Prishtina, August 1, 2025
Dear Deputy Prime Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
Dear staff of the Office of the Prime Minister and members of the media,
Dear citizens,
In today’s meeting, we have several important decisions on the agenda. Starting with those related to the smooth functioning of our state institutions, such as the appointment of the Statistical Council, the appointment of the Director General of the Kosovo Institute for Public Administration, and the appointment of the Executive Director of the Kosovo Forensic Agency. All of these processes began during the period when our government held a full mandate, and today they are in line with Article 31 of the Law on Government.
We will also allocate €40,000 in support to the families of two firefighters, Sefadin Osmanaj and Kaqun Lima, who lost their lives in the line of duty in 2024 and 2025, respectively — €20,000 to the Osmanaj family and €20,000 to the Lima family. The selflessness and professional dedication of Sefadin Osmanaj and Kaqun Lima to the noble duty of firefighting will always be remembered with the deepest gratitude.
Another very important decision we are taking today is the removal of customs tariffs with the United States of America. From now on, all products originating from the U.S. will be subject to a 0% tariff upon entering our country. Kosovo welcomes American products into its market, and we strongly believe this will contribute to increased trade exchange as well as greater investment. This is yet another step that demonstrates the strong relationship between our two countries and our commitment and determination to reach a free trade agreement with the United States of America. On this occasion, we once again express our gratitude for the continuation of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact Program for Kosovo by the Trump administration — an extraordinarily important investment program for our republic, especially for the energy sector.
While we are committed to deepening and strengthening partnerships with allied, democratic, and peace-loving states, our aggressive neighbor, Serbia, continues its efforts to destabilize our country. However, the intelligence and security institutions of the Republic of Kosovo are successfully countering these efforts. This includes the arrest of individuals with evidence for their activities against Kosovo, such as:
- Bojan Jevtić, a lieutenant in the Kosovo Police, arrested on July 17, 2025, on well-founded suspicion of espionage activities in the Republic of Kosovo for the benefit of the Security and Information Agency (BIA), with the aim of endangering security in general and the operations of the Kosovo Police in particular; and
- Igor Popović, deputy director in the so-called “Office for Kosovo” within the Government of Serbia, arrested on July 18, 2025, for inciting ethnic division and intolerance.
In the case of the latter, our institutions have secured evidence of his links to the Security and Information Agency (BIA) and his involvement in activities on its behalf. These include:
- The illegal recording of conversations dated September 17, 2020, held in Brussels at the premises of the European Union as part of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue;
- Attempts to obstruct and sabotage justice; and
- Other activities that threaten the national security of our country.
The most recent case involving the secret and illegal self-recording of conversations in Brussels is an extremely serious matter, revealing — in an unprecedented way — Serbia’s systematic, destructive, subversive, and sabotaging approach toward the parties, the mediator, and the mediation process led by Brussels itself.
Furthermore, in this address, allow me to express the deep concern of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo regarding the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. As we have done in the past, we condemn attacks that result in the death and injury of civilians, especially children — who are bearing severe consequences despite having no responsibility for the conflict or the situation. Our government has already allocated half a million euros from its budget in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza. We support every effort by our partners to achieve an immediate ceasefire that would allow for the regular and sufficient delivery of aid, the release of hostages, and the achievement of a long-term and sustainable solution between Israelis and Palestinians.
