Kosovo PM Finally Gets a US Visa to Attend Prayer Breakfast.
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Ramush Haradinaj, has finally been granted a visa to travel to the United States of America, where he will attend the Prayer Breakfast on February 9.
The head of PR in the PM’s cabinet, Donjeta Gashi, told the media in Kosovo’s capital Pristina that the US embassy has granted PM Haradinaj a visa. She also asserted that while in Washington, PM Haradinaj would meet with US congressmen and senators.
Earlier in January this year, Haradinaj had to cancel his visit to the United States since the authorities of the latter did not issue him a visa. PM’s Office, who had been invited to attend events in Iowa organized by the National Guard, on January 11, at first denied claims that Haradinaj’s visa application had been rejected. But later the local media of Kosovo’s capital, Pristina, reported that the US Embassy had not received an answer to his visa request. Instead of Haradinaj, the First Deputy Prime Minister Behxhet Pacolli attended the events in Iowa.
Analysts believe that the delays in issuing the visa came as a reaction against the latest incentive of Kosovo Lawmakers to revoke the law which allows the establishment of the new War Court announced in December, which has especially elicited strong reactions from the United States ambassador in Pristina Greg Delawie, the United Kingdom ambassador in Pristina Ruairi O’Connell, the US Department and the main countries of the European Union.
Haradinaj was one of the key figures of the former Kosovo Liberation Army during the 1998-1999 war with Serb forces. He has been arrested a few times, based on a warrant issued by Serbia, under accusations of war crimes. In January 2017 he was detained in France, which refused to extradite him to Serbia and freed him after several months. He became the Prime Minister of Kosovo after his political coalition won elections in Kosovo, in July 2017.
The Kosovo Deputy PM from the Serbian Community Dalibor Jevtic, has also been invited to the US Breakfast Prayers and will be attending the event alongside PM Haradinaj.
