Milivojevic: Reactions of the US and German ambassadors to the arrest of Kosovo police officers are politically motivated

Diplomat Zoran Milivojevic assessed that the swift reaction of the US and German ambassadors in Pristina, Jeffrey Hovenier and Jörn Rohde, following the arrest of members of the Kosovo Police was politically motivated.

"They should have experience since Kurti arrests Serbs daily under the pretext of endangering the constitutional order. Therefore, Serbia is acting completely in accordance with its Constitution, laws, and issues concerning security. Clearly, there was some reason here, and it is fundamental that the competent authorities are left to conduct an investigation and to issue a statement, which will be done," said Milivojevic.

He added that the ambassadors in Kosovo had reacted much earlier for, as he stated, political reasons.

"From a political and diplomatic standpoint, these reactions are, to put it mildly, unclear. The reaction of the American ambassador speaks of respecting some agreements. It is not clear what agreements he is referring to when it comes to protecting the constitutional order of a country. What are these agreements and what kind of agreements are they? There are no bilateral agreements here, only the organs of the parent state, the Constitution, and laws," said Milivojevic.

Diplomat Zoran Milivojevic commented that the prompt reactions of US Ambassador to Pristina Jeffrey Hovenier and German Ambassador Jorn Rode following the arrest of Kosovo Police officers were politically motivated. "They should have experience, as [Prime Minister] Kurti arrests Serbs daily under the pretext of endangering the constitutional order. Therefore, Serbia is acting completely in accordance with its Constitution, laws, and security issues. Clearly, there was some reason here, and it is a basic principle that the competent authorities should be left to conduct the investigation and to make statements, which will be done," Milivojevic said.

He added that the ambassadors in Kosovo reacted much earlier out of, as he stated, political motives.

"From a political and diplomatic standpoint, these reactions are, to put it mildly, unclear. The reaction of the American ambassador talks about respecting some agreements. It's unclear which agreements he refers to when it's about protecting the constitutional order of a country. What agreements are these? There are no bilateral agreements here, only the organs of the mother state, the Constitution, and laws," Milivojevic explained.

He emphasized that the German ambassador in Pristina, Jorn Rode, was even less clear in his criticism. "This speaks to other political aspects and other messages to us. Mr. Rode says he doesn't understand and asks for their release, citing the fact that Serbia is an EU candidate. What does the EU candidacy and Serbia’s accession negotiations have to do with the arrest of a person endangering the constitutional order of a country? It has nothing to do with it," Milivojevic asserted.

He assesses that these are unequivocally political messages that confirm what has, as he said, been known in Serbia for a long time. "Serbia is being politically pressured to accept everything that Kurti's side and Kurti's government do. And all the arrests of Serbs without any legal or other basis, keeping people in detention for a year which is beyond all norms and standards of civilized states and precisely these states whose ambassadors are speaking out, namely the USA and Germany. And there is no reaction, no notification or explanation, but nor outcomes of all these arrests," Milivojevic said.

He mentioned that it is a message to Serbia that these countries fully support and respect the Pristina side and tolerate the flouting of laws and regulations and that in this case, they also try to politically defend a government and behavior in Pristina which, as he emphasized, has nothing to do with the reasons why Serbia arrested members of the Kosovo Police.

According to him, Serbia is fully acting in accordance with its laws and regulations. "An investigation will be conducted, we will hear what it's about. This has nothing to do with any agreements, and even less with the EU and the candidacy for the EU," Milivojevic highlighted.

Asked how these reactions affect the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, he estimates that "there essentially hasn't been a dialogue for a long time." "What we are witnessing now is just an imitation of dialogue simply because there is no change in the stance of the Pristina side. And in that sense, there can hardly be any. On the other hand, these gentlemen do not react to help return to the dialogue. They constantly send us messages, openly saying that dialogue is the only solution, that there is no alternative to dialogue, that a political solution should be found through dialogue," Milivojevic stated.

He added that it's obvious that the Pristina side does not want a dialogue nor does it want to fulfill all previous obligations, including forming the CSM, but also to find a way for Serbs in Kosovo to live normally, including, as he said, a modus vivendi for the functioning of the dinar.

"Therefore, it is completely clear who does not want a dialogue. We want a dialogue, and it's up to the mediators and their persistence to make the dialogue happen. That is, to influence the Pristina side. We ask for nothing else, only what is an old obligation, now it will be 11 years, which they themselves stood behind. So, there is a signature of the European Union. Let them implement it to the end. Let the CSM be implemented and that will unblock the dialogue. That is certain. And make no mistake, that will unblock the dialogue about normalization where the status issue is not on the agenda."

Asked what would happen and whether there would be reactions if the Kosovo Police had stopped officials of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Milivojevic says he fears that in that case, "NATO would immediately convene and accuse Serbia of endangering the territorial integrity of the state of Kosovo."