohija” and qualified as impermissible the fact that ever since the setting up of the current authority, an important matter, such as that of the southern Serbian province, has still not been discussed.

Petkovic said that with his interview for the Belgrade daily Danas and his “most direct and most straightforward words about the connection that exists between the issues of Serbia, Kosovo and the EU,” British Ambassador in Belgrade “confirmed the reality of the European Union's policy towards Serbia.”

“In the interview, he (Wordsworth) said that Kosovo and Serbia's further EU integration are interdependent, very much so, and that the two represent a unique process, as well as that the claims by the current authorities that Kosovo, on the one hand, and the EU integration, on the other, represent two separate paths are simply not true,” Petkovic told a news conference.

Kosovo Security Force receives first arms contingent

PRISTINA, June 7 (Tanjug) - The first contingent of 375 rifles produced by German Heckler & Koch G36 has been delivered to the Kosovo Security Force (KSF), and the second contingent is expected to be sent soon, the KSF officials have stated.

KSF Public Affairs Office Director Ibrahim Salja told Pristina-based media that the KSF members were first introduced to the new weapons, which will be gradually distributed.

Salja said that the weapons are intended for training of KSF members, adding that after the training is completed, the rifles will be distributed to the units according to priority.

In future, new arms contingents will be procured so as to satisfy the KSF needs for fulfillment of certain tasks, Salja said.

He added that the KSF structure is being developed in keeping with the plan for enlargement of capacities, which are determined by the law on KSF. The training of units for minesweeping and diving is underway. The aim is to reach the highest NATO standards in training and realize full operative capacity, Salja said.

Espana believes Kosovo will not be EU accession precondition

BELGRADE, June 7 (Tanjug) - Spanish Ambassador in Belgrade Inigo de Palacio Espana told Tanjug on Monday that he believes that Serbia will continue the EU integration process with no Kosovo status as precondition.

Many top-ranking European officials said that this issue will not be set as prerequirement to Serbia's EU admission. I still believe that Serbia will be able to make progress toward EU, the Spanish ambassador said.

He added that at the same time, an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina should be reached in future.

I am not certain whether the status of Kosovo will be changed in future, and Belgrade and Pristina are to decide what kind of future they would like to have, while many issues need to be addressed in the field, Espana stated.

UK Ambassador in Belgrade Stephen Wordsworth stated last week that the Kosovo issue and Serbia's EU integration are no longer separate paths, adding that no one in EU wants new Kosovo status negotiations.

No one will profit from arrests in Kosovo

PRISTINA, June 7 (Tanjug) - Representatives of the international missions have sent out a message to Kosovo President Fatmir Sejdiu, Premier Hasim Taci and other political leaders not to create problems in the investigation EULEX is conducting on corruption within the authority leadership, and that no one will be able to profit politically from the upcoming arrests of officials for abuse of budget funds, Koha Ditore wrote on Monday.

The daily evaluated that taking into custody and arrest of officials of the Kosovo government for the misuse of budget funds, which EULEX plans to carry out this week, will not jeopardize the political stability in Kosovo.

The daily also wrote that Sejdiu, Taci, leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo Ramus Haradinaj and other political representatives had gone through a sensitive process of international consultations.

Diplomats in Pristina stated that the long process of political consultations had led to a provisional formula that will enable EULEX to start this week arresting some officials suspected of organized crime and corruption without causing political destabilization in Kosovo.

Diplomatic sources clarified that this is thanks to the consultations between EU representative in Kosovo Pieter Feith and EULEX Chief Yves de Kermabon, who were assisted by countries that are friends of Kosovo.

According to the same sources, while Feith and Kermabon were visiting Brussels and Washington, representatives of friendly countries carried out a series of working visits to Pristina, to Taci and Sejdiu to be more exact, as well as opposition parties.

Djelic: No conditions regarding Kosovo

BELGRADE, June 7 (Tanjug) - Serbia's stand is known - we do not accept conditioning of our European Union membership with recognition of Kosovo, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister for European Integrations Bozidar Djelic has stated on the occasion of the statement made by British Ambassador to Serbia Stephen Wordsworth that Kosovo and Serbia's path to the EU were no longer on separate tracks.

“Serbia will never recognize, directly or indirectly, the illegally declared independence by Kosovo,” underscored Djelic in his statement published by Vecernje Novosti on Monday.

As for the EU Questionnaire for our country, Djelic said that we will reply to all questions, including those regarding its territory and population, in keeping with the Constitution of Serbia and UN Security Council Resolution 1244 where applicable.

Serbia accepts the resolution, because it is in keeping with our policy on Kosovo and Metohija, underscored Djelic.

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