France and some other countries informally asked for a postponement of the decision on the admission of Kosovo to the membership of the Council of Europe at the upcoming meeting of the Committee of Ministers, and at yesterday's preparatory meeting of the ambassadors of the member states there was no talk about it, "Vijesti" learns.
The meeting of the Committee is scheduled for May 16 and 17, and the Council of Europe confirmed to "Vijesta" that Kosovo is not on the agenda.
"All we can say now is that Kosovo is not on the agenda of the session of the Committee of Ministers," said the SE press office.
After the Political Committee of the PSSE and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a positive opinion on the admission of Kosovo to the Council of Europe, the Committee of Ministers should make the final decision. The committee usually meets once a year.
A "Vijesti" source from diplomatic circles said that France, and some other countries, asked for a postponement of the decision on the admission of Kosovo, because the Union of Serbian Municipalities (USO) has not yet been established there, as agreed by the first Brussels agreement signed by Belgrade and Pristina in 2013. years. He also said that at yesterday's preparatory meeting of the ambassadors of the Council of Europe member states in Strasbourg, "no one mentioned Kosovo".
However, it is not completely excluded that this item will still be on the agenda of the ministerial meeting next week.
"Unlikely, but possible," said a diplomatic source.
"Vijesti" was told that it is estimated that a dozen member countries support the possibility of holding an extraordinary discussion on Kosovo, if it changes its position on the JSO, but that among them is not a single country of the Quinte, a group consisting of France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and The United States of America, which is not a member of the SE.
The "Vijesti" source said that he is the prime minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti on Monday, he had an unpleasant meeting with the ambassadors of Quinta and the European Union in Pristina because of the ZSO.
In addition to Kurti, his deputy was also present at this meeting. Besnik Bisljimi, as well as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo, Krešnik Ahmeti, the portal Kossev.info reported.
In the statement of the Government of Kosovo from the meeting, it is stated that Kurti reminded that until now the important bodies of the Council of Europe have confirmed that Kosovo meets the standards and criteria to be a full member of this organization, and that the conditions and preconditions for this are clearly indicated in the rapporteur's report Dora Bakojanis which Kosovo fulfills, including the decision that has been waiting for years for the Dečane monastery.
Kosovo, said Kurti, is "the most democratic country in the Western Balkans - with an advanced constitution that offers guaranteed and extended rights for the non-majority community that exceed even international standards", and this, he points out, was assessed by "eminent lawyers of the Council of Europe". The statement did not specify what the Quinte and EU ambassadors said.
On April 16, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PSSE) adopted, by a majority of votes, the Draft Opinion on the Admission of Kosovo to the Council of Europe. 131 PSSE members voted for, 29 against, and 11 of the 171 present abstained.
The delegation of Montenegro in PSSE voted differently on the draft opinion on the admission of Kosovo to the Council of Europe. Head of Delegation Maja Vukićević (Democratic People's Party) voted against, a member of the Delegation Boris Mugoša (Social Democrats) voted for, while he abstained Vasilije Carapić (Europe Now Movement).
Čarapić previously at the PSSE Political Committee supported the amendment of seven representatives of Italy and one member of the Hungarian delegation, which implies the first fulfillment of the conditions regarding the union of Serbian municipalities, and only after that the admission of Kosovo to the Council of Europe. That amendment, however, was not adopted.
Vukićević said at the session that although Montenegro recognized Kosovo, everyone has the right to their opinion.
"I will vote on behalf of those who voted for me," said Vukićević and pointed out the importance of Kosovo for all Serbs, "regardless of where they live."
She reiterated that she sees Kosovo's application for membership in the CE as problematic for several reasons, the first of which is "that it is a territory that is still disputed", because it is not recognized by more than half of the member states of the United Nations, and also by several EU countries, such as Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Romania and Slovakia.
Vukićević also voted against at the session of the Committee for Political Affairs and Democracy of the PSSE, at the end of March.
The government has not yet declared how it will vote at the session of the Committee of Ministers, which makes the final decision, and where Montenegro is represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Filip Ivanovic.
He, in mid-April, answering questions from members of the Parliament, said that when the issue of Kosovo's membership comes up on the agenda of the Committee of Ministers, Montenegro, "following its foreign policy principles, while considering the outcome of the PSSE vote, will take its position".
Previously, at the end of March, she was the Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorcevic said in Pristina that Podgorica will support Kosovo's entry into the Council of Europe when the Committee of Ministers of that organization decides on it.
"Montenegro will support Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe at the meeting of the Committee of Ministers in May. In this way, we will definitely support Kosovo on all important issues in the field of European integration," Gorčević said at a press conference with Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo Besnik Bisljimi.
DON'T MISS IT
This caused a sharp reaction from the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić.
"I saw this minister from Montenegro, who was all startled, what's her name, Gorčević. Shame on them all. Because they think they have the right and that it's normal to brag about how they're stealing our territory and how they have the right to they behave so arrogantly, why not apologize to the Americans or to someone that an honorable woman in the Council of Europe, Maja Vukićević, voted against their admission, so now they better go to Pristina to apologize to them head on," said Vučić at the press conference.
There were no public reactions from the Montenegrin Government to that statement.
On the agenda are measures against Russia, the Reykjavik Declaration...
On the agenda of the meeting of the Committee of Ministers on May 16 and 17, the measures taken by the Council of Europe in response to Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine will be considered, as well as the implementation of the Reykjavik Declaration on the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, adopted at the Summit of Heads of State and government last year.
As stated in the Draft Agenda, the Ministers will consider the Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, then the cooperation of the Council of Europe with the EU, the work of the Council of Europe in areas such as human rights, the report of the General Secretary of the Council, while at the end session Liechtenstein hand over the chairmanship of the Committee to Lithuania.
The ministers of foreign affairs will also agree on the date of the new meeting, and on May 16 they will participate in the ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Council of Europe.
Bonus video:
