Prishtina, 14.01.2014
Invited at the Top Show of Alban Dudushi, it was for the first time that Mr. Hashim Thaçi participated in the show since he became Prime Minister of Kosovo six years ago, and it was shortly after a joint meeting of the two Albanian and Kosovar governments in Prizren.
Alban Dudushi: You are in Tirana today, while the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ivica Dacic is in Gracanica in Kosovo…?
Hashim Thaçi: Dacic is in Kosovo today for a movie premier and with the permission of the Government of Kosovo, he asked for a private visit to Gracanica, it is without any special relevance, but it is entirely private and allowed by our institutions. It something completely normal, for as long as it has been accepted by the Government of Kosovo. I do not see it reasonable to exaggerate or dramatize such situations, as it is a personal and not governmental visit, so there is no need to send such messages which are in no one’s interest. I simply think that we should consider it as a completely normal visit.
Alban Dudushi: We saw some footage, some of which of poor quality, from your past activities. You made a public figure of yourself at the beginning of the nineties, namely on 30 May 1992 with a speech you held in Llaush over the killing of Sami Babaj. In this address of that time you stated that the people of Kosovo would find a way to react not only by raising two fingers making the V sign of victory, but also by pulling the trigger. At that time, many people were convinced that the path to independence was the path of peace inspired and led by Ibrahim Rugova. When you made that statement, did you have any doubt that Rugova was right and you, who wanted the war, were not?
Hashim Thaçi: Actually, I used to be one of the leaders of the student movement in the period of ’88-’90, when there were efforts to topple down the communist party of Yugoslavia in Kosovo, and at the same time also of our efforts for freedom, because we were facing both the communist system and the rule of Serbia, so we waged two battles at the same time. With the fall of the communist system and the beginning of the pluralist political system, to the extent allowed by Serbia, you could swear or hold press conferences, but anyone who undertook concrete activities for independence from Serbia would be harshly sanctioned and persecuted. Meanwhile, we also continued our activities as part of the People’s Movement of the Republic of Kosovo (LPK), the only concrete political organization that organized protests, demonstration with the demand for Kosovo to become a republic with the Albanian territories, because Yugoslavia still existed. Prishtina was the center of the Albanian youth in the former Yugoslavia while the university offered opportunities for people to meet and coordinate with one another for the cause of the Albanian freedom at that period. After the changes that took place and reflections coming in the course of time, and also with the escalation of violence from Serbia, things started to clear that there could be no democracy without freedom, which was the difference in concepts, as together with my fellow combatants we thought that there could be no democracy without first achieving freedom.
Alban Dudushi: But freedom through the war…
Hashim Thaçi: War was not our first option, we tried every other way, we started with the political and not military resistance, not because we wanted the war, but as the only possibility to start the resistance and to send a clearer message that an armed resistance was looming, that Serbia could no longer be comfortable in Kosovo and that our entire potential of efforts was directed against the presence of the Serb military, police and administration. Any work done by other political movements, we welcomed and appreciated and we were open for cooperation and we worked maximally to reach our objectives.
Alban Dudushi: You started your resistance, not only peaceful, as LPK, not only against the oppressive Serb machinery of the time, but it was known that it would also make you face the Serbian administration in Kosovo. But, was it also making you face the peaceful wing and were there clashes with it?
Hashim Thaçi: We cannot say that there were clashes, but to achieve an objective, people choose the easiest path, and that was the propaganda that we would win freedom by calling for international support, with daily political engagement to the extent allowed by Serbia and with press conferences. We were convinced, even more so, by working at the university under existing circumstances with intellectuals, closed media, civil society, that this process was becoming clearer in terms of steps and concrete steps to be further taken. The People’s Movement of Kosovo, during the years of transitions in the nineties, was not that well prepared. We had to decide whether we would form a political party, to go legal, as there were requests to do that, or to simply support a mixed organization, as we were, half illegal, with our fellow combatants, while concrete activities had to start by all means against the Serb military and police.
Alban Dudushi: The most decisive point was in Kërcova in 1993 when there was a big debate…
Hashim Thaçi: The meeting was held in the spring of that year, when concrete activities had just started against the Serb military and police forces in Drenica, after the conflict in Prekaz with Commander, Adem Jashari, who resisted the police at the end of 1991. Then there were activities also in Drenas, but it was in Kërcove where the People’s Movement of the Republic of Kosovo showed clear determination to definitely decide to take the role it was supposed to and expected from the people of Kosovo to strongly support the political and military resistance, and the first embryo of what later became the Kosovo Liberation Army had started. From this moment we can talk about the KLA and not about a movement, because we thought that as an army we would have more support from the people, regardless of political parties, ideologies or religions, focusing solely on the national interest and efforts for freedom. It wasn’t the simplest path to follow, but it was the only one to freedom. We were at a time when the youngsters kept leaving Kosovo in increasing numbers, when the education process was held in houses that served as schools, but year after year we started to grow, to strengthen and not only in Drencia, but also in many other cities of Kosovo.
Alban Dudushi: The debate of that time was between the urban youth of Kosovo, at least according to the impressions made in Tirana, which was closer to the peaceful movement and the rest of the people from rural areas that were more prone to war. Is that true?
Hashim Thaçi: No, the Kosovo youth was determined to resist. All the movements started in Prishtina, at our universities, from 1968 to the nineties. All the people contributed to creation of a climate for political and military resistance, being convinced that that was not the way to freedom, but still the possibilities were limited.
Alban Dudushi: At the same time there was real fear of repression…
Hashim Thaçi: I cannot say it was fear, it was rather our limited capacities to resist, which triggered inevitable debates and controversies. The armed resistance started, but before that there used to be ideas to start it through media headlines to inform the public opinion, etc. There were also people who thought that Serbia would gulp down Kosovo within 24 hours or would displace it to other neighboring countries in the region. But the youth of Kosovo, who were deprived of considerable freedom, including the right to exist, realized that the only opportunity to preserve the existence of Kosovars at that time was to send out the message of resistance. Everyone wanted freedom and the people worked in many ways and sacrificed to protect themselves from violence from the oppressors, and even staying home was a sacrifice. It was for the first time that all the people got united in a massive defiance, like never before, against Serbia.
Alban Dudushi: In 1993 you moved to illegality when the Serbian court in Prishtina sentenced you, Adem Demaci and several others, in absentia. Was it that period when you moved to Albania?
Hashim Thaçi: In the month of July in 1993, there were arrests in many areas in Kosovo of LPK activists, arrests that followed armed interventions. Many people were uninformed about the operation of the military resistance that we had started, therefore we were badly hit, and we were even exposed. Some of us got convicted and harshly sentenced, some others in absentia. But, the important thing was that the formation started and continued its work. Serbia used every possible form to destroy this initiative, by abusing and accusing, but simply could not enter the core of the military resistance. They even came to my house, and to many other co-activists, when I was not there; abused my family and destroyed everything. Therefore we had to go to a clandestine life, being determined to continue the resistance. I also crossed to Macedonia, Presheva and Albania at that time, so I use the opportunity to greet all those who stayed close to me during those difficult days in the period of 1993-1994.
Alban Dudushi: Who received you in Albania at that time?
Hashim Thaçi: My first arrival to Albania was at the beginning of 1992, Commander Adem Jashari and fellow combatant Jakup Nura, one of the key founders of the KLA, were also here, along Kadri Veseli who was a student at the time, one of my closest people.
Alban Dudushi: Albania looked catastrophic at that time, I guess…
Hashim Thaçi: I cannot say that, because we idolized Albania for years, I was born and raised in a family and a family environment that always loved Albania, something we keep cultivating, without linking it to names, but as a whole. I cannot say that when I came to Albania I found everything beautiful, but, I heard it from friends who had come earlier. I can say that in every aspect, you were in a much better situation than we in Kosovo. Because, above all, you were free and independent and had just started democracy.
Alban Dudushi: The myth that prevailed at that time that Kosovars would fight at a time when Albania itself was in a state of helplessness was broken, wasn’t it? Did you lose hope at that time that Albania could help you win the war and independence for Kosovo?
Hashim Thaçi: No, regardless of the situation or the economic crisis that Albania was going through, I do not think that hope was lost that your country would help every step towards our freedom. This belief I could not create in a Tirana square, but I always trusted that Albania would strongly support Kosovo one day. And that day came after quite some while and the support of Albania became clear, despite the economic crisis, the important thing was that it was a state.
Alban Dudushi: From 1994 until 1998 you often entered Kosovo to organize the resistance of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Was this the reason why you got the nickname “Snake”?
Hashim Thaçi: I moved through several provinces in the north of Albania, I visited many areas that many Albanians dream to visit. I saw rare beauties, and although the border between Albania and Kosovo was an iron border as Serbia controlled every inch of it causing many victims, I passed the border to Kosovo more than 40 times. Yet, I can say today what I have always said that: without Albania there would be no free and independent Kosovo.
Alban Dudushi: Which of these 40 border crossings was the toughest?
Hashim Thaçi: We faced huge difficulties as we were crossing the Albanian border to Kosovo and we had to walk for over 72 hours to the KLA headquarters and always loaded with heavy weights, over 25-30 kg. Still, it was determination and courage of the young boys of that time that made us push through and face any difficulty, as long as we avoided the Serbian army and the clash with them. Our fatigue would pass soon after we reached our destinations.
Alban Dudushi: How did you become the contact person of the international community knowing that LPK or KLA had other major and more senior figures than you at that time?
Hashim Thaçi: There were other persons more senior than me, but it was not a matter of political career. We always believed that our victory would be both political and military, and we never thought of political posts, functions of trophies. With every battle that we fought, we won something politically; therefore we established contacts with the international community starting in 1996 with US, to reach the peak in the spring of 1998.
Alban Dudushi: Do you remember the first meeting you had with the Americans?
Hashim Thaçi: There are some known personalities and some who are not public, but I always respected the principle not to mention the names of people who contacted us, because it was not easy for them to trust us. But our principles were clear; we were to wage a liberation war and no terrorist action whatsoever or against the civilians. We do not only fought the Milosevic regime, but also to get Serbia out of Kosovo, because their names kept changing for over a century, but their violence only kept intensifying.
Alban Dudushi: You believed in the armed resistance, but you also bore the responsibility to sign with the Serbian party at the Rambouillet conference. In other instances, we know that there were also other more known figures, who after they signed agreements with the enemy were killed by their compatriots or by radical forces. Were of you afraid for life after Rambouillet?
Hashim Thaçi: Of course that I trusted in the armed activities, because that was the only way to restore the hopes of the people of my country. I also witnessed conversations after that event, but I simply considered them as extreme naivety, because the people believed that something had started to move in one way or another. Of course, for every agreement reached in a political process, there are supporting and criticizing people. We were in Rambouillet as Kosovo delegation and I was unanimously chosen as the head of that delegation. My responsibility was huge, because the meeting started with high tensions, because of consecutive massacres and repressions in Kosovo by the Serb military and police. Therefore, my position was clear that the war was being fought for freedom and independence and that we hadn’t gone to Rambouillet for any autonomy under Serbia or for reduction of oppressive forces. The document that I signed I can say was somehow bad, and if it had got accepted by Serbia too, I am sure that Kosovo would have been under Serbia today. However, there were some naïve members in our delegation who said that any temporary solution would suffice as long as there was no repression or violence by the Serbian police and military, and that we would accept that reality too.
Alban Dudushi: You mean Veton Surroi?
Hashim Thaçi: I do not want to mention names, as I do not want to disclose who was in that delegation. However, with regards to the KLA, dissolution was requested, and I asked for its transformation and that is what happened. I asked for inclusion of a referendum and for the right to declare in three years for independence and that is what happened, of course with assurances by the then Secretary of State, Albright. I also asked to have a constitution and we have reached those objectives. We even had to prevent some servile members from signing of the agreement. We then asked for consultations with the people in Kosovo. There were also threats for my activities, but above all there was my belief in the righteousness of the activities I undertook. All I was interested in was the fate of the people of Kosovo. It was the best possible signing, although not the ideal one. I signed that document after guarantees that I gave to all my fellow combatants that after that signature bombing by NATO forces would start.
Alban Dudushi: We will also talk about the negotiations with Serbia, which also have triggered lots of discussions and criticism. Like it was the case in Rambouillet when you were under pressure from the internationals and from the situation, have these discussions with Serbs too been held under pressure if you were to object to them?
Hashim Thaçi: I think the talks or negotiations held in Brussels have been in the interest of Kosovo, in the service of peace and stability in the region. I know that there have been different opinions which I personally faced, be it in or out of the Assembly of Kosovo, from the opposition parties or from various op-ed writers. But I strongly believe that it was a right decision, and with the passing of time I only reconfirm my belief that it was the only way to restore control over the northern territory of Mitrovica of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo. Through the dialogue we have managed to operationalize the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo in that part that was controlled and managed by Serbia. Through dialogue we have extended the sovereignty in the north and we have saved Kosovo from partition or from creation of a Srpska Republika in the north, or any other autonomy that was claimed or that Belgrade promised the Serbs in the north. On the other hand, we managed to turn back the attention of the international community to Kosovo, there is a problem called Mitrovica and any state in the region can have such a problem and ask for urgent solution. Dialogue was the only possibility and way to start functionalization of the institutional life in that part of the territory of the Republic of Kosovo and also to start a new chapter, that of the normalization of relations between the state of Kosovo and of Serbia. The situation in the north was different and this is a reality, therefore there were people who supported it and people who criticized it. Those who criticized it I never managed to understand, to be honest, because they were not right. Because, every agreement that I have reached in Brussels has been in full compliance with the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo. All the agreements reached in Brussels have been passed by the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo with a two third majority, so I would like to pose a question to those critics: what would have happened if there had been no dialogue? Because there started to be international voices which began to agree that partition could happen. So, also the decision to send the Kosovo police on 25 July 2011 in the north to take over the control of border crossing points 1 and 31 was a right decision, which opened everyone’s eyes.
Alban Dudushi: You called it the day of the territorial unification of Kosovo
Hashim Thaçi: Definitely, 25 July 2011 is the day of the territorial unification of the Republic of Kosovo, because the institutions of Kosovo did not have any presence whatsoever in that part of Kosovo, while now we have a customs system that is a result of the dialogue. We have IBM that is an outcome of the dialogue, like it is the integration of the Kosovo Serb police officers or their community in the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo, namely in the Kosovo Police, with our uniforms, respecting our laws. There remains more to be done in the justice system and this is the main challenge in the future dialogue. Now there is freedom of movement in the north, and the Kosovo police and customs officers, and the entire supportive system move freely in Kosovo police and customs vehicles, and we have tax collection in the north, something that did not happen earlier. So, what happened in Brussels was needed and necessary, a European model of new relations between the states of Kosovo and Serbia. Of course there was a conflict that lasted for over a century and our citizens in Kosovo, Serbia and in the entire region are used to seeing conflict but not to reaching of peace agreements, which perhaps comes as a surprise. It was not easy for me to sit at that table, to negotiate these matters, but the most important thing for me was to fully respect the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo. Therefore, when the Constitution is respected, I believe the decision is right and this invalidates critical opinions.
Alban Dudushi: This Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo which is in line with the Ahtisaari package, which at that time was seen as a major and painful concession to Serbs in Kosovo and in this respect criticism continues. All the time, it was Kosovo, it was you, who made concessions to reach that functionalization of the state of Kosovo, which was not done because of Serbs or because of their fault. Meanwhile they have only got benefits from this dialogue, approximation with the European Union, improving of their international position, improving of their image, without yet apologizing for many crimes they committed in Kosovo and without making any major concessions in relation to these talks you had. These are the most criticized aspects.
Hashim Thaçi: In Brussels, we sat for the first time at an equal level, as delegations of the Republic of Kosovo and of the Republic of Serbia. We sat there with our symbols on our coats, flags of Kosovo and of Serbia. We dialogued on equal basis as two independent and sovereign states. We sat there as winners and we behaved as ones. We are the same today. The futures of Serbia and of Kosovo, in terms of European future, naturally depend on the future of the good neighborly relations, like it’s been the case with other countries in the region. We did not consider the dialogue as a battle to beat Kosovo Serbs, they are my and Kosovo citizens. They are born and raised in Kosovo and intend to continue to live their lives in that country. I can freely say that Kosovo has the most contemporary Constitution amongst the countries in the region and we won the freedom and the independence of Kosovo by following the right principles of respect for communities and human rights, and not by sending frightening signals to the communities. The Serb community does not pose any risk to Kosovo. If we do not respect the Serb community living in Kosovo, it is for the European future.
Alban Dudushi: But it is risked from the Serbian politics…
Hashim Thaçi: No, let us take the local elections as an example. All the municipalities respected the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo. Those who said that a Srpska Republica was creating, where is it? They said an autonomy was being formed, where is it? They said Kosovo was being divided, where did that division take place? They said a Serb parallel institution is being formed, the Association of Serb Municipalities, where is it? The association is going to be established, but only based on consultative functioning and cooperation at municipal level, for construction of any joint road or any joint water supply system, to coordinate common affairs. Such an association we too as Albanian cities or municipalities have. It is the right of any municipality to join any association of municipalities and we should respect it today, and we have followed the law on local government and of course al the European acts and standards.
So the critical or skeptical voices in relation to the implementation of those agreements I think were wrong, completely wrong, because the reality is defying all that criticism that was completely unfounded or simply a fixation that Serbia was allegedly prepared. Serbia has never won over the last 15 years, politically or diplomatically, in relation to Kosovo. It lost diplomatically in Rambouillet, in Vienna and also in Brussels. We signed the agreement with the international community in Rambouillet, there was bombing and we forced Serbia out of Kosovo, we won freedom. In Vienna we negotiated with the international community, and Serbia was present, which rejected the agreement that we signed to accept and welcome the Ahtisaari document, and of course we were aware of some concessions that we made, but it was done in an attempt to create conditions and circumstances for a wider international support to make Kosovo independent and sovereign.
It was not easy to declare Kosovo as independent and sovereign state in 2008, but it was exactly the coordination with the United States of America and the major European Union member states that led to a coordinated making of Kosovo’s independence. While now, when we are in the process of consolidation and solidification of our state and when the opportunities have opened for normalization of relations as two equal states, there are still critical voices, which are the same that were against the Rambouillet conference, against the agreement reached there, against the dialogue in Vienna on the political status and now against Brussels dialogue that is extending our institutions throughout the territory of the country, that is bringing the territorial unification and operationalization of all our institutions.
I again ask the critics, if there had been no dialogue, would we have declared a war on Serbia? It is the same people who criticized when I sent the police to take control over border crossing points 1 and 31 on 25 July 2011. I think that things need to be looked at in a wider, deeper and future perspective.
I do not need any critic to tell me who Dacic is, because I know it very well, even better than them, or what Serbia is, because I know it very well, or what it did in Kosovo, because I know from my own experience, that of my family and my fellow combatants. I have the legal and constitutional responsibility to take the best possible decisions for my country. The dialogue, in the electoral sense, has not been popular at all, but it was a needed and necessary process.
And as leaders of the country, we need to make decisions in its interest, not only the ones that get applauded. It was very easy for me to refuse the dialogue, to get applauded at the Parliament of Kosovo or from various people in Kosovo, but the situation in the north would have remained the same and generation after generation would have to deal with the same situation.
So, the next government will have it much easier, because they will not have the burden and the problem of the Mitrovica north. I had to face these concerns, I said also in the Parliament of Kosovo, in front of my colleagues that there was nothing for them to worry about, because no decision was to be brought to the Assembly for voting which would not be in line with the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo. The tough part I will pass in Brussels, while you will only vote for decisions that are completely legitimate, although a parliamentary group thinks it’s the opposite.
They sent the 19-April agreement to the Constitutional Court, which confirmed that all the agreements were in full compliance with our laws. Even without the opinion of this court, I was convinced of it, as I had consulted legal experts that were with us. However, it is good to have critical voices, although it would have been better had they been more realistic and not based on jealousy or spites.
Alban Dudushi: There was actually criticism also about the joint meeting of the Governments of Albania and Kosovo held in Prizren.
Hashim Thaçi: This in fact is the most interesting of all. Some people who supported me in the dialogue with Serbia, in the meetings that I had with the Serb Prime Minister, Dacic, now come and criticize the Prizren meeting with Prime Minister Edi Rama. Honestly, I cannot understand these people and I am worried about their opinions. I see a group of analysts who got together and talked as if it were something strange. Let them call the Prizren meeting as they please, but for me, it is a new chapter, a new beginning, something that never happened before between Kosovo and Albania, therefore the trivial things whether it was held open or behind closed doors are completely irrelevant. Of course, if it were behind closed doors and without cameras, the criticism would have been fiercer, wondering what was discussed inside and raising doubts also amongst the international community. I think the criticism got exaggerated. It was a completely natural meeting with important and concrete decisions.
Alban Dudushi: Enthusiasts called it a historical meeting, a historical gathering, while some critics and skeptics called it nothing more than a government meeting or a parade or a kind of a media ‘show’
Hashim Thaçi: But what were we supposed to do there, close the doors, cameras and stop the media? We got in, took some important and historical decisions, but without you, or without a press conference at all? We are accused why we gathered in front of the Prizren League premises…on the one hand it turns out that the meeting is considered historical, and on the other hand they try to minimize the first meeting of the two governments, of Kosovo and of Albania that will remain historical. I think that it was a meeting of special importance, a clear message of cooperation and of joint and strategic governance between the Republic of Kosovo and Albania.
Not everything started with the Prizren meeting, and likewise nothing will end there, because the next meeting will be held towards the end of May or the beginning of June in Vlora. We had meetings before with incomplete cabinets and we took other decisions, but now it is going to be different, because the decisions that have taken will be closely followed by the people or experts and with progress reports on their implementation from meeting to meeting. Such meetings started right after the war, during Majko’s governance, then during Meta’s, Nano’s and continued with coming in power of Mr. Berisha. We had frequent meetings with your former Prime Minister, be it in Junik, Peja or Skopje, we sent the most enthusiastic messages for the unification of the nation, and again we were criticized.
Anyway the Prizren meeting was not either nationalistic or in a cosmopolitan sense, but was within the scope of the constitutional and legal competences of our states, of cooperation that lacked. Whether to call it historical or not, let the others decide, but it was the first meeting that took place between the Republic of Kosovo and Albania at such a high institutional level between the two governments. I am grateful to the people who worked for this meeting, to the president and Prime Minister Rama for the responsibility and willingness he has shown since he came into power to hold such a meeting so soon after.
The meeting was not of any electoral character, because I proposed to the Prime Minister Rama to postpone this meeting until after the New Year, meaning in January, only because of the elections that we had in Kosovo, about the date, I do not live with the dates of the past…
Alban Dudushi: And, in fact that criticism about the 11th of January came from the former Prime Minister
Hashim Thaçi: Now it is known that for any date we pick we will be criticized, perhaps also by any local leader. About the allocation of money, it is a symbolic, it is just the beginning for the maternity, while now, with the creation of a development fund for Presheva, both the Government of Kosovo and the Government of Albania will allocate more money, as will do various international organizations and various private associations. The emphasis will continue to be our interest in Presheva. I myself felt the efforts of Albanians of Presheva, Medvegja and Bujanoc for freedom and their democratic and national rights. I know those people and I stayed there, while there are those who know little about Presheva. I am emotionally tied with the cause of Presheva for their national and democratic rights.
In Macedonia too, where someone from the local leaders we did not mention are trying, but there are leaders in Macedonia who call it a historical meeting, like in Kosovo and Albania and there are people with reservations.
I think it would be better to focus more on positive energy and not to damage this cooperation.
About columnists, some of whom are my friends, I think they should overcome their personal jealousies against this or that leader and publicly state what they discuss in private gatherings where they give the highest acknowledgments. While, when they are in front of cameras, they reflect how they will be seen by the boss who gave them the task to give a statement.
Alban Dudushi: Since we are talking about leaders now, I want to ask you a bit – because during this period you have led the government, and also before, you had opportunities to be in contacts with Albanian leaders that governed in Albania one after the other with a focus on the last two, Berisha and Rama. There was a recent comment that said that the paternalist nature of Mr. Berisha was bothering Albanian regional leaders, be it in Macedonia and also in Kosovo, while with Mr. Rama you can be more equal when you sit at a table. Is there in fact this difference from one another?
Hashim Thaçi: In brief, the Government of the Republic of Kosovo, apart from the joint meeting with the Government of Albania, will continue such meetings in the near future with the governments of Macedonia, Montenegro and we hope in a not very distant future to have meetings between the Republic of Kosovo and Serbia. Of course, this meeting is going to take place soon, for reasons known, because Serbia has not yet recognized Kosovo. There has been criticism also about this point, why were we meeting for as long as they do not recognize Kosovo.
Alban Dudushi: You say it will be distant the moment when you will have joint meetings also with the Government of Serbia, but exactly today when we opened the topic and talked about Mr. Dacic who was in Gracanica and stated that “the status of Kosovo is not on the table of discussions between Prishtina and Belgrade” on the one hand, and answering media questions he said that “we do not recognize the symbols of the Republic of Kosovo”.
Hashim Thaçi: Of course the status issue is not on the table of discussions in Brussels as it is solved once and for all. Kosovo is a sovereign and independent country, recognized by 104 states and Dacic is well aware of this matter, which will never be an issue to be put on the table as it is closed.
Alban Dudushi: But their persistence not to recognize Kosovo continues…
Hashim Thaçi: The day will come when Serbia too will recognize the Republic of Kosovo, but when will that happen, it will depend on other developments, be it within Serbia and also on the European perspective of it and of Kosovo. But one thing is certain: without reciprocal recognition, without accepting one another, we cannot be part of the European Union. Therefore, in the course of the European integration process the moment of recognition by Serbia of the Republic of Kosovo will come. About the symbols, I can say that the electoral campaign has already started in Serbia and we will have more such interesting statements, which do not reflect the reality in Kosovo, because I want to be very straightforward: all the procedures, symbols and the laws followed by the mayor of Prishtina have been followed also in Gracanica, Zvecan and Leposavic, also in Shtërpce. So, regardless of their ethnic background, the mayors from the last year’s municipal elections have respected the same procedures, the same symbols and the same laws: those of the Republic of Kosovo. Dacic knows this very well.
Alban Dudushi: Can you explain to us, why does Dacic make a difference between the symbols of the Republic of Kosovo and the symbols of the Kosovo’s wholeness?
Hashim Thaçi: Dacic can pretend to make various differences, but Kosovo is one and unique, with internationally recognized territory and unique symbols for all the citizens of the country.
Alban Dudushi: Your relations with former Prime Minister Sali Bersisha and your relations with the current Prime Minister Edi Rama.
Hashim Thaçi: With all the prime ministers of Albania, like with other leaders, presidents, or other posts they had, I developed correct relations of understanding that resulted in joint work and joint successful meetings and in various joint decisions, regardless of the circumstances and periods of time, so my over 5-year cooperation during the period led by Prime Minister Berisha was characterized with honest, correct and affirmed relations for our causes, be it at the Prime Ministers’ level or at the Government level. We had joint visits throughout Kosovo and also here in Albania. We participated in the inauguration of Kalimash tunnel, in the inauguration of the Prishtina motorway and in other important events for the nation, and I have been comfortable with that cooperation, as I feel now with the excellent cooperation that we have with Mr. Rama, which resulted in the joint meeting of our governments in Prizren.
Alban Dudushi: We are at the end of this interview Mr. Thaçi, it was the first time that you were present in the Top Show studio, but the next time you come, will you come as Prime Minister or as President?
Hashim Thaçi: I cannot tell for sure, but what is certain is that I will come as winner of the 2014 elections. / Top Channel
Link: http://www.top-channel.tv/artikull.php?id=270888
Last modified: July 31, 2022