U.S. Ambassadors Kosnett and Tan Support Domestic War Crimes Prosecution with Meeting with the Special Prosecution of Kosovo, December 15, 2020
On December 14, Ambassador-at-Large for the Office of Global Criminal Justice Morse H. Tan and Ambassador Kosnett met with Chief State Prosecutor Aleksander Lumezi, and prosecutors from the War Crimes Department of the Special Prosecution Office in Kosovo (SPRK), including Chief Blerim Isufaj. Both Ambassadors reiterated the United States commitment to bringing all war criminals to justice, regardless of their nationality. Ambassador Kosnett said that the “answer to injustice is more justice.” While Ambassador Tan discussed the daunting challenges the SPRK faces in bringing these important cases to completion.
During the event, the prosecution had the opportunity to address the Ambassadors and discuss some of the challenges they face; Chief State Prosecutor Lumezi informed the Ambassadors that while his Office had taken substantial steps, the SPRK inherited more than 900 uncompleted cases from EULEX, and more resources were necessary to continue to make headway. Chief Isufaj informed the group that a lack of coordination with Serbia and an inability to join INTERPOL and other international groups hindered their work. Finally, Deputy Chief Valdet Gashi talked about the 19 indictments his office had filed since 2018, with one reaching final adjudication.
Office of Global Criminal Justice and the U.S. Embassy committed additional support to the War Crimes Department.
