Serbianna NewsPost

Kosovo separatists pessimistic on EULEX changes

November 20, 2008 – 4:01 pm
Serbia's President Tadic say that a firm agreement has been reached with the UN on implementation of the EU mission, the EULEX, and that the agreed six-point plan is not directed against anyone but it is a way forward in achieving the sustainable solution to the issue of Kosovo. "This agreement is not directed against any of the sides; rather than that, it preserves the integrity and rights of all who participate in this frozen conflict. Serbia wants to find a solution that will be sustainable in the next period and that will protect the interests of all interested parties," Tadic said after a meeting with the Bulgarian president. Bulgaria's President Paravanov expressed support for a status-neutral EULEX. "Serbia's constructive approach to EULEX is positive. As an EU member, Bulgaria believes that EULEX should be deployed and that it is good for it to be status neutral," Paravanov said. Tadic said that Serbia's relations ...

Posted in Kosovo | 2 Comments »

Germans arrested for Kosovo explosion

November 20, 2008 – 3:59 pm
Kosovo Albanian separatist authorities have arrested two German nationals alleging that they were involved in setting off the bomb that exploded in the offices of the EU mission in Kosovo last week, reports Kosovo separatist media. It is unclear whether the two were with or without a diplomatic mission to the province. Television of Kosovo, the RTK, reported that the two have no diplomatic immunity while Infopress, citing "reliable sources" says that the "main suspect of the explosion at ICO building is a member of a diplomatic mission". Infopress says that one of the arrested individuals has been interrogated several times and that investigation against him is ongoing. November 20, 2008 SERBIANNA

Posted in Kosovo | 7 Comments »

South Serbia military exercises over

November 20, 2008 – 3:58 pm
Joint military exercise involving the Serb Army, the army of Norway and FYRO Macedonia have been successfully concluded in the southern Serbian city of Bujanovac The Serbian military was issued a certificate that allows it to be involved in military operations all over the globe, especially in the sanitary field. Serbia's Defense Minister, Dragan Sutanovac, observed the exercises and announced at their conclusion that Serbia is ready to open up its largest military base near Bujanovac. The Cepotina military base, Sutanovac says, will open on December 21. Cepotina is located on top of the mountain near Bujanovac from where it has a clear view of the valley inside Kosovo. Sutanovac say that Cepotina will be "the best equipped military bas in the Balkans". Norwegian military donated one field hospital to the Serbian army and the locals from the city of Bujanovac were invited to it where they received free medical examination by Serbian military doctors. Besides Norway, ...

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Serb General urges more NATO cooperation

November 20, 2008 – 12:14 pm
Serbian Army Chief of Staff Major General Zdravko Ponos said in Brussels that intensification of cooperation with NATO is necessary in order to assure security of the non-Albanian population in the region. Ponos said that a "modality" must be found in the existing Military Technical Agreement signed in 1999 that ended NATOs war on Serbia so that the increased cooperation can take place. Ponos said that Serbia has ended its contacts with NATO recently because of NATOs decision to arm the separatist government in Kosovo. The head of the NATO Military Committee, Gianpaolo di Paola, said that NATO will not allow for any security flaws once EULEX deploys. Di Paola said that EU and NATO will work together to fill in security vacuum and the actual realization of that action will depend on circumstances on the ground. In a meeting with the Italian Deputy Foreign Minister, Alfred Mantika, Serbian Minister for Kosovo, Goran Bogdanovic, said ...

Posted in Kosovo, Serbia | 2 Comments »

Greece denies plans to recognize Kosovo

November 19, 2008 – 9:54 pm
Greek Ambassador to Serbia, Hristos Panagopoulos, said that Greece respects the principle of territorial integrity and it will not recognize Kosovo as it was reported by an Albanian TV station Vision Plus. Ambassador Panagopoulos' comments come after Kosovo Albanian separatist newspaper Koha Ditore claimed that Greek Foreign Minister Dora Boukoyannis said that Greece plans to recognize Kosovo. "I want to accentuate that it is matter of an incorrect inference of what Minister Boukoyannis had said at the press conference and what the Albanian media has transmitted," said Panagopoulos. "I do not know what will happen, but I know that we will not recognize Kosovo any time soon," said Panagopoulos. Panagopoulos said that it is important not to have an erroneous interpretation and create unwarranted tensions. November 19, 2008 SERBIANNA

Posted in Kosovo | 12 Comments »

Albanians confiscate medicine aimed for Serbs

November 19, 2008 – 3:54 pm
Albanian separatist authorities in Kosovo have confiscated all medicine from a vehicle delivering prescriptions to the sick and elderly Kosovo Serbs living in enclaves surrounded by hostile extremists. The driver of the vehicle and the accompanying nurse were fined 500 euros each because they were delivering medicine to sick Serbs. The vehicle was delivering medicine to the sick Serbs living in villages of Dren, Banje, Crkolez and Suvo Grlo. Director of the clinic in Kosovska Mitrovica, Milan Ivanovic, said that the seizure of medicine by Albanian separatist authorities is another in the string of ways that the separatists exert pressure in order to ethnically cleanse Serbs from the province. Ivanovic noted that the incident suggests that the Albanian authorities are targeting the weakest among the Serbs, the elderly, the sick and the very young, whose life depends on the medicine Albanians have seized. The so-called prime minister of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, recently urged Serbs whom ...

Posted in Kosovo | 11 Comments »

Kosovo Albanians protest against EU plan

November 19, 2008 – 2:16 pm
PRISTINA, Nov 19 (Reuters) - About 10,000 ethnic Albanians gathered in Kosovo's capital Pristina on Wednesday to protest against changes to the deployment of the European Union police and justice mission. The protesters, most of them young, carried banners that read: "U.N. proposes war" and "Kosovo in EU not under EU." Last week the United Nations put forward an amended six-point plan for the deployment of the EU mission (EULEX), which has faced delays due to opposition from Serbia and from Kosovo's Serbs, who see it as a symbol of Kosovo's independence. Albanian shouts against EU deployment in Kosovo. U.N. officials had hoped the plan was acceptable both to Kosovo and Serbia. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in February. Belgrade fiercely opposes the independence of its former province, which has a 90 percent Albanian majority. Backed by Moscow and Belgrade, some 100,000 Serbs still living in Kosovo oppose the secession. "The aim of Belgrade is to ...

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EULEX should implement independence, Italy Deputy FM

November 19, 2008 – 1:52 pm
Italian Deputy Foreign Minister Alfredo Mantica said that EULEX should be deployed in all Kosovo and implement the Ahtisaari's plan that illegally declares Kosovo as independent but under supervision of foreigners. "We have recognized Kosovo's independence. We are responsible for everything that is written in Ahtisaari's plan and we repeat that EULEX should be deployed in the whole of Kosovo's territory. We will find a way to respect not only requests but also the political language that will be used," Mantica said after meeting with the Albanian separatists in Kosovo. Serbia's Secretary of State Oliver Ivanovic said that EULEX is welcome to deploy in Kosovo only after it clears the UN approval. "The involvement of the UN Security Council is the bottom line which we will not cross. It does not matter what form this will take: a presidential statement has been mentioned as just one of the possibilities. Actually, it is important ...

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EULEX talks over, Serbia

November 19, 2008 – 12:05 pm
Serbia appreciates the efforts that the international community exerted to convince the Kosovo Albanian separatist that it is in their best interest to accept the six point plan agreed to pass at the UN, says Serbia's Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, and notes that Serbia will do utmost to keep the peace and stability in the region. "We greatly appreciate the efforts of the international community to persuade Pristina that the road of compromise is the only road forward that will enable peace and stability in the southern province. As far as we're concerned, the talks are over," Jeremic said. Chief of Staff of the Army of Serbia Zdravko Ponos will take part in the session of the military committee of the Euro-Atlantic partnership and will talk about the relations between Serbian armed forces and KFOR. The leader of the Kosovo and Morava Basin District, Dragan Nikolic, warned that movement of Serbs anywhere in ...

Posted in Kosovo | 12 Comments »

Arrests warrants for Kosovo separatists in effect

November 18, 2008 – 11:23 am
Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic said that the warrants for arrest for top three Kosovo Albanian criminals were never withdrawn. "Arrest warrants that our judicial branches initiated against individuals that took part in the criminal enterprise of terrorism - Hardinaj, Ceku and Thaci - is still in force," said Dacic. Hashim Thaci is currently a so-called prime minister of the Kosovo separatist government while the other two criminals, Ramush Haradinaj and Agim Ceku, held those positions in the past. Mr. Haradinaj was pronounced innocent at the Hague tribunal earlier this year for atrocities he committed against Serb civilians. In her recent book, former war crimes prosecutor at the Hague court, Carla del Ponte suggested that the top echelon of the Kosovo separatist leadership may have been involved in organ trading. The founder of the Humanitarian Law Center in Serbia, Natasa Kandic said on Monday that Serbia should investigate these three Albanian separatists for a ...

Posted in Kosovo | 9 Comments »