Telekom chief Lucic has important message for EU: "It's your obligation to protect MTS in Kosovo and Metohija"

Photo: TANJUG/ SAVA RADOVANOVIC/ nr

The European Commission is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Brussels Agreement, and, overall, of the rule of law in Kosovo and Metohija - and therefore has the obligation to protect Telekom Srbija from discriminatory moves made by Kurti's administration, Telekom General Director Vladimir Lucic said today.

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This was Lucic's reaction to the European Commission (EC) statement made on Tuesday, stating that it "does not want to get involved in the conflict" between Pristina and Telekom because, "compliance with the regulatory framework in the field of telecommunications is the exclusive competence of the independent regulatory body" in Kosovo and Metohija.

Lucic appeared on TV Prva and recalled the attempt two years ago to ban MTS, Telekom's daughter (mobile and internet) company in Kosovo, and stressed that Albin Kurti's latest attacks are very dangerous, that even the employees' physical safety is compromised.

"Now Pristina through its media is creating hysteria, that we are part of some kind of 'hybrid special war against Kosovo' - and that's a very dangerous narrative and is used to lay the groundwork for new and even more radical attacks against Telekom Srbija in Kosovo and Metohija, which we expect will follow in August. For the past few years, they (Pristina) aimed to attack us during the periods when the administrations in Brussels and Washington were on vacation, be it in the middle of the summer season, or just before Christmas. The attempt to shut down MTS happened on August 4, 2023, but we are ready and have demonstrated that we can respond," Lucic said.

His message to Kurti's administration is to refrain from any new attacks, because, "we know how to defend ourselves the right way."

Regarding the reaction that arrived from Brussels, he emphasized that in the previous months, meetings were held with both US and EU authorities.

"Two years ago, we managed to prevent the shutdown of MTS to a large extent precisely because of the involvement of the US. The European Commission can now react any way it wants, but the fact is that Kurti's administration interprets differently and violates, in the most brutal ways, its own laws when it comes to Telekom - because we are a Serbian company, which provides communications services to about 30,000 Serb households in Kosovo and Metohija, and is of great importance for the survival of Serbs in the province," said Lucic.

He stressed that the European Commission has no right to keep itself out of this issue, and added that the local regulator referred to by the EC openly violates its own rules, and the Brussels Agreement, while it is EU's obligation to monitor (implementation of) that agreemen, and of the rule of law in Kosovo and Metohija in general.

"Additionally, the very physical safety of our employees there is threatened by the latest accusations coming from Pristina. It is EC's obligation to get involved and protect us as a major investor in Kosovo and Metohija," concluded Vladimir Lucic.

(Telegraf Biznis/Tanjug)