Opposition Powers Disregarded About Demarketing

The Kosovo government has not reflected on a unique position regarding findings presented by the State Commission for Border Marking, as regards the demarcation agreement with Montenegro.

While Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, who had asked the new Commission to investigate and argue, those who believe there are irregularities in the agreement with Montenegro for demarcation, his deputy, from the ranks of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Enver Hoxhaj has named the findings as “explanatory<1> and not the clarification of the situation.

However, the Kosovo government has taken the decision to proceed to the Kosovo Assembly, the Bill for the ratification of border demarcation with Montenegro, along with the State Commission's Finders for Border Marking.

Political analyst Imer Mushkolaj considers that the former commission's report, directed by Murat Meha, will be sent to the Parliament, while that of the new commission led by Speed Bulqi, will be taken on the basis only in terms of information for MPs.

I believe that these findings, in fact, will not change the mind of a number of MPs who are already known as supporters of the current version. I have in mind here the PDK deputies, with some small exception, but also the LDK, if we are based on the statement of Isa Mustaf, who has said MPs will vote on the current version of the agreement for demarcation and will not take the findings of Bulicqi”, Mushkolaj said.

Currently, in the Government of Kosovo, the Democratic Party of Kosovo supports ratification of the demarcation under the agreement reached in August 2015, while the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo party, which is led by Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, is in favour of the Commission's findings, which, in itself, envisions irregularities, in a different form urges MPs not to ratify the Demarketation Agreement.

In opposition, the Vetevendosje Movement continues to reject ratification, but not also the Democratic League of Kosovo, which after its leader, Isa Mustafa will vote for ratification of the Agreement.

Kosovo President Hashim Thaci has welcomed and commended the Government for its decision to proceed to ratify the Republic of Kosovo Agreement for demarcation of the border line between the Republic of Kosovo and Montenegro. Thaci has called on MPs to ratify the Demarket Agreement.

“I want to believe in the political and state will of elected citizens' representatives, but I also invite all deputies of the Republic of Kosovo Assembly, regardless of their party affiliation, to be united in ratifying this inter-state agreement” has President Thaci written on his Facebook account.

According to Thaci, ratification of this agreement will give away the “isolation of our country, enabling the removal of the visa regime but also strengthens the international subjectivity of our state”.

The Parliament's Demarket Process has preceded a presentation on the part of the Commission for Marking and Maintaining State Borders before the Government of Kosovo.

Commission members have concluded that the agreement reached with Montenegro in August 2015 is not in line with existing border lines between Montenegro and Kosovo.

But around these findings, Deputy Prime Minister Enver Hoxhaj, from the ranks of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, said they have only complicated the situation and have not presented convincing facts and arguments proving that the 2015 agreement with Montenegro has been harmful or wrong.

I heard very general estimates, without any material evidence and not any concrete fact. You weren't concrete. I didn't see any new clarity. When we made the decision at the Government meeting I said when the subject is complex. It's commission and policy duty to simplify. Today I have the impression that you have complicated the situation even more”, Hoxhaj said.

Meanwhile, the commission's chairman, Speed Bulqi, said the former state commission has not used many facts that they had and were reconciled only to what Montenegro has provided.

“As a result of all of these findings, in the work of the former State Border Marking and Maintaining Commission, our Commission has unanimously ascertained that the border line in the state border agreement between Kosovo and Montenegro, reached on 26 August 2015, is not in line with the administrative line of the former Kosovo Autonomous Socialist Khrah,”, Bulqi said.

Commission members during the presentation of findings and research presentations said several times that the former commission has exceeded competencies, allowing itself to introduce the new line demarcation between Kosovo and Montenegro, without a preliminary international agreement. It was stressed that the former commission has been called to mark the former border line and in no way mark new border lines with Montenegro.

The Procedure of Demarcing for ratification in the Assembly has welcomed the president of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Kadri Veselin, at the same time chairman of the Kosovo Assembly. He has said the PDK vote will be “pro” ratification of the current agreement with Montenegro.

The stance of the Democratic Party of Kosovo is clear. The deal must be passed and our vote is “pro”, as we have repeatedly said”, has said Wessel, adding that the isolation of citizens should end expectations by the European Union of visa liberalisation”, Veselin said.

On the other hand, in the opposition political party, the Vetevendosje Movement, say they have not yet read the report of the new Commission for Demarketation, which was presented in Government.

Vetevendosje MP Albulen Haxhiu said that if the Kosovo government has prosecuted the existing agreement with new findings in the country, it is actually mistaken.

“We oppose sending the Agreement [to Parliament] or the bill containing the agreement with Montenegro, which gives this country over 8,200 hectares of land. We consider it unacceptable that this agreement is sent because the same by the current prime minister has had to be withdrawn and not sent to the Assembly. As for the report, from the information we have given him has been proven once again that Kosovo has lost territory with that” agreement, Haxhiu said.

The new Commission on the Border Line has been appointed after the election of the Government of Kosovo, on the part of Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, who had since rejected the agreement for demarcation, which, in August 2015, was signed by former Foreign Minister and current Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and former Prime Minister Isa Mustafa.

However, the final word about the demarcation is expected to give Kosovo's Assembly. Ratification of international agreements takes place by two-thirds of the deputies' votes, or 80 votes, for 120 deputies as long as there is the Kosovo Assembly. / REL/