Breaching the binding international agreements and their own legislation, the Priština authorities are trying in every possible way to shut down MTS d.o.o. (Ltd.), Telekom Serbia’s subsidiary operating in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. The latest attack against MTS was in the form of a move to verify files at the local Company Registration Agency (ARBK), spearheaded by the Kosovo Prime Minister as a kind of a hunt for anything that sounds even remotely Serbian.
A disastrous outcome
The ARBK’s decision to revoke the licence from MTS, which act Telekom Serbia warns is legally groundless and contravening the principles of the rule of law and the existing agreements between Belgrade, Priština, and the EU, is only a part of a broader regulatory persecution suffered by this company. The Priština authorities have come up with an entire range of attacks against MTS, aimed at resulting in disastrous outcomes for the company in a brief period of time – financially draining it by means of absurd penalties and even forcing it to stop conducting business in Kosovo and Metohija.
However, the case of the persecution of MTS in Kosovo and Metohija has been growing into a much more serious problem which could spill over from the economic to the political sphere. Specifically, if the legally groundless attacks against the operation of this company, owned by the Serbian Telekom, continue, it is perfectly possible that this topic will become problematic with respect to the continuation of the dialogue between Belgrade and Priština under the auspices of Brussels. Such a danger is very real, given that MTS d.o.o. as a local company based in Kosovska Mitrovica was founded as a result of the Brussels agreements, and has been conducting business in full compliance with the local legislation.
Attacks on all fronts
Despite this, MTS has in recent months been targeted by various institutions in Priština, which makes this latest case of revoking its licence a part of a broader regulatory persecution. The first attack was mounted late last year, when the Priština telecommunications regulator (ARKEP) asked MTS to send text messages related to car licence registration only to the Serbian populace in the area, at the request of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Economy. MTS was penalized although Priština was obligated to refrain from levying fines related to car licences, which happens to be an issue that should be resolved in the dialogue. In the same period, ARKEP excluded MTS from the auction for the 5G network, invoking its territorially limited licence and thus interfering with the business development of this company on the telecommunications market. In order to impair MTS, the Priština authorities violated its own legislation in this case as well, according to which a territorially limited licence cannot be used as legal grounds for rejection in assigning frequencies.
In ousting Telekom’s company from Kosovo and Metohija, Kurti has resorted to arresting its staff as well – the case against the MTS staffer Uroš Vukašinović, who was arrested by the Kosovo police in June this year under the charge of attacking journalists in Leposavić, is still ongoing. Vukašinović was kept in prison for 30 days and released on bail in July. The attacks were launched in relation to media content as well, as evidenced by the letter sent in July 2023 by the Independent Media Commission (IMC) to TV cable operators MTS and Herc International, the latter also being part of the Telekom Serbia group. The letter, which Kurir has seen, states that it was established that a Serbian channel broadcast inappropriate content that may jeopardize national and public security, as well as territorial integrity. Disregarding the fact that Telekom’s companies are distributors and not creators of media content, said Commission warned them that it would order the removal of the contentious channel unless it complied with the Kosovo legislation.
August saw yet another Kurti’s direct attack against Telekom – on 4 August, the Company Registration Agency made the decision to revoke the licence from MTS, which constitutes legal nonsense in any ordered society and goes against the European standards, which Kurir has been reporting about in recent days. The reason for this is that a company cannot be shut down without a court ruling. However, Kurti has intentionally pushed Telekom into the maze of his bureaucracy’s corridors rather than a courtroom because he knows very well that such a legal action would never succeed in a court of law.
Uncertain investments
The media company Klan Kosova, a media outlet which is very oppositionally oriented, has recently suffered a similar administrative torture on the part of Kurti. Nonetheless, this outlet has been saved from being shut down owing to the enormous pressure of the general public. The public simply rose up against the decision of the Kosovo Government, which is in contravention of the law regulating corporations. This is precisely what the Kosovo business lawyer Ardi Shita pointed out explaining why shutting down Klan Kosova was a scandalous move on the part of the authorities.
“Here we have a serious problem in interpreting and implementing the legal provisions regarding corporations,” he warned at the time speaking with The Voice of America.
Ilir Ibrahimi from the Kosovo Business Club, an independent entity which represents the interests of investors, explains too that the moves such as the one related to Klan Kosova can diminish Kosovo’s economic prospects.
“The main problem that the Kosovo economy is facing are the internal attacks of the Government against it. If these big corporations go and decide to invest somewhere else, then the Kosovo economy will collapse,” he warned speaking with The Voice of America.
The case of shutting down MTS, i.e. driving Telekom Serbia out of the Kosovo market, is precisely one such move warned against by numerous experts addressing the issues of stable investments in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija.
Kurir.rs