Former American diplomat Christopher Hill, during his testimony in The Hague today, stated that his impression was that Jakup Krasniqi was not an important person in the Kosovo Liberation Army.
Hill also spoke about his meeting with Thaçi and Krasniqi in Dragobill.
"This is your impression, from what you have seen, that Mr. Krasniqi was not an important person in the KLA...", asked Jakup Krasniqi's lawyer, Aiden Ellis.
"Yes, that was my impression," Hill said.
Christopher Hill was also asked by Jakup Krasniqi's defense whether he was aware of Slobodan Milosevic's initiative to "create a local police unit" in the villages of western Kosovo, he denied this.
He said that if he had known about this he would have told her it was a bad idea.
Hill, speaking about the January 1999 negotiations in Rambouillet, said that a "single exchange had taken place between the KLA and the soldiers of the conflict."
"... I would have said it's a bad idea," he said.
"No, but if I had known about this, I would have said it was a bad idea. Not every initiative of President Milosevic was reported to us, to be honest, we didn't even take it seriously... He planned to take very strict punitive measures if something wasn't done," he said.
He said he didn't know he had allowed the release of Serbian soldiers, and Hill added that it was an ongoing problem with the KLA because they didn't know who was in charge there.
Former US special envoy during the war in Kosovo, Christopher Hill, said that even today he stands by his opinion and his skepticism that organizing conferences can solve Kosovo's problems.
Why did Hill say he was skeptical that organizing a conference could resolve this issue?
"I was skeptical that organizing a conference could resolve this issue; moreover, I was skeptical and tired of the idea that Dayton was the idea to resolve the Kosovo problem, which I viewed as a very different conflict," he said.
During his testimony, the former American diplomat confirmed that on November 6, 1998, he met with Thaçi and Krasniqi in Dragobill.
Further in the courtroom, Hill stated that Adem Demaçi was against negotiations with the Serbs and was against anything that did not address the issue of independence.
"We knew that Adem Demaçi was against any negotiations with the Serbs and was against anything that did not address the issue of independence. So, when there were serious, difficult problems, we assumed that Demaçi was behind them," he said.
Veseli and Selim's defense had no questions for Thaçi's defense's fifth witness, Christopher Hill.
Meanwhile, the former US special envoy during the war in Kosovo, Christopher Hill, is currently answering questions from the Specialist Prosecutor's Office.
Hill began his testimony in The Hague yesterday, and is the fifth witness called by Hashim Thaçi's defense, represented by attorney Luka Misetic. There are only two witnesses left to be heard.
We recall that Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi have been in detention since November 2020. The former KLA leaders are accused of alleged war crimes, to which they have pleaded not guilty. /kp/
