Ristic: I'm not the first minister denied entry to Kosovo, but these are very bad signals

Minister of Information and Telecommunications Dejan Ristic has deemed it unacceptable that Pristina did not allow him to enter Kosovo, stating it as "yet another example of the violation of basic standards in respecting human and civil rights," and a breach of previously reached agreements between Belgrade and Pristina regarding the entry of Serbian officials into the territory of Kosovo, reports N1.

"I am not the first minister to whom entry to Kosovo and Metohija has been denied, and I probably will not be the last, but these are bad signals. These are very bad signals that are not just being sent to Belgrade, but to all of Europe and the world. This is not done in a civilized society," Ristic told Radio-television Serbia.

He said he did not receive an explanation, only a rejection one hour before the planned crossing of the administrative line, adding that this was to be expected, but he had hoped it would not happen since he was attending the 80th anniversary of the weekly newspaper "Jedinstvo."

"Still, I harbored hope that, since the reason for visiting our southern province was to mark the 80th anniversary of the weekly 'Jedinstvo', they would show enough civilizational awareness to allow the minister responsible to join his compatriots during the solemn academy in Gracanica that would mark the 80th anniversary of the only printed publication in Kosovo and Metohija in the Serbian language," Ristic stated.

He noted these were "moments when you are left speechless," adding that this is Europe in the 21st century, where the freedom of movement of every citizen, including ministers, is inviolable.

Speaking about the weekly "Jedinsto," he mentioned that it has a displaced editorial office working out of Belgrade, with eight permanent correspondents living in Kosovo and Metohija.

"Jedinstvo is printed in Belgrade, and then essentially smuggled into Kosovo and Metohija, because the Pristina authorities do not allow the entry of printed media in the Serbian language and Cyrillic script," the minister pointed out.

He said that the Ministry of Information actively communicates with the international community regarding the case of the weekly "Jedinstvo."

"You will rarely hear the international community, or almost never, respond to such cases," Ristic commented.

When asked about data from the Journalists Association of Serbia (UNS) that 111 cases of endangering journalists and media workers were recorded in 2024, 20 fewer than the previous year, he noted that all national media associations report a decline.

"Journalist associations and the ministry record a significant decrease in the number of disruptions to journalists' work and threats to their safety. Am I satisfied? No. We cannot be idealists to say that it will not happen; it happens in all societies, but we strive to continuously reduce it," Ristic said.