Accompanied by leader of the Republican Party Fatmir Mediu, Berisha met with the United States Attorney General Todd Blanche as well as the United States Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr.

The meetings took place during a Republican Party event in the US.

According to the DP, Sali Berisha’s meeting with U.S. Justice Department leaders is a major highlight of his U.S. visit.

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“Here is the reason in the face of an international idiocy,” Rama wrote, commenting on the conclusion of Thaçi’s defense lawyer’s closing statement.

The former president’s defense lawyer argued that Thaçi should be declared innocent and released, because the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office has not substantiated the allegations.

“At this point in the proceedings, the law requires that he must be presumed innocent,” the lawyer said.

According to him, the Specialized Prosecution Office has presented allegations, but the evidence must convince the court beyond any reasonable doubt that they are guilty.

“This proceeding was initiated because the Specialized Prosecution Office has come forward and presented a claim that there is evidence that proves beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused are guilty. For more than five years, we have been engaged in a process designed to substantiate the claims of the Specialized Prosecution Office and to prove its charges. This trial, therefore, is not a review of Hashim Thaçi’s life, but a substantiation of the claims of the Prosecution Office. When you begin the proceedings, you will start from the position that Hashim Thaçi is innocent and then you will assess whether the evidence presented by the Specialized Prosecution Office has convinced you beyond a reasonable doubt that Thaçi is guilty. If the Specialized Prosecution Office does not convince you, and you do not conclude that there is a reasonable explanation of the evidence that links Thaçi to the charges in the indictment, then it must acknowledge that the Prosecution has failed and therefore there must be issued an acquittal ruling,” he said.

The lawyer stated that Hashim Thaçi will remain innocent, according to the law.

“We assert that your deliberations will reach the inevitable conclusion that the Specialized Prosecution Office has failed to provide evidence,” stated Thaçi’s defense lawyer.

For its part, the Specialized Prosecution Office in The Hague claims that Thaçi has lied the internationals on several occasions and that their statements should be taken with a certain reservation. According to the prosecution, well-known international figures, such as James Rubin and Wesley Clark, did not fully understand the situation on the ground and Thaçi’s ability to disguise his actions, which has influenced their perception of the functioning of the KLA.

The prosecution has requested a sentence of 45 years imprisonment for each of the defendants, who are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the period March 1998 – September 1999, in several areas of Kosovo and northern Albania.

After the conclusion of the closing statements, the case will be taken to the trial panel, which has three months to make a ruling, with the possibility of extending this deadline. /j.p/p.s./