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The Foreign Minister of Kosovo: "Putin destroyed the world order, Serbia - his mission" | Israel today

2023-02-18T19:06:35.390Z


In an interview on the occasion of 15 years of Kosovo's independence, Donika Gravala-Schwartz tells Israel Hayom: "In the past two years, Belgrade has threatened us with war several times and deployed forces on our border" • On relations with Israel: "We are on the right track"


The war in Ukraine casts a heavy shadow on the most explosive arena in Europe: the Balkan region, which 30 years ago knew bloody wars, the last of which was the Kosovo war.

A girl celebrates with the Kosovo flag at the independence celebrations yesterday (Friday), photo: AFP

Yesterday (Friday), little Kosovo, in the heart of the Balkans, celebrated 15 years since its independence from Serbia.

The celebrations were clouded by renewed tensions with Belgrade, which to this day refuses to recognize Kosovo's secession and considers it part of its sovereign territory.

Serbia, which is considered a historical ally of Russia, is indeed trying to promote its accession to the ranks of the European Union, but this without recognizing the independence of Kosovo.

Kosovar soldiers at the independence parade in Pristina, photo: E.P

In recent weeks, fears of a military conflict between Serbia and Kosovo have increased, and various capitals in the Balkans are warning that Belgrade is seeking to ignite renewed conflicts in Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina at the behest of Moscow.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo, Donika Gravala-Schwartz, whose family fled Kosovo in the 1980s due to Serbian oppression, and whose father was murdered by the emissaries of the Yugoslav regime in Germany, says in an interview to "Israel Hayom" that the current administration in Belgrade acts as an agent of Russia and strives for a military confrontation with Israel.

"In the past two years, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has threatened war on Kosovo several times, deployed military forces on our border, sent fighter jets, invited the Russian ambassador to visit these military forces, integrated Russian military personnel into the Serbian Ministry of Defense and increased military capabilities. and the joint military maneuvers with Russia from 10 to 100 during 2021," the Foreign Minister details, adding: "Recently we located mercenaries from Wagner's force on our border and arms smuggling into the territory of Kosovo. Additional covert operations by Russia and Serbia are taking place in other countries in the region. Contrary to many Others, we know Vucic and his foreign minister Dacic very well. Both were close aides of the 'Butcher of the Balkans', former Serbian president and war criminal Milosevic. Vucic was his propaganda minister and Dacic ' was our right hand during the war, the massacre and the most terrible atrocities against our country and people. Not only did they never apologize,But they still publicly honor war criminals and deny and distort what happened.

Putin presents Serbian President Vucic with the Alexander Nevsky Order, 2019, Photo: Reuters

"The reason why this aggressive approach does not turn into an open conflict is the restraint shown by our government and the presence of American military forces in Kosovo," Gravala-Schwartz emphasizes, "only recently did the United States issue a clear warning to Vucic, who wanted to deploy military forces in our territory, an army that was responsible for crimes the most serious and the deportation of about half of our population and who will never return to Kosovo under our watch.

Kosovo, like Israel, is used to consistent threats.

It does not affect our lives.

We are part of the West, while Serbia is an emissary of Putin.

The situation is not perfect, but we continue to live our lives and develop our country."

How does the war in Ukraine affect Kosovo and the Balkan region?

"The Russian war against Ukraine affects the entire world. Putin destroyed the post-Holocaust world order. This is a struggle between dictatorships and aggressive regimes and the free world. Serbia not only violated an important contract with the European Union by rejecting the imposition of sanctions on Russia.

"In October 2022, Serbia signed an agreement with Russia, in which it aligns its foreign policy with that of Putin. Serbia is an emissary of Russia, not only in the Balkans. It is a threat. Serbia is involved in arms sales, finances and carries out smuggling for the Russian war, thus contributing to the killing Innocent children and families in Ukraine. We in the West must take more determined actions to signal to Serbia that aligning with Russia is not the future, if it intends to maintain relations with the West and not turn itself into an adversary of the West."

Are you afraid of the spread of the war in Ukraine to other regions, including the Balkans?

"All countries that depend on secure borders should take very seriously the threat to a world order based on rules. If Russia and Serbia succeed, many countries will become potential victims. That is why Kosovo stands by Ukraine, supports Ukraine, and wants Ukraine to win and Russia to lose this war.

"Today in a world of cyber, drones, terrorism and nuclear threats, Russian aggression cannot be limited only to Ukraine, just as the Serbian genocide cannot be limited only to the Balkans.

Moscow is in a global alliance with China and other actors with the aim of destroying the peace order led by the US, which was established as a direct response to the horrors of the Holocaust and World War II. Israel, Kosovo and other countries - large and small - need to invest heavily in defending this rule-based order. If we fail In defense of the world peace order, we will all find ourselves again in an age of war, but this time on a completely different global level."

Gravala-Schwartz during her visit to Israel, photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo

For a long time, Kosovo waited until its independence was recognized by Israel.

Two years ago, the two countries established diplomatic relations between them.

"We are more than satisfied with the development of our relations," says the minister, "Israel and Kosovo are deepening their cooperation and friendship. In many aspects, the two countries are quite similar to each other. In two years, we have had many excellent contacts, from official visits to private business. We are safely on The right track."

The latest annual report of the Abraham Accords, the framework in which relations between the two countries were established, states that the economic and investment relations between the two countries remain quite limited. Is this the case, and if so, what is the reason for this?

"The limited phase is related to the period of the Corona epidemic, but the economic interaction between us will develop an increasing dynamic. More things will happen, not only in the context of investments in Kosovo, but also in the context of exports from Kosovo to other markets. Kosovo has enjoyed an impressive increase in foreign direct investments, which proves the excellent business opportunities in Kosovo. Kosovo jumped 22 places in the table of Transparency International (an international organization to fight corruption). Businesses find in Kosovo a reliable environment, and Israeli businesses can benefit from this."

Kosovo is the first European country to open an embassy in Jerusalem.

When will a Kosovar ambassador to Israel be appointed?

"This is an issue that we will certainly deal with in the first half of this year. The final decision on the matter does not depend on the bilateral relationship between the two countries, but on the reorganization of our diplomatic service, which is designed to make it more efficient."

As part of the agreement reached in Washington, Serbia was also supposed to move its embassy to Jerusalem.

Was Kosovo under pressure from the European Union not to open its embassy in Jerusalem, similar to the pressures that the Serbs claim were exerted on them not to move their embassy from Tel Aviv?

"Of course, Serbia promised to move its embassy. But nobody here was surprised that Vucic did not keep his promise again. When I was appointed to my position in March 2021, opening the embassy in Jerusalem was one of the first tasks before me. I told everyone that opening the embassy in Jerusalem was a done deal, based on The signature and promise of the previous Kosovar government."

Will there be direct flights between the two countries?

"Our countries are in contact in order to check the economic feasibility that would allow this. Since we do not have a national airline, we need to find partners for a sustainable solution. We are working to achieve such a solution for an air link between Kosovo and Israel."

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Source: israelhayom

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