Wrote: Etrit Rexhepi
An image has been published showing Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of Kosovo, and Besnik Bislimi, former Deputy Prime Minister, together.
The image has the caption that reads "Kurti admits that Bislimi negotiated poorly with Petkovic: That's why I fired him. The Brussels Agreement and the Ohrid annex were wrong. They give autonomy to Serbs in Kosovo. Besnik Bislimi negotiated poorly, which is why I no longer made him deputy prime minister or minister."
So in the inscription we have an alleged statement by Kurti, where he explains the reasons for not appointing Bislim as deputy prime minister or minister.
This content was published on Thursday (March 19) in the group "FREEDOM HAS A NAME” on Facebook from an anonymous account and on Saturday (March 21) on a page called “Exile with the LDK".
What is the truth?
The claim is not confirmed by credible sources of information.
The group where this post was shared has over 6 thousand members, while the page that published it also has over 6 thousand followers (see here and here).
Hibrid.info has searched through “Google” (the search engine) with the words of the caption presented in the image in question. The search results have not revealed any official announcement or public statement in credible media, which would confirm that Prime Minister Kurti has given the alleged qualification for Bislimi (see here).
The research has been expanded through this search engine, focusing on any possible statements by Kurti about Bislimi. However, apart from media articles reporting Kurti's appointment of Bislimi as head of the Office for Expertise, Implementation and Strategic Oversight, no facts have been found to confirm the claim (see here).
Bislimi was the first deputy prime minister and chief negotiator for the dialogue with Serbia, in the previous mandate of the Kurti Government (see here)
The verification continued on Kurti's official Facebook account. From the posts on this account, from the moment he began his mandate as Prime Minister, after the early elections of December 28, until today, no announcements have been found where Kurti has commented on the decision not to appoint Bislim as Deputy Prime Minister or Minister (see here).
Context of the agreements
On March 18, 2023 in Ohrid, at a meeting between the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, within the framework of the high-level dialogue between the two countries, the parties agreed to implement the Agreement towards the normalization of relations between them, supported by the European Union (see here).
In the agreement, the parties express their commitment to reaching specific agreements and guarantees, in accordance with the relevant Council of Europe instruments and using existing European experiences, to ensure an appropriate level of self-governance for the Serbian community in Kosovo (see here).
Kurti has not described the agreement as a mistake in any of his statements, but has said that the conditions for continuing the dialogue are the signing of the agreements and the surrender of Milan Radojčić, who is accused of the attack in Banjska in Kosovo (see here).
Analyze:
An image of Albin Kurti and Besnik Bislimi has been published, accompanied by a caption claiming that Kurti has stated that Bislimi “negotiated badly” with Petar Petkovic and that for this reason he has not appointed Bislimi as either deputy prime minister or minister. The same caption also claims that Kurti has described the agreements reached in the dialogue with Serbia as a mistake.
After verifying the facts, no evidence has been found that Albin Kurti has made such a statement publicly. There is no official announcement or credible media reporting that confirms this claim.
Online searches, as well as verification of public accounts and sources, have not yielded any information that supports the claim of such a statement by Kurti regarding Besnik Bislimi.
Based on its work methodology, Hibrid.info assesses this content as "Fake News".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.