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Life in Kosovo interviews two of Kosovo's ambassadors

13 08 2010  On Thursday March 25, Life in Kosovo broadcast exclusive interviews with Muhamet Hamiti and Muhamedin Kullashi, Kosovo’s ambassadors to the United Kingdom and France respectively.

The questions posed included: What are the ambassadors’ priorities? How is the lobbying process for new recognitions of Kosovo’s independence going?

What are the arguments used by states that still have not recognised Kosovo’s independence? When will consular services be offered to Kosovo’s diaspora? What is the level of cooperation between France and the United Kingdom with Kosovo? What is the level of investment in Kosovo from those two countries?

Initially, BIRN broadcast the interview with Muhamet Hamiti.

Asked what the priorities for Kosovo’s embassy in the United Kingdom are for the next two years, Hamiti answered: “The priorities of the embassy are the same as those of Kosovo’s government, which is to build relationships with both ‘friendly’ countries and countries which it is in our interest to create relationships with for the consolidation of Kosovo’s statehood.

In these 15 months, I have used London as an important traditional centre of diplomacy to develop not only bilateral relations with the United Kingdom, but also representatives of other countries, both those that have recognised the Republic of Kosovo and those which have not.”

Hamiti said that he has formally met over sixty ambassadors and high commissioners for countries which have not yet recognised Kosovo’s independence, including Egypt and Iran in the Middle East, and Ghana, South Africa, Libya and Morocco in Africa.

Asked how Egyptian diplomats have explained why Cairo has not recognised Kosovo yet, Hamiti said: “One argument is that they are waiting for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

In meetings with the Egyptian ambassador, a well-established diplomat who has worked for a long time in the ministry of foreign affairs, his reaction has not been negative, but neither has it been positive – at least in the sense of crossing the threshold by recognising Kosovo’s independence.”

Asked why the Arab world has not recognised Kosovo, Hamiti said that each country has its own internal dynamics which dictate its decisions.However, he added that the process of recognition is continuing, and that he believes the number of recognising states will increase.

Asked whether it is wrong to mention to diplomats from the Arab world that Kosovo’s population is 90% Muslim, Hamiti answered that, whilst this point can come up in conversation, Kosovo is a secular country and therefore does not seek recognition on the basis of religion.

“We are asking for Kosovo to be part of the community of free states, regardless of whether they are Muslim or Christian,” he concluded.

The ambassador was then asked how he approaches representatives from African countries. Hamiti answered that, as with ambassadors from the Arab world, the strongest argument he presents to African representatives is that of the right to self-determination.

Comparisons with the colonial system in Africa are an effective way to persuade diplomats thatindependence is the only solution for Kosovo’s problem, Hamiti said.

Mr Hamiti was then asked why the same letter about Kosovo’s independence has been sent to all countries, rather than specifically tailored letters appealing to specific sentiments. He replied that diplomatic communication is taking place in a variety of forms, and all opportunities are being explored.

Asked when the embassy of Kosovo in the UK would be able to issue key documents such as certificates and passports for Kosovan citizens residing in the UK, Hamiti promised that this would be possible at the embassy by the end of 2010.

Later in the show, Hamiti spoke about a high level gathering being organised in France, at which major companies and businessmen will meet and listen to the requests of ministers from Kosovo’s government, in order to propose concrete plans, which he expects will open the for investment in Kosovo.

After the debate with Muhamet Hamiti, BIRN broadcast the interview with Muhamedin Kullashi.

Asked what difficulties were faced at the beginning of his work in France as Kosovo’s first ambassador there, Kullashi replied that they were initially mostly of a technical character.

However, he went on to say that his mission’s focus has been on diplomatic issues, rather than administrative ones.

Since other embassies have had problems with delays in the appointment of staff, Kullashi was asked how Kosovo’s embassy in France is functioning two years after its establishment.

He said that “staffing has been completed in recent months, and I believe we did things very quickly since there were only two charges d’affaires and one secretary to begin with.”

Asked to comment on the fact that Kosovo’s citizens abroad have been waiting for a long time to be able to receive the most elementary documents, such as birth certificates, Kullashi said: “The main role of diplomatic missions is diplomacy, the creation of relationships with the state institutions of the country it is in.

However, their other functions are also important, and as we have gradually increased our diplomatic staff – we now have a consul and a vice consul – they have been issuing a number of documents, as their authority allows.”

Asked on what his role and goal as an ambassador are, Hamiti answered that “one of the main tasks, defined by the ministry, regards the international recognition of Kosovo.

There are 150 diplomatic representations in France, and all have accepted communication with our diplomatic mission. We have regular communication with embassies from Africa, Latin America and some parts of Asia.

We have been able to present our arguments about Kosovo’s historical, political, cultural and constitutionalfacts, and many diplomats have said they had never heard such arguments before, as they had only been exposed to – and been influenced by – Russian and Serbian diplomacy.

Asked which African states Kosovo is communicating with, Kullashi replied that no Francophone African countries have accepted Kosovo’s independence.

“We try to listen to their arguments for why they haven’t been able to recognise us. As for what the likelihood is of them doing so, it’s not up to ambassadors. Their work is to listen to arguments and report to their government,” he said.

“One of the important arguments that has slowed down recognition from these countries is that the majority of them have issues with minorities and borders with neighbouring countries.

In a way, opponents to Kosovo’s independence make use of these facts, which are real worries for many Francophone African countries.

We say that Kosovo’s independence is not a case of a minority, but such comments cannot bring any spectacular result immediately. However, we are now present, and have a space in the diplomatic community, and this is very important.” he concluded.

Asked on how France and Kosovo have been working together since Kosovo’s declaration of independence, Kullashi answered: “we have been in contact with some ministries, and there is genuine interest in Kosovo from France.

It is in the first steps of creating deeper relationships. Economy, education and health are, for now, the fields of most interest in Kosovo.”

As for concrete plans, Mr Kullashi continued by saying that “[France is] interested in sending a team of specialists to Kosovo to observe and record the current situation and the problems that exist, especially in the health service, and then work on concrete plans.

These would include development of experts in the field, including new doctors and other health professionals for hospitals.

This cannot be done in a day, but there is political will for it…’Decentralised cooperation’ is how France works with many countries. This means that there will be cooperation between some departments of French ministries and departments in municipalities in Kosovo.

In other words, not all future activity will be focused in Prishtina.”

Asked whether Kosovo’s citizens living in France can expect diplomatic facilities to begin issuing documents this year, Kullashi said that he hoped so.

While he claimed that there is no exact date on which the embassy will start issuing ID documents and certificates, he hopes that it will be practically and legally possible by the end of the year.

This “Week’s Highlight” was about Raiffeisen Bank’s donation of sixty thousand euros for the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare’s “a meal per day for everyone” project, which is run through soup kitchens.

Nenad Rasic, the Minister for Labour and Social Welfare said: “We had the idea of establishing soup kitchens to assist those in poor social conditions, but unfortunately we haven’t had the support we thought we would, but friends like Raiffeisen Bank showed that everything is possible if we have a common cause.”

Robert Wright, the executive director of Raiffeisen Bank, said that “we take our social responsibilities very seriously.

We are a large bank in this country. We ask a lot from the economy but we also want to give a lot back to the economy and to the community. And this is an indication of the sort of things we have been doing for many years.”

Five soup kitchens, with the motto ‘a meal for all’, will open soon across Kosovo.

According to the minster, the first one will open in Prishtina at the end of April since this is the area with the greatest number of those in need, with the next centre opening in Mitrovica.