KOSOVO: SERBIAN MINISTERS CHALLENGE OFFICIAL VISITS POLICY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PRISTINA 000047 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR EUR/SCE, EUR/PGI, INL, DRL, PRM, USAID E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR SR KV SUBJECT: KOSOVO: SERBIAN MINISTERS CHALLENGE OFFICIAL VISITS POLICY REF: PRISTINA 25 PRISTINA 00000047 001.2 OF 004 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Recent travel by Serbian government ministers to Kosovo in contravention of the EU's official visits policy is a direct challenge to the GOK and the EU. The official visits policy provides for GOK approval unless there are indications visits might be abused for political purposes, and involves the Quint and EU in the decision-making process. The procedure in place since March 2009 has been largely successful to-date: of 112 visits requested, 103 were approved. GOS officials have challenged the policy by traveling to Kosovo without prior permission. Measured against the established procedures the GOS objections to the visit procedure are baseless. We are concerned by rumors the GOS is planning to flood the GOK with official visit requests to break the system and by the GOK's propensity to shoot itself in the foot when it moves to intercept a Serb official in Kosovo without permission. We will work with the GOK and EUSR to prevent over-reactions. We urge similar efforts be made by Washington and Belgrade to discourage the latter from escalating the issue further. END SUMMARY. SERBIAN GOVERNMENT MINISTERS CHALLENGE VISITS POLICY -------------- -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The arrest and subsequent expulsion from Kosovo on January 26 of Serbian Assistant Minister for Kosovo, Branislav Ristic, by Kosovo Police (KP) in Dresnik/Drsnik village, Kline/Klina Municipality, is the latest in a series of attempts by Serbian government officials to challenge a European Union-brokered policy on Government of Serbia (GOS) official visitors to Kosovo. Ristic's detention follows the expulsion from Kosovo of Serbian Minister Goran Bogdanovic on January 13 (Ref A) while on an unapproved official visit to Shtrpce/Strpce municipality. BACKGROUND: AGREEMENT ON GOS VISIT PROCEDURES -------------- ¶3. (SBU) On January 28, the office of the European Union Special Representative (EUSR) shared with us the nine point agreement used by EU offices for handling requests from GOS officials to visit Kosovo. The full text follows: BEGIN TEXT: -- 1) The following procedure could be applied to official visitors of the Government of Serbia to the Republic of Kosovo. -- 2) The Government of Serbia should inform the EU Office in Belgrade about planned visits of government officials to Kosovo at least 72 hrs before entering Kosovo. -- 3) The EU Office in Belgrade forwards this request to the ICR/EUSR. A copy will be send to the HOM of EULEX for information. -- 4) The request should be forwarded by the ICR/EUSR to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of Kosovo. -- 5) The Government of Kosovo takes the decision on the request. In the process of reaching a decision, it may ask the ICR/EUSR or other members of the international community for further advice. -- 6) The Government of Kosovo will take its decision based on a clear statement of the purpose of the visit and assuming there are no strong indications that the visit might be abused for political propaganda or in any other inappropriate way. -- 7) The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister informs the Ministry of Interior of the Government of Kosovo of its decision; the Ministry of Interior will then inform the Kosovo Police of the upcoming visit and ensures that appropriate measures for the visitor's security are taken. -- 8) The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister should also no later PRISTINA 00000047 002.2 OF 004 than 24 hours in advance of the scheduled visit inform the ICR/EUSR of the decision. The ICR/EUSR will forward the decision to the EU Office in Belgrade. The HOM of EULEX will receive a copy of this communication. -- 9) If there are indications that the planned visit involves serious security risks, and the Kosovo government nevertheless agrees to such a visit, EULEX stands ready to provide an escort for the visitors. The decision on the need to escort visitors is taken by the HOM of EULEX, upon request by the Government of Kosovo. END TEXT VISIT PROCEDURES VIEWED FROM KOSOVO -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The EUSR Office in Pristina told us the nine points had been tacitly accepted by all parties in March 2009 as a modest framework for GOS official visits, after months of unsuccessful talks. The procedures apply to all official GOS visitors to Kosovo, and make no mention of rank, status or citizenship. In practice as a matter of course the EUSR automatically forwards requests that are sensitive in nature to Quint embassies and KFOR for their advice as representatives of the "international community." As laid out in the nine points, the GOK bases its decision on the visit's purpose and whether there are indications the visit might be abused for political purposes. If the visit is approved, the Ministry of the Interior and Kosovo Police (KP) are informed of the decision in order to make security arrangements, if necessary. The EUSR office told us the GOS had not signed the framework, but had never pushed back either, and had made use of the procedures for GOS officials on 20 occasions since March 18, 2009. (NOTE: Although not listed specifically in the nine points, persons or groups who are not GOS officials but who wish to have a KP or EULEX police escort, such as religious pilgrims, also use the procedure. END NOTE) SERBIA'S USE OF THE PROCEDURE -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Since March 18, 2009 the GOS has submitted 112 visit requests under this procedure, including 20 for official GOS visitors. Of 112 applications, 103 were approved by the GOK while nine were denied. Seven official visits have been denied by the GOK because GOS officials had made statements that suggested their trip would encompass untoward political activities. The two other disapproved visits were for groups of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to Gjakova/Djakovica, an area heavily affected by the 1999 conflict, following interventions by the mayor, who asserted that the population had to be prepared for such visits and was not yet ready to receive Serb IDPs. NATURE OF VISIT APPROVED DENIED -------------- -------------- -------------- Serbian Officials 13 7 IDPs 9 2 Pilgrims 54 0 Students/NGOs/others 25 0 Serbian Orthodox Church 2 0 TADIC AT CHRISTMAS: AN EXAMPLE OF HOW IT CAN WORK -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Serbian President Tadic's Orthodox Christmas visit to Visoki Decani Monastery in Kosovo provides an example of how the GOK tried to balance between a legitimate GOS request that could also be used for overtly political and anti-GOK purposes. Tadic's official request stated he wished to travel to Decani in the Christmas spirit to attend mass, and to visit Serb returnees in the village of Osojane. Before the GOK's approval, Tadic announced his trip publicly, treating the visit procedures as notification only, and stating he was visiting Kosovo to "fight for the province." The statement was viewed as unacceptably political and was clearly at odds with the stated purpose of the visit. The EUSR's office told us COMKFOR had argued that Tadic's request should be denied as a PRISTINA 00000047 003.2 OF 004 consequence. However, the Kosovars accepted the recommendation of the EUSR and Quint not to deny the whole visit but rather to agree to the visit to Decani. In the end the GOK agreed to an overnight visit to the Monastery without the side trip to Osojane. RESPONDING TO SERBIAN OBJECTIONS -------------- ¶7. (SBU) In a letter to the EUSR office in Belgrade (shared with us by EUSR Pristina) and in public statements, GOS officials raised several objections to GOK actions with regard to visits. Both the EUSR and the Quint found that these objections are baseless in view of the established SOPs. The objections, and our responses, include: -- The procedures do not apply to GOS deputy or assistant ministers. RESPONSE: The EUSR's nine points do not mention rank, and apply to all GOS officials even if they are minor officials; -- GOS staff are also Kosovo residents and may thus travel to Kosovo as they please. RESPONSE: The EUSR's nine points do not mention citizenship/residence, and apply to all GOS officials entering Kosovo on official business for Belgrade, even if they are Kosovo citizens or residents. To the best of our knowledge, the GOK has never attempted to apply these procedures to non-official visits. Indeed, many Belgrade officials with homes in Kosovo appear to travel here routinely (although no one attempts to track such visits). -- GOS ministers have travelled to Kosovo in the past without following the procedure. RESPONSE: Prior travel without GOK authorization does not amount to GOK consent. Success at circumventing the established procedure does not legitimize the circumvention. -- Visits are private in nature. RESPONSE: See above. However, when Minister Bogdanovic was asked to leave Shtrpce/Strpce he claimed to be on a private visit, but in fact had just visited a GOS-funded school and met with representatives of the illegal parallel structures in his official capacity. Bogdanovic's claim is not truthful. -- Serbia does not recognize the procedures or only views them as requiring notification by the GOS of planned visits. RESPONSE: During the January 26, 2010 EU-GOS Ministerial in Brussels Serbian Foreign Minister Jeremic did not deny the procedure's existence or substance. Rather he asked for changes ostensibly intended to improve the process. This, as well as President Tadic's decision both to use the procedure and to abide by the conditions set by the GOK, is a de facto recognition of both the procedure and the need for approval. COMMENT -------------- ¶8. (SBU) ICO sources tell us the EUSR's office in Belgrade has heard rumors the GOS plans to attack the official visit procedures by submitting a flood of requests for visits by GOS personnel and hoping the GOK flounders. A spate of GOK visit denials would make the GOS allegation that the procedure is not working appear to be founded, and bolster GOS attempts to skirt the procedure. We believe the procedures are fair, transparent, and benefit both the GOK and the GOS. Abandoning them or allowing GOS officials to travel without asking permission from the GOK risks hindering legitimate and necessary travel from Serbia to Kosovo. The number of successful approvals shows the procedures have been a success when followed, including on two occasions for President Tadic. While approving visits by the Serbian president is likely to remain politically difficult for the GOK, the existing procedures provide for approval when the visit is appropriate. We will work with the GOK and EUSR to prevent over-reactions, and ensure the visits procedure operates transparently and efficiently, including when GOS officials must be respectfully escorted back to the border for non-compliance. We urge similar efforts be made by Washington and PRISTINA 00000047 004.2 OF 004 Belgrade to discourage the GOS from escalating the issue further. END COMMENT. DELL