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Serbia puts military on high alert over incident involving ‘Kosovo special forces’ – local media

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Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic has ordered the country’s armed forces to be on the highest combat readiness, local media reported. All police units have also been placed on high alert.

Vucic’s order was handed over to the chief of the Serbian army general staff, Serbian agency Tanjug reported citing the president’s office on Saturday.

The decision follows an incident in the southwestern part of the country, Kosovo special forces reportedly entered. Some 60 troops took positions near the dam on Gazivoda Lake, which hosts hydroelectric power station, according to local media.

Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said the police were also put on high alert following the Albanian “attack” in the north of Kosovo and Metohija and the “arrests of Serbs,” who did not commit any crime.

Kosovo dismissed the claims of occupying the area and said there were no arrests, according to the local deputy police commander, Besim Hoti, as cited by RTS. He added that the forces were at Gazivoda for a “single visit.”

The control over the lake and its facilities has been a matter of dispute between Belgrade and Pristina for years. Gazivoda is the major drinking water supplier for several municipalities of the region and a local power station also uses the water from it.

Self-proclaimed Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and the recognition of the region is matter of a major international dispute. Kosovo has been recognized by the US and a number of its allies, yet, a number of countries, including Spain, China and Russia opposed the controversial move. In fact, over half of the UN states did not support Kosovo’s independence.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Friday that “Kosovo is not a state” for the international organization.

Serbia, Turkey, And Russia—Alarm Bells For Europe

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By Alon Ben-Meir and Arbana Xharra

As the EU seeks to increase its influence in the Balkans, Russia and Turkey have been working hard to strengthen their own ties to the region. The EU’s renewed interest in its southern backyard has been prompted by fears of Moscow’s mounting impact in the Balkans. Although Russia’s closest European ally is Serbia, it is not the only country with a long history in the Balkans. Turkey is another heavyweight, gaining huge support from corrupted officials throughout the Balkans. Like Russia, Turkey is investing in major national projects strategically calculated to have the greatest economic and political impact on the financial market.

To demonstrate his commitment to Serbia, in a joint news conference held on May 7 in Ankara with Serbia’s president Aleksandar Vucic, Erdogan said that the target for 2018 is $2 billion, going to $5 billion in the long term. Among the biggest projects, the Belgrade-Sarajevo highway will strengthen regional and economic ties. Vucic thanked Erdogan for ‘stabilizing’ the Balkans, declaring that “Turkey is the biggest power, the strongest country in the Balkans.”

On May 17, during the EU-Western Balkans Summit held in Bulgaria, European leaders expressed their concern over Turkey’s and Russia’s expanding influence in the Balkans, particularly since the Balkans were once part of the Ottoman Empire, and subsequently under the Soviet Union. Erdogan has made his unscrupulous position clear to Western powers, stressing that Turkey will become as powerful and influential as the Ottoman Empire was during its heyday.

Russia considers Serbia its most trusted ally in Europe and is investing heavily in large projects, especially in the energy sector. Even though Vucic recognizes that he is receiving substantial support from Putin, he is strengthening his alliance with Turkey as well. While Russia and Turkey are competing for influence in Serbia, they are still collaborating because of their joint opposition to the EU’s continuing and extensive involvement in the Balkans.

Vucic seeks to join the EU and build a trilateral relationship with Russia and Turkey, which directly challenges Western values and interests. Vucic, however, cannot “dance” in two weddings at the same time. His anti-Western alliance triggered alarm bells in the European Union. French President Emmanuel Macron put Ankara and Moscow in the same light, saying that he did not want “a Balkans that turns toward Turkey or Russia.”

The European Union is still Serbia’s largest trading partner; however, Serbia is heavily dependent on Russia for military equipment, which in many ways defines Russian-Serbian relations. There are approximately 1,000 companies in Serbia owned partially or entirely by Russians, with an estimated revenue of 5 billion Euros. In October 2017, Serbia bought six Russian fighter jets.

Surveys show that most Serbs are pro-Russian and regard NATO unfavorably. They remember well that Western powers heavily bombed their country in 1999 during the war with Kosovo. In a visit last year to Belgrade, Dmitry Rogozin, Russia’s deputy prime minister, asserted that “Serbia will never join the EU.”

The EU and US are aware that Serbia is still the “black sheep” in the Western Balkans, having Russia watching its back. The EU simply rejects what Russia’s President Putin is doing in Serbia and does not expect Erdogan to change his dictatorial style as long as he and his AK Party are in power, as neither are consistent with the socio-political culture of the West.

In a conversation we had with Veran Matic, founder and director of Belgrade’s Radio and Television station B92, he said that Vucic is certainly interested in establishing good relations between Serbia and Russia. He added that Serbia wants to be connected to the Turkish Stream pipeline (as Serbia depends on Russian gas, but there is no possibility of having it delivered directly to Serbia).

“For Serbia,” Matic said, “investments are greatly significant, but on the other hand, we are concerned about having too good relations with the system that is recognized as a global media freedom impostor, and with a state which imprisoned the largest number of journalists worldwide.”

In discussion with Xhemal Ahmeti, historian and philosopher, he said that the frequent meetings between Iran-Turkey-Russia, followed by activities in the regions where they operate, clearly reveal the contours of their cooperation both in the Middle East and in the Balkans. “These two powers,” he said, “have agreed on their sphere of influence working on their agenda against their common enemy, the United States.”

“The so-called Shiite Semitic doctrine, Putin’s pan-Slavism, and Erdogan’s neo-Ottomans have devised an alliance against the EU’s strategic agenda now operating in the Balkans”, said Ahmeti. Meanwhile, Serbia has managed to have it both ways, looking simultaneously at the East and West.

While recognition of Kosovo’s independence remains the EU’s key condition for Serbia’s membership, Elena Guskova, from the Institute for Balkan Studies in the Russian Academy in Moscow, argues that cooperating with the Russian military is “a guarantee of safety” for many Serbs.

Vucic has sought Moscow’s continued support over Kosovo and has restated his opposition to NATO membership, as he became the first foreign leader to meet Putin since the latter began his latest term as Russia’s president. “Serbia will preserve its independence, Serbia will preserve its military neutrality and Serbia is not planning to become a member of NATO or any other military alliance,” said Vucic during his visit to the Kremlin.

Blerim Latifi, philosophy professor in Pristina University, told us that this ‘alliance’ between Turkey, Russia, and Serbia is a blow to the unity and functionality of NATO, and “any blow to NATO has negative effects on the national security of the Balkans.”

Whereas Putin does not hide his animosity toward the Western alliance and tries to undercut Western interests anywhere he can, Erdogan wants to have it both ways. He wants to maintain Turkey’s membership in NATO and presumably still desires to join the EU, but he is working hard to undermine the EU’s and NATO’s strategic interests in the Balkans by entrenching Turkey in Serbia in particular to serve his insidious scheme.

The European Union should warn Serbia that it must weigh its options carefully and undertake the necessary socio-political and economic reforms if it wants to become a member of the EU. Serbia will certainly have no chance of joining the EU if it maintains open-ended association with either Erdogan or Putin.

To be sure, Serbia must by now realize that the prospect of sustainable democracy, freedom, and economic growth rests on close association with the EU. It should distance itself from ruthless dictators who pretend to be the savior of the Balkans when in fact they are exploiting the region’s vulnerability for their long-term strategic end.

EAEU holds negotiations with Israel, Serbia and Singapore – Egypt and India waiting for their turn

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YEREVAN, MAY 14, ARMENPRESS. The Eurasian Economic Union successfully develops partnership with other countries and unions, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced during the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council session.

“FTA with Vietnam operates successfully. A trade and economic agreement with China is planned to be signed this week in Astana, as well as a temporary agreement with Iran on creating free trade zone. Talks with Israel, Serbia and Singapore on privileged agreements are underway. In the future similar negotiations are scheduled with Egypt and India”, ARMENPRESS reports the Russian President as saying.

According to him, the priority issues of the integration structure are increasing the efficiency of the single markets, the harmonization of national legislations in different spheres, the elimination of restrictions on the free movement of goods, services, capital, labor, creating more favorable conditions for the development of entrepreneurial activity.

“In general, the Eurasian Economic Union develops rather dynamically. GDP in member states rose by 1.8%, industrial products by 1.7%, agricultural products by 2.5% in 2017, while the average price rise has declined by 3.1% in the member states. Internal and external trade has also improved. Exports to the 3rd countries have increased by 24.5%, and trade turnover has increased by 26.1%”, the Russian president said.

The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council session took place on May 14 with the participation of the Heads of State of all the member states. Moldova participated in the expanded format session as an EAEU observer state. Armenian PM held meetings with the Presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan in the sidelines of the summit.

Serbia parliament rejects opposition proposal to recognize Armenian Genocide

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The Serbian parliament has rejected the opposition’s proposal to recognize Armenian Genocide.

Even though such motions have been submitted several times in the Serbian legislature over the past decade, they have always been rejected, according to RFE/RL Balkan Service.

This time a resolution recognizing the genocide of 1.5 million Armenians in the Ottoman Empire was submitted by Serbia’s former Prime Minister Zoran Živković, who now heads the opposition New Party.

Speaking to the RFE/RL Serbian Service, Živković underscored the need for Belgrade to clarify its position on this matter, and he recalled that both Russia and most of the US states have recognized this greatest tragedy of the 20th century.

According to various estimates, solely up to 300 Armenians live in Serbia which has a population of about 7 million, and which also was part of the Ottoman Empire at the turn of the last century.

 

Serbia’s conservative Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic declares victory in presidential election

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Aleksander-VucicProjections indicate Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic won a decisive win against a crowded field of opponents. Serbia’s presidency is largely ceremonial, but critics worry Vucic may use the role to consolidate his power.

Serbia Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic looked set to sweep a first round presidential election on Sunday, coming in with 56 percent of votes, according to a result projection by the Ipsos polling group.

“Voters showed which way they want Serbia to go,” Vucic said at his Progressive Party’s headquarters.

“Serbia will remain on the European and reformist path, but also friends with Russia and China.”

Declaring his victory, Vucic said he will remain prime minister another two months, until he takes over as the head of state. In his speech, Vucic went on to voice “particular gratitude” to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who both met with him over the last month.

If the projection holds above 50 percent, the 47-year-old conservative will have avoided an April 16 run-off. Official results are not expected until Monday.

Ipsos projected former ombudsman Sasa Jankovic to get 15 percent of the vote. Twenty-five year old student Luka Maksimovic, more commonly known as Ljubisa Preletacevic or Beli, came in in third with 9.3 percent, a surprise for a candidate who based his campaign on mocking Serbian politicians.

Accusations of authoritarian tendencies

The office of president is largely ceremonial, but analysts expect Vucic to maintain a hold on power by appointing a loyal ally from his party to succeed him as prime minister.

Critics have accused Vucic of authoritarian tendencies during the campaign, saying he has taken control over Serbia’s media. They complain of inaccurate reports that demonize the prime minister’s opponents while giving them no space to respond to the accusations.

Vucic’s supporters, on the other hand, say he has a good track record of keeping the country under control in a troubled region. He has promised economic and social reforms while maintaining a balancing act of trying to join the EU and maintaining a good relationship with traditional ally Russia.

The State Election Commission said they recorded no serious voting irregularities.

ksb/rc (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)

Falling Skies: Christian Serbian Children Recall the Horror of 1999 NATO, Turkey, Saudi Islamization of the Yugoslavia Bombing

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Eighteen years after the beginning of NATO’s aerial bombardment of Yugoslavia, Serbian children who were born during that troubled time still bear the emotional scars left by war.

In 1999, the United States and its NATO allies utilized the air power of the formerly defensive organization to conduct air strikes in support of an internal Yugoslav conflict between Belgrade and the breakaway region of Kosovo. Their actions took a toll on the lives of the young children of that generation, leaving scars they still wear today.

Andjela S. was born in Pec, a city located in the Serbian province of Kosovo and the former seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church. After the events of the 1999, however, all of the city’s Serbian residents had to abandon their homes and flee for their lives. According to Andjela, a great injustice was done to Serbia back then, when Western propaganda portrayed Serbians as the chief culprits behind the war.

“I know they blamed us for allegedly trying to exile all Albanians from Kosovo. That’s how it was portrayed, and then the airstrikes began. And even though they (NATO) said that they’re only going to bomb military targets, they didn’t care about the civilians who were dying and couldn’t understand what was going on,” Andjela told Sputnik.

She told how her parents and relatives were hiding in the basement while NATO warplanes were bombing the city.

“My grandfather was already old and sick back then. Due to all that colossal stress he ended up having a stroke,” the girl added.

According to Gavrilo M., the first thing that comes to his mind is the downing of a US F-177 stealth aircraft, which remains on display to this day near Belgrade’s airport.

“It proves that even high tech weapons can be defeated by military tactics and technology,” he said.

To him, the events of 1999 became “the end of the Yugoslavia’s break-up and the finale of one global geostrategic game that lasted two centuries.”

“My father wasn’t fighting, but he was keeping watch at the faculty building where he was working. They told me that mother was terrified by the airstrikes, that she panicked a lot; most of the time she was just lying down. But I do know that once when the sirens started wailing she hid under a table,” he said.

Uros C. was born in Lipljan, a city in the Serbian province of Kosovo, and lived there until 2004. While he was growing up, the boy learned from his parents about the Western media “orchestrating” the humanitarian disaster in Kosovo.

“My father was in the army when the airstrikes began. Mother told me that she was shocked, that none of them knew what was going on and that they were scared. Sometimes the airstrikes made night look like day, just how they show it in some movies. They told me that I was the only ray of light amid the darkness,” Uros said.

He lived in Kosovo until he turned six, but Uros still remembers buildings riddled with bullets, bomb craters and areas contaminated by the depleted uranium weapons used by NATO. And when the NATO-led KFOR mission came to Kosovo, the Serbians living there forgot what ‘the freedom of movement means’.

“I remember that I could only go to kindergarten and back home. Walking anywhere else was dangerous,” Uros recalls.

Uros’ family fled Lipljan on March 11, 2004, just a few days prior to a wave of anti-Serbian pogroms that swept across the city.

And while Serbian schools do not teach students much about the NATO airborne campaign, Uros believes that there’s no need to spend much time teaching about the events so recent.

“The conflict continues, and if the schools were teaching only the Serbian version of those events, that would’ve had a negative impact on the situation. But we will always regard these events as aggression, while the foreign aggressor will regard them as merely gaining access to Kosovo’s mineral resources, which is perfectly legitimate in the aggressor’s eyes,” Uros said.

Andjela S. also added that the paragraphs in history textbooks describing those events appear “too censored” and usually look like this: a few sentences from official releases, and then a few sentences describing the author’s point of view.

“Yes, they also contain fragments that describe our view of those events, but essentially the textbooks stick to what the US designated as the official opinion,” Andjela explained.

However, Biljana K., history teacher at the First Belgrade Gymnasium, told Sputnik that the school program adopts an unbiased approach to that particular time period, and that the Serbian society and expert community appear divided on those events.

“There are those who would say that it was good, and that the airstrikes marked the beginning of the end of Milosevic’s reign. But there are also those who would say that we were innocent, and that the whole world conspired against us for reasons unknown. The truth is somewhere in between, and it’s definitely not black-and-white,” she said.

Source: https://sputniknews.com/europe/201703241051935691-yugoslavia-nato-airstrikes-legacy/

Sputnik report: Will Russia Hand Over Multi-Million Dollar MiG-29s to Serbia ‘for Free’?

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mig-29(Sputnik) Serbia is expected to receive six Russian Mikoyan MiG-29 multirole fighters and armored vehicles at a huge discount, totaling approximately $80 million, Defense analyst Miroslav Lazanski told Sputnik, commenting on unconfirmed reports that Moscow is ostensibly planning to transfer weapons to Belgrade.

Lazanski said that this is a very good bargain for Serbia.  “These aircraft could cost more than $100 million, but we will receive them for approximately $20 million if we take into account repair costs as outlined by Russia. In other words, Russia is planning to give us approximately $80 million as a gift,” the expert added.

On Friday, the Večernje novosti newspaper reported that Russia was planning to transfer six Mikoyan MiG-29 multirole fighters and armored vehicles to Serbia on condition that Belgrade pays only for their repairs, citing an unnamed high-ranking source in the Serbian leadership.

The issue was allegedly discussed behind closed doors during the 15th intergovernmental committee meeting on the trade-economic and technical-scientific cooperation in the Russian city of Suzdal. The overall benefits of the agreement exceed financial considerations.  “Taking into account the state of the Serbian military, it would have meant a lot to us if someone gave us two rifles and half of a cannon. It’s great that we will receive these MiGs since our pilots will continue to use the aircraft of the same generation in training. As a result, we will not lose experienced pilots. It would be hard to offset such loses,” Lazanski explained.

The defense analyst added that this amount of warplanes will be enough to preserve a military balance with neighboring countries. 

The intergovernmental committee is reported to have also discussed purchasing the Buk missile system from Russia, but came to a conclusion that it was too expensive. 

“Buk is not cheap, but it is cheaper than the S-300. It would have complemented our Kub and Neva surface-to-air missile systems. As a result, Serbia would have created a comprehensive air defense system. But I am not sure that we have enough resource to buy the Buk or that Russia is willing to hand it over for free,” the analyst noted.

Lazanski explained that Serbia first wanted to purchase Russian weapons three years ago. 

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic told Sputnik on Friday that the reports on Russia’s decision to deliver the MiG-29 fighter jets to Serbia were a sign of “sincere cooperation, mutual trust and friendship.” “Serbia has friends who do not shy away from helping the country,” he said. “Serbia has friends, who it does not hesitate to cooperate with. Serbia wants to be friends with everyone in the world. It will not help anyone hate anyone else. We will not attack anyone, but we will protect our country and our people.”

Serbia: OCCRP Partner Complains of Intimidation

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occrp-journalistOCCRP partner the Serbian Center for Investigative Journalism (CINS) raised the alarm Wednesday on apparent attempts to intimidate its journalists.

For at least five days, unknown people have stood outside the CINS office in Belgrade, photographing reporters as they come and go, CINS said in a statement. Employees of the organization have also been photographed in other public places.

The organization has reported the apparent attempt to intimidate its reporters to Serbia’s Interior Ministry and the First Basic Public Prosecutors’ Office in Belgrade.

“Although we are very worried about the security of our journalists, we only have two ways to counter the pressure, threats and attempts to scare our journalists,” CINS said in its statement.

“One of them is the public knowledge of our work, and we will inform the media and citizens about every such activity. The other one is our teamwork in conducting investigations which guarantees that each of our investigations will be conducted to the very end, publishing important facts that affect the lives of Serbian citizens.”

Independent media in Serbia, including OCCRP partner organizations, are frequent targets of intimidation and smear campaigns, as well as occasional violence.

occrp.org

Russian Foreign Ministry Blasts the Hague for Unfairly Targeting Serbs

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1036989565Russian officials respond to Thursday’s decision by the UN tribunal finding former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic guilty of genocide by pointing to ICTY’s failure to remain impartial.

On Friday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry released a statement saying that the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) continues to perpetuate the myth that the Serbian people were solely responsible for war crimes in the Bosnian and Kosovo wars.

The ministry’s statement followed yesterday’s conviction of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic by UN judges on charges of genocide for the alleged 1995 Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys after the overrunning of a UN “safe zone” by troops loyal to Karadzic.

The statement also said that the money spent on the international tribunal would have been better spent on the peace process in countries belonging to the former Yugoslavia.

The efficacy and impartiality of ICTY remains a highly contested issue. Notably, the tribunal receives substantial funding from NATO countries and Western financial interests, including George Soros and the Open Secrets Foundation. The tribunal has thus far charged 161 individuals with war crimes since its inception over 20 years ago, but has only successfully prosecuted 31 of those cases to conviction.

Karadzic was the most high-profile defendant before the tribunal following the death of Yugoslavia’s former leader Slobodan Milosevic, who died pending trial before the court.

Karadzic maintains that the alleged genocide of 8,000 Muslim men and boys towards the end of the Bosnian War in 1995 is a “myth” and says he is being prosecuted for “something that never even happened.” Milosevic, prior to his death, maintained that the tribunal lacked authority to prosecute him as it was improperly established under article VII of the UN Charter, which attends to political matters.

President Nikolić: Serbia understands Armenians’ suffering

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serbian presidentIf anyone can understand the suffering of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in 1915, it is Serbia.

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić stated the aforesaid at his talk with chairman Kasbar Garabedian of the Armenian National Committee of Europe, according to Blic daily newspaper in Serbia.

“I am proud that I had the opportunity to speak on the occasion of the Armenian Genocide 100th anniversary commemorative events, and state that if anyone can feel the misfortune that befell the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in 1915 as well its non-healing consequences, it is Serbia,” Nikolić said.

Also, he expressed the hope that Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan will pay an official visit to the Serbian capital city of Belgrade, by the year’s end.