Journalist Nikolay Krastev: Hello Mr. Kurti. Thank you for accepting to be a guest on Bulgarian National Television.
Prime Minister Kurti: Thank you for the invitation.
Journalist Krastev: Mr. Kurti, what is your prediction for the end of the war in Ukraine?
Prime Minister Kurti: It is clear that the Russian Blitzkrieg in Ukraine is not successful. And now we are witnessing an attempt to divide Ukraine. They will want to take as much territory from Ukraine as possible, because after these horrific crimes that took place on Ukrainian territory as a result of the Russian occupation and military aggression, I do not see how they can still hope to establish a puppet government. Therefore, there is a great risk that they will insist on the partition of Ukraine by dividing it into western and eastern parts. Thus, the eastern part would be controlled by Russia and those Ukrainians who do not want to be ruled by Moscow would be deported to the western part of the country and I can imagine that Moscow’s ambition is for western Ukraine to be a landlocked country, i.e. without access to the Black Sea. Unfortunately, President Putin thinks only of territory, not of the people, and therefore wants as much as possible from Ukraine, as his desire is to restore the Russian Empire, in which he will be not only president, but also the new tsar in 21st century.
Journalist Krastev: Mr. Kurti, are you afraid that Ukraine could become a second Bosnia? What do you think about this?
Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo: I think that the Bosnianization of Ukraine is a great danger, because the partition of Ukraine is very similar to the partition of Bosnia. So far, people in Ukraine have lived together, regardless of their nationality, religion or political beliefs. Maybe some of them may have a strong sympathy for Russia, but nevertheless they coexisted with those who had no sympathy for Moscow, Russia. Now, after this violence, after this incursion with military machinery led by President Putin, who on the one hand is nostalgic for Russia’s distant past and on the other hand embittered by Western democracies, could lead to even more violence to destroy social cohesion within the country, in Ukraine.
We as the Republic of Kosovo have supported the sanctions from the beginning and have imposed sanctions in accordance with the Council of the European Union on the Russian Federation, which wants to destroy a country and use the war as a means to divide society and families, to territorialize the problem using its military as the main means to territorialize its presence. This happened in Bosnia 30 years ago when Serbia divided Bosnia into territories controlled by its military units against Bosniaks, Muslims and Croats. In the case of Bosnia, Sarajevo remained outside Republika Srpska, which accounts for 49% of the territory. But in this case, I think the Russian Federation intends to surround Kiev, so Kiev is now on the verge of turning into Sarajevo. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, 30 years ago, Sarajevo as the capital was besieged for three and a half years and now I see how Kiev is in great danger of being surrounded by Russian military machinery.
Journalist Krastev: Mr. Kurti, pro-Russian propaganda claims that there is a connection between Kosovo’s independence and the annexation of Crimea. What would you say about this comparison? Do you see such a connection?
Prime Minister Kurti: I do not see any connection. But I see the Kremlin plan to use everything that comes to their imagination, no matter how wrong, to justify what they have been planning for years. To help Serbia, they want to use Kosovo, and to justify the annexation of Crimea and Donbas, they are abusing the Kosovo case. There was genocide in Kosovo by Serbia, and in the spring of 1999, NATO intervened to end the genocide. More than 12,000 unarmed civilians were killed by Serb forces led by the Milosevic regime, 20,000 women were raped, about 1,300 children were killed and 860,000 Kosovo Albanians were deported to northern Macedonia, Albania or Montenegro, and 80% of the population in Kosovo in the spring of 1999 were evicted from their homes. In addition, 120,000 homes were destroyed, burned or severely damaged, rendering them unusable. What happened in Kosovo was genocide, and NATO intervened. At the time, 19 countries joined forces to stop the genocide committed by Serbia. They reached a broad consensus against the Serbian occupation, apartheid, aggression and genocide. Therefore, Kosovo’s self-determination came from bottom and after the genocide. In the case of Crimea, I saw ballot boxes during the referendum, but these boxes were brought out by Russian soldiers. Therefore, self-determination and democracy do not come from above but from the bottom. In Kosovo, self-determination and democracy come from the bottom, from people who have elected their representatives or made historic decisions. In the case of Crimea and Donbas, the decision was made in the Kremlin and the ballot boxes were held by Russian troops, so it has nothing to do with Kosovo.
Journalist Krastev: You are absolutely right. Many analysts say the Balkans are a weak point and Russia is extremely active in the region. What do you think about such statements?
Prime Minister Kurti: A hybrid war is taking place in the Western Balkans as well. The regional center of “Sputnik” is located in Belgrade. The so-called “Russian Humanitarian Center” is located in Nis, Serbia, and unfortunately in Serbia we see Lukoil, Gazprom, Rosatom and Sberbank, so Russia is extremely active in Serbia. Unfortunately, all 14 MiG-24 fighter jets that Serbia has, have received donations from Belarus and the Russian Federation. And this shows their orientation. Unfortunately, Belgrade has always wanted EU money and Russian weapons. They want to continue in this direction, and that is why they have not imposed any sanctions on the Russian Federation, and this worries us, but does not scare us. Since our biggest border is with Serbia and Serbia does not recognize the Republic of Kosovo, we must be careful, vigilant and watch how things develop, but we are concerned that the hybrid war that has turned into a real war in Ukraine, it could be a similar goal in the Western Balkans, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro or Kosovo.
We will see, we hope it does not happen, but we cannot say that we are safe and secure. On one side is Serbia and on the other side Putin has direct ties to some political leaders in the Western Balkans. For example, Vladimir Putin does not need to call Aleksandar Vucic to contact Milorad Dodik in Bosnia and Herzegovina. President Putin directly calls Dodik of Republika Srpska. Therefore, there is a double threat. On the one hand, Serbia’s close ties with the Russian Federation and on the other hand there are players and factors in all six Western Balkan countries that are directly linked to Moscow.
Let me give you an example. Out of a total of 250 members of the Serbian parliament, 151 are part of the friendship group with the Russian Federation. More than 60% of the Serbian parliament is part of this group. So these connections are multifaceted and very deep, so we are following the situation because the threat exists. Kosovo is a country that wants to join the EU and NATO, while Serbia demands money from the EU instead of joining the EU and has a negative attitude towards NATO.
Journalist Krastev: Do you fear a new war in the Balkans?
Prime Minister Kurti: I think it is possible and we must be very, very careful. The Kremlin has an interest in escalating the war. When autocracy lasts too long, it turns into war. Autocrats usually make wars. President Putin has had a lot of power for a long time and his autocracy is despotic. I think he wants to create more problems for the EU and NATO because he hates the West, he hates Western democracies. And wherever there are weaknesses like disagreements, fragile situations, I believe that in the coming weeks, months and years, he will try to take advantage of that, but I hope this does not last that long.
Journalist Krastev: Mr. Prime Minister, what happened to the dialogue between Prishtina and Belgrade? Are you optimistic that the present moment could be the beginning of a new era?
Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo: Elections will be held in Serbia in a month. In Serbia, the only unknown about the elections is the date when they will be held, not the result. In Serbia, the system is one-party. There is no pluralism or democracy in Serbia. “Transparency International” has called it a hybrid regime, but in essence, the hybrid regime means autocracy.
It is not easy to have a successful dialogue with autocrats. However, we were very constructive, creative and engaged in dialogue. President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken have made it clear what agreement needs to be reached, an agreement that is legally binding and based on mutual recognition. This agreement, which we are seeking to reach, is an agreement for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia. According to a UN General Assembly resolution in autumn 2010, the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue is a dialogue on the status of relations, not on the status of Kosovo. Kosovo’s status is sovereignty, independence and this has been resolved.
Since July 2010, the International Court of Justice has effectively closed the legal dispute over the legitimacy and reasoning of the Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Kosovo. All we are doing now, after an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice, the highest institution in the world on these issues, is to enter into a dialogue to normalize our relations. I offered several things to the President of Serbia, but he did not show understanding for any of them.
For example, in June and July of last year I proposed documents that would imply a declaration of peace, non-aggression between Kosovo and Serbia, but he did not accept them. I also suggested reciprocity for minority rights, i.e. to agree that minorities in Kosovo should be treated the same as in Serbia, but he again rejected this proposal.
It’s not easy, and I think he still lives mostly in the past. He was Milosevic’s Minister of Information and never clearly distanced himself from the Milosevic regime. On the contrary, he was actively involved in denying the bloodshed and crimes committed by the Serbian police and army in Kosovo in 1998 and 1999. The non-recognition of Kosovo by Serbia on the one hand and the non-recognition of crimes committed by the Serbian state against the people of Kosovo on the other hand there are not very different things.
Journalist Krastev: Mr. Prime Minister, during the Security Conference in Munich, a few weeks ago, you had a meeting with your Bulgarian counterpart, Mr. Petkov. What are your impressions from this conversation?
Prime Minister Kurti: The meeting with Prime Minister Petkov went very well. This was our first meeting and I was very impressed by his integrity and competence. I look forward to strengthening bilateral relations between Kosovo and Bulgaria.
We can increase trade between us, economic investment and cultural cooperation, but at the same time we can join forces in the fight against organized crime and corruption in the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan Mafia is very well integrated across borders, and that is why closer cooperation is needed between our countries to guarantee the rule of law.
On this occasion, I would like to congratulate all your viewers and the Bulgarian people on March 3 – the Day of the Liberation of Bulgaria, and I would like to thank Bulgaria for the recognition of Kosovo’s independence and for the support you give us in every international organization. I hope to expand and strengthen our bilateral cooperation.
Journalist Krastev: One last question, Mr. Kurti. What is the most important thing in our bilateral cooperation – economy, tourism, what do you think?
Prime Minister Kurti: I believe that the most important thing is the economy, but also the fight against corruption. That is, we must work together for more investment and trade, but at the same time we must stop all illegal trafficking and corruption, because as US President Joe Biden said, corruption and crime are a threat to national security. Therefore, not only in the name of justice, but also in the name of security, we must join our efforts in the fight against any crime and corruption.
Journalist Krastev: Thank you for this interview, Mr. Kurti. I wish you success in your mission.
Prime Minister Kurti: I also thank you, and wish you all the best.
Last modified: August 11, 2022