Day: June 25, 2023

The Serbian president Saturday said Kosovo’s prime minister wants to drag Serbia into war with NATO.

“(Albin) Kurti will not stop. The bottom line is that he does not want to establish the Community of Serb Municipalities. He knows that this community must be in accordance with the principles from 2015 that (former Prime Minister of Kosovo) Isa Mustafa and I initialed. They will not allow the Serbs to do that.

“He wants to raise tension, he wants to drag us into the war. He wants to be a war leader, because he lacks that in his biography,” Aleksandar Vucic told the local broadcaster Pink TV.

According to Vucic, Kurti’s ambition is to draw Serbia into a conflict with NATO and it is clear to the key actors that the main fault lies with Kurti’s regime.

“Serbia now has to be careful,” he also noted.

Vucic will meet again Saturday with representatives of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija region.

He said the strength of the Serbian army is incomparably greater than the Kosovo Security Forces, but that they are increasingly better armed, primarily with Turkish weapons.

“The Turks gave them very powerful armored vehicles, mortars, Bayraktars, howitzers, these are all things that Kosovo Security Forces has. We have to take that into account.

“NATO has not yet allowed them to fly Bayraktars, but they have visibility at night for tens of kilometers. We have to be careful. We know what we are doing. We have to have adequate means to react if our people are threatened. These are not stories and fairy tales, the world has changed,” Vucic added.

The Kosovo Security Forces received five of Trkiye’s Bayraktar TB2 drones in early May amid the start of the largest international exercise, Defender Europe 23.

The Turkish combat drones are considered pivotal in conflicts ranging from Karabakh to Ukraine.

Albania and Serbia reaffirmed their intentions to purchase combat drones which have been in high demand worldwide.

“Within five months, we (Serbia) will receive several hundred to 1,000 kamikaze drones, which we took in the Middle East. We are taking that to deter a potential aggressor,” said Vucic.

After Albanians, Serbs are Kosovo’s biggest ethnic group, especially in the country’s north, next to Serbia. Serbia has never recognized the 2008 independence of Kosovo.

The election of ethnic Albanian mayors this April amid a Serb boycott led to tension in the north. Troops from neighboring Serbia also amassed at the border.

New elections needed: EU

The European Union urged Kosovo repeatedly to suspend police operations in the northern Serb-dominated municipalities and announce new snap local elections.

After the April elections in northern Kosovo, the EU said the low turnout among local Serbs did not provide municipalities with long-term political solutions.

Ethnic Serbs have been protesting the election of the mayors since late May.

On May 30, NATO decided to deploy 700 more troops to KFOR, the alliance-led peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, after 30 of its soldiers were injured amid unrest. A contingent of Turkish troops was among the reinforcements.

Tensions on border

Tensions were sparked following Kosovo’s detention of one of the organizers of a May 29 attack on NATO’s peacekeeping force, which was deployed amid Serb unrest over the installation of the ethnic Albanian mayors.

Serbia detained three Kosovo police officers on June 14, saying they were “planning an action in Serbia,” but Kosovo claimed that its officers had been kidnapped.

The EU requires Kosovo and Serbia to reach a final agreement and resolve their disputes to move forward with their integration into the bloc.

Most UN member states – including the US, UK, France, Germany, and Trkiye – recognized Kosovo as a country separate from its neighbor when Pristina declared its independence 15 years ago, but Belgrade continues to regard it as its territory.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Venezuela and Nicaragua expressed solidarity Saturday with Russia amid its tension with the Wagner group.

The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry expressed ‘its absolute support’ for Russian President Vladimir Putin and conveyed ‘its solidarity with the Russian people in the face of this attack against peace, stability and solid democracy in this sister country.’

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ‘strongly condemns the irrational threat of the Wagner group and its leader Yevgueni Prigozhin to promote an armed insurrection in the Russian Federation, through terrorist methods,’ it said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega also reacted to the actions by Wagner, noting his support and solidarity with Putin.

Wagner accused Russian forces of attacking its fighters Friday and the group subsequently crossed from Ukraine into the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.

In response, the Federal Security Service in Russia initiated a criminal case against Wagner for “armed mutiny.” Russian President Vladimir Putin labeled Wagner’s uprising as an act of “treason.”

Prigozhin said his fighters would proceed to Moscow, prompting the Kremlin to enhance security measures across various regions of the country.

He later claimed his fighters decided to turn back to avoid bloodshed when they were 200 kilometers (124 miles) from Moscow, while Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he held talks with the Wagner head with Putin’s accord, and Prigozhin accepted a de-escalation deal.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Willingness to compromise on the Cyprus issue is important in order to move forward, German Ambassador to Cyprus, Anke Schlimm, says in an interview published in the Sunday edition of “Politis” newspaper. She also points out that Germany remains committed to resolving the Cyprus issue through bi-communal talks under the auspices of the UN and based on its parameters.

Replying to a question about Germany’s role in the Cyprus negotiations, Schlimm emphasises that “Germany remains fully committed to the EU’s solidarity with Cyprus and to a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue, i.e. a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation with political equality in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.”

“Germany is ready to help and contribute so that everyone on the island gains more trust in each other,” she notes, adding that “if this is desired by all parties involved, Germany is ready to support the negotiation process under the auspices of the United Nations.”

Asked about the possibility of the EU’s active participation in future negotiations, without the participation of the UN, the German Ambassador points out that “after the elections in Turkey, the flexibility of all parties involved is important, as well as the willingness to compromise in order to move forward.”

Furthermore, she expresses the opinion that the way will be paved by steps oriented towards compromise for the resumption of the process under the auspices of the UN. “Germany, together with other EU member states, is ready to contribute,” Schlimm says, pointing out that Germany supports the solution of the Cyprus issue and good neighbourly relations in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Speaking about Eastern Mediterranean natural gas, the German Ambassador indicates that ‘interested states, companies and other market players should reassess how these natural gas resources can be shaped to contribute to energy security that is viable, sustainable and profitable.”

Furthermore, she expresses the belief that energy can become a catalyst for regional cooperation and reconciliation, even in Cyprus, adding that “in this context, renewable energy sources seem to be particularly important.”

Regarding the issue of cooperation with Turkey, the German Ambassador points out that “it may have to be put on the table”, if the natural gas of the Eastern Mediterranean is to be exploited in an ecologically sustainable way.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

One of the four PKK terrorists, who escaped from PKK hideouts in northern Iraq, had joined the terror group in France, according to the Turkish National Defense Ministry on Sunday.

The terrorist codenamed ‘Munzur B.’ joined the terrorist organization last year while living in France and was sent to terror camps in northern Iraq, the ministry said in a statement.

He also stayed in a camp in Greece for a while before going to Iraq.

Also, one of the PKK terrorists, who was neutralized in northern Iraq last week, was a German citizen. Another terrorist joined the terror group from France.

On June 22, four members of the PKK laid down their arms at the Turkish border posts in Habur and Silopi.

PKK terrorists have hideouts in northern Iraq, across the Turkish border, which they use to plot attacks against Trkiye.

Ankara has launched a series of operations to root out terrorists hiding out in northern Iraq and plotting cross-border attacks in Trkiye.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Trkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Trkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The sustainable use of pesticide regulation in the EU will be among the topics discussed at the Agriculture and Fisheries Ministers Council, which is taking place in Luxembourg on June 26-27.

Cypriot Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development, and Environment, Petros Xenophontos, is travelling to Luxembourg to participate in the Council’s works, a ministry press release said.

The regulation regarding the sustainable use of plant protection products within the EU has sparked reactions among Cypriot farmers and led to protests last week, against the Commission’s proposal to ban the use of pesticides in Natura areas.

The Ministry of Agriculture has announced that it largely shares the concerns of agricultural organisations and aims, through consultation and transparency, to find a compromise solution that ensures food security and sustainable production in the primary sector.

According to the press release, the Council will also hold discussions on the Common Fisheries Policy, fishing opportunities for 2024, as well as agricultural issues related to trade and current legislative proposals. Within the framework of the Council, efforts will be made to approve the conclusions regarding the package of measures proposed by the Commission for fisheries policy, with the aim of creating a sustainable, resilient, and competitive fisheries and aquaculture sector.

During an informal lunch, Ministers will discuss the Common Agricultural Policy post-2027.

Subsequently, Xenophontos will travel to Rome, where he will participate in the 5th Ministerial Conference between the African Union and the EU on Agriculture, as well as the Session of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Israeli Minister of Environmental Protection Idit Silman held talks in Morocco on boosting cooperation between Tel Aviv and Rabat in the field of environment, natural resources and climate change.

According to The Jerusalem Post newspaper, Silman met with his Moroccan counterpart Leila Benali in Rabat on Saturday to discuss shared environmental challenges.

Both officials are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding in the areas of environmental protection and climate change later this week.

“The strengthening of working relations between the governments in the area of environmental protection will add another layer of the deep connection between the Moroccan and Israeli people,” Silman said.

The Israeli liaison office in Morocco said Silman, whose parents are of Jewish Moroccan origins, visited a Jewish synagogue in Rabat during her visit.

Israel and Morocco resumed their diplomatic relations in December 2020 after they were suspended in 2000 following the outbreak of the second Palestinian Intifada.

Morocco became the fourth Arab country to normalize ties with Israel in 2020 after the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Saudi Arabia has executed two Yemeni nationals over terrorism charges, according to the country’s interior ministry.

A ministry statement said the pair – Abdulrahman Fares Amer al-Marri and Mohammed Salah Omar al-Marri – were convicted of “joining, supporting and pledging allegiance to a terror group.”

It, however, didn’t specify the terrorist group they had joined or formed inside the kingdom.

According to the statement, Abdulrahman planned to kill Saudi security officials, while his accomplice was found guilty of attempting to plant an explosive device to target military vehicles.

There was no comment from the Yemeni authorities on the verdict.

Last month, the Saudi authorities executed two Bahraini nationals over terrorism charges.

Source: Anadolu Agency