We will not allow the repetition of the last year’s January of Tirana in Prishtina, said the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, in an interview for Radio Free Europe. These commitments, Prime Minister Thaçi, expressed as a response to announcements from Vetëvendosje movement to block customs points of Kosovo for goods coming from Serbia.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: Mr. Prime Minister, there have been announcements for some new protests and new blocks of border crossing points of Kosovo. How do you think you will react to these situations and will you be able to manage the situation?
Prime Minister THAÇI: 2012 is an exceptionally important year for the Republic of Kosovo. On 19 January, we will have the visit of Commissioner Malstrom who will hand over the visa liberalization guide for the Republic of Kosovo, while on 24 January, there will be a clear decision that 2012 will be the year of the conclusion of the supervised independence for Kosovo. It will be extremely important for us to work with European standards, values and vision, and not let ourselves in any way deal with acts that bring Kosovo back, that present Kosovo in a perspective that does not reflect the democratic reality, a reflection that risks the European future and a reflection that definitively risks the progress that will ensure the conclusion of the supervised independence. Announcements by the leaders of the Vetëvendosje movement for violent developments or reactions to take control, in a formal way, over the borders of Kosovo, are the worst possible messages that could happen to Kosovo at this time, and they go beyond any constitutional, legal or moral authority. Their announcements for violent actions are something that Kosovo needs the least at this time. It is not in the role of an opposition, but it is an informal group, without any objective in the reform sense, that is completely anti-constitutional, anti-legal and anti-reformatory. They should realize that you do not get to power through violent activities and we are not going to allow such proclaimed violent actions by the leaders of this part be the reflection of the Republic of Kosovo while approaching the conclusion of its fourth year of independence.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: So, are you going to allow border crossing points of Kosovo to be blocked as this political party claims to do?
Prime Minister THAÇI: The heads of the Vetëvendosje Movement, so to call them “Vetëfundosje” [self-drowning] will drown themselves, but we are not going to allow them to drown Kosovo in any way. We are not going to allow the goal of the heads of this party to bring the January of last year in Tirana to Prishtina this January. The state of Kosovo will function with its constitutional and legal mechanisms and these leaders they took over personal responsibility to initiate these violent activities as announced against the institutions and the state of Kosovo.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: This action by Vetëvendosje has been announced as a kind of response to reciprocity measures. Is your government respecting and applying such measures in relations with Serbia?
Prime Minister THAÇI: We are fully respecting the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo. No one has the right today to pretend taking on their hands the authority of the institutions. These institutions derive from the free vote. They want to reach power through violence. They want to violate the institutions of the country. This is not a protest in terms of political requests, as it is completely directed against the institutions of the state, with a clear political background, to position at the Dheu i Bardhë and Merdare and then to relocate in front of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo to provoke a violent takeover of power. Something like that will not happen in the free, independent, sovereign and democratic Kosovo. Announcements for violent activities by the heads of this party are a bad omen for Kosovo. I thank the citizens of Kosovo and all the political spectrum for distancing themselves from them. No one can take over power in Kosovo through violence, as there will be free elections coming where political forces compete. The biggest patriotism today for all the people is to respect the Constitution and the laws. Work on European integration and not the imitation of Zvonko Veselinovic by the heads announcing violence. Therefore, we as Government will carry out our constitutional and legal obligations and no one can use patriotic motives to damage the image of Kosovo and its European perspective. So, these announced violent activities by the heads of Vetëvendosje will damage the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo, its European perspective, the visa liberalization process, the process of the conclusion of the supervise independence. Their inability to compete with alternative political ideas at the Parliament triggered their ideas for violent activities on the street. But I am sure that the people of Kosovo, its institutions, political parties and the entire democratic world will distance from these announcements for violent activities coming from the leaders of this party. However, the responsibility will directly fall on those who announced violence. The state of Kosovo will not give up in front of the breakers of laws and the Constitution of Kosovo.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: Meanwhile, Mr. Prime Minister, there are blocks and barricades also in the north of Kosovo. Are you as Government bringing an end to these activities or even future announcements for blockades in the past so that the state of Kosovo has open European borders, as you intend?
Prime Minister THAÇI: The Government of the Republic of Kosovo works for a European model, by respecting the Constitution and the laws of Kosovo together with all the international authorities. It is not good that these leaders are taking as a model the Serb example of road blocks. The perspective of Kosovo is in its integration process and not in road blocks. Therefore, we will work together with all the international mechanisms. Today, for the first time, we have customs and police officers at border crossing points at points 1 and 31 in the north. There will be a free movement of people and goods and it is an irreversible process of normalization of the situation also in the north, for freedom of movement, rule of law, free elections, for legitimate leadership and socio-economic investments.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: How do you see announcements by Serb representatives there for a referendum?
Prime Minister THAÇI: Any unilateral act will not have any value whatsoever and any reflection with regards to the institutional aspect.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: Let us talk a bit more about the north. Mr. Prime Minister, Serbian president Tadic announced four points for discussions in the Prishtina-Belgrade dialogue, including points related to the future of the north of Kosovo and the zones around Serbian Orthodox Churches. Are you willing to discuss these topics with Mr. Tadic?
Prime Minister THAÇI: Kosovo is an independent and sovereign state. For Kosovo, it is its institutions that decide. We are willing to have good neighborly relations as two independent and sovereign states in the mutual interest of our people, and in the interest of Euro-Atlantic integration, peace and stability in the region. But, it is the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo that decide about Kosovo, we have our Constitution, our laws and we will work in line with them.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: At the beginning of the interview, you mentioned the issue of the visa liberalization guide and conclusion of the supervised independence process. To what extent are you really optimistic that these two processes will be concluded during this mandate of the Government of Kosovo?
Prime Minister THAÇI: The Government of Kosovo is committed to conclude these two processes. Both the visa liberalization for the citizens of Kosovo and the conclusion of the supervised independence are being jeopardized by these messages of violent from the “Vetëfundosje” leaders. Therefore, you see the example of Albania, what happened to Albania when some activities that were not in compliance with the conditions and circumstances and the European perspective took place. It cost the country a delay of the candidate status for integration in the European Union. Therefore, these activities only postpone the consolidation and strengthening of the state of Kosovo, the visa liberalization process and conclusion of the supervised independence, they delay the European perspective of the Republic of Kosovo, and apart from delaying they also jeopardize them to a great extent.
RADIO FREE EUROPE: You mentioned the example of Albania several times…there are announcements that certain groups could come in support of Vetevendosje. Are you going to allow them to come to Kosovo?
Prime Minister THAÇI: Kosovo is not jeopardized from its legitimate institutions, from the respect of Constitution and the laws, I reiterate, we are not going to allow in any way the repetition of Tirana’s January of 2011 in Prishtina in January 2012 and endanger the entire European perspective of the Republic of Kosovo. I would like the authorities in Tirana for having distanced from these elements, both the Government and the opposition, and also the entire Kosovo political spectrum, the civil society, the media, war veterans, all the people and all the citizens of the Republic of Kosovo.
Last modified: July 31, 2022