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France 24
13-05-2025
- Politics
- France 24
Stand-off leaves Kosovo unable again to elect speaker
Political life has been at a standstill since February 9 elections, in which Prime Minister Albin Kurti's Self-Determination (VV) party win only 48 out of 120 seats -- not enough to form a majority government. Opposition parties have, since mid-April, refused to vote for VV's candidate for the post of speaker, former justice minister Albulena Haxhiu. Her appointment had been expected to be a formality but it has now turned into an impasse, with repeated votes -- and failures -- on the issue. Several political leaders are now hinting at the possibility of fresh elections. According to parliamentary rules, the parliament cannot be considered inaugurated without a speaker, and without its inauguration a new government cannot be formed. 'Hostage' Several opposition parties now accuse VV of deliberately blocking progress by refusing to propose an alternative candidate. "VV is keeping Kosovo in an institutional crisis at all costs," said Memli Krasniqi, president of the right-wing Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), whose party came second with 20.95 percent of the vote. Krasniqi on Tuesday suggested that the VV consider another candidate, pointing to the last US election when the Democratic Party ditched then president Joe Biden for Kamala Harris. "That wasn't considered anything extraordinary," he added. The centre-right Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), which finished third on 18.27 percent, said the current crisis was down to the "failure of the party that came first in the vote to create political partnerships for a new majority". For Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the right-wing Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), a potential solution could involve the intervention of President Vjosa Osmani. She is seen as more pragmatic and diplomatic than her prime minister and could turn to the judiciary for an interpretation of the constitution. Osmani's office on Tuesday said she was launching "a series of consultations" with political parties from Thursday. University of Pristina sociology professor Fadil Maloku said he believed that the "crisis is the result of shameful hostilities between leaders". "Kosovo has been their hostage for three months," he added. Political analyst Arben Qirezi, writing for the online newspaper Koha Ditore, said the young country lacks a "culture of political compromise". He believes that this is essential for maintaining the political system's stability, legitimacy, and democratic representation of the citizens. Economic consequences The current deadlock could be costly for Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in February 2008. Serbia refuses to recognise Kosovo's independence. The parliamentary stand-off has delayed the ratification of agreements under the European Union's Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, depriving the country of access to 882.6 million euros ($981.5 million) in loans and grants. "If ratification does not occur by June it could end into delays in fund disbursement and potentially a redistribution of funds," to other countries, warned Besar Gergi, from the Group for Legal and Political Studies, a Pristina-based think-tank. Even if parties agree to new elections, the current legislature must still vote to ratify the Growth Plan agreement, added Blerina Istrefi, a researcher at the same think-tank. The parliamentary session that began on April 15 can only be concluded with the election of a president, three vice-presidents and the formation of parliamentary groups. However, the Constitution does not specify a strict deadline for this process, meaning it could, in theory, continue indefinitely. "The parties have locked themselves into their camps... the political schizophrenia continues," said Maloku.
Observer
10-02-2025
- Business
- Observer
Kosovo heads to election clouded by tensions with Serbia
PRISTINA: Polls opened in Kosovo on Sunday after a combative election campaign in which opposition candidates clashed with Prime Minister Albin Kurti over the economy, corruption and relations with the country's old foe and neighbour Serbia. Kurti, a leftist and Albanian nationalist, came to power in the small Balkan country in 2021 when a coalition run by his Vetevendosje party received more than 50 per cent of votes and secured a seven-seat majority in the 120-seat parliament. Political analysts say his popularity has been bolstered by moves to extend government control in Kosovo's ethnic Serb-majority north. But critics say he has failed to deliver on education and health, and his policies have distanced Kosovo from its traditional allies, the European Union and the United States. "It is a new day. I thank all the citizens who have already cast their vote and I encourage every citizen to vote," Kurti said after casting his ballot. The EU placed economic curbs on the country in 2023 for its role in stoking tensions with ethnic Serbs, cutting at least 150 million euros ($155 million) in funding, Reuters has found. A drop below 50 per cent of the votes for Kurti's party could prompt coalition talks after the election. Opposition parties include the centre-right Democratic League of Kosovo which has campaigned on restoring relations with the United States and the EU, and joining NATO; and the Democratic Party of Kosovo, also centre-right, founded by former guerrilla fighters of the Kosovo Liberation Army. "I am optimistic. It was long campaign," said Bedri Hamza, Democratic Party of Kosovo candidate for prime minister. Kosovo, Europe's newest country, gained independence from Serbia in 2008 with backing from the United States after a 78-day Nato bombing campaign against Serbian forces in 1999. Kurti says his policies in the north, which include reducing the autonomy of Serbs living in Kosovo, are helping to bring ethnic Serbs and Albanians together under one system of government. But his rhetoric worries centrist politicians. "When you have a bad neighbour, then you have to keep your morale high and your rifle full," he said in a campaign speech near the Serbian border this week. Kurti's government has overseen some gains. Unemployment has shrunk from 30 per cent to around 10 per cent, the minimum wage is up and last year the economy grew faster than the Western Balkans average. "It has never been better for us than right now (with this government). I hope there will be more of such a good days," said Kumrije Prekaj, 44, who voted in Pristina. The election campaign has been acrimonious. The Elections Complaints and Appeals Panel, which monitors party and candidates' complaints, has issued more than 650,000 euros in fines to parties this election season, three times the 2021 tally, data from NGO Democracy in Action show. — Reuters
MTV Lebanon
10-02-2025
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
Kosovo's ruling party set to win election but lose majority
Kosovo's ruling Vetevendosje party is on track to come first in Sunday's parliamentary election, but it fell short of an outright majority needed to rule without coalition partners, preliminary results showed on Monday. The election result would be a drop from the more than 50% that Prime Minister Albin Kurti's party won in 2021. But it puts him in position to lead the next government in a country whose politics are dominated by the relationship with neighbouring Serbia and Serbs within its borders. Another Kurti-led government may see a continuation of policies to extend government control over the north, where about 50,000 ethnic Serbs live, many of whom refuse to recognise Kosovo's independence from Serbia in 2008. That worries moderates who fear a return to the ethnic violence that has blighted the region in recent years. Vetevendosje won 41.3% of votes with 88% of ballots counted, official results from the election commission showed. The opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo was second with 21.8% and the Democratic League of Kosovo party had 17.8%. "Preliminary results show one true, exact and clear thing, and this is that the Vetevendosje movement has won the elections of February 9, 2025," Kurti told supporters in the capital Pristina as crowds let off fireworks, banged drums and waved Albanian flags. Monday will likely see the beginning of coalition talks, although it is not clear which party or parties Vetevendosje will team up with. During an acrimonious election campaign, in which fines for misconduct trebled over the 2021 poll, Kurti said he would refuse to rule with a coalition. Kosovo, which is majority ethnic Albanian, is Europe's newest country, and one of its poorest. It gained independence from Serbia in 2008 with backing from the United States after a 78-day NATO bombing campaign against Serbian forces in 1999. The election campaign saw debates over corruption, crime, health and education, but looming in the background is the situation in the north, where Kurti's moves to reduce ethnic Serbs' autonomy has stoked tensions and isolated it from the European Union and the United States. The EU placed economic curbs on the country in 2023 for its role in the tensions, cutting at least 150 million euros ($155 million) in funding, Reuters found.
Reuters
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Kosovo's ruling party set to win election but lose majority
PRISTINA, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Kosovo's ruling Vetevendosje party is on track to come first in Sunday's parliamentary election, but it fell short of an outright majority needed to rule without coalition partners, preliminary results showed on Monday. The election result would be a drop from the more than 50% that Prime Minister Albin Kurti's party won in 2021. But it puts him in position to lead the next government in a country whose politics are dominated by the relationship with neighbouring Serbia and Serbs within its borders. Another Kurti-led government may see a continuation of policies to extend government control over the north, where about 50,000 ethnic Serbs live, many of whom refuse to recognise Kosovo's independence from Serbia in 2008. That worries moderates who fear a return to the ethnic violence that has blighted the region in recent years. Vetevendosje won 41.3% of votes with 88% of ballots counted, official results from the election commission showed. The opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo was second with 21.8% and the Democratic League of Kosovo party had 17.8%. "Preliminary results show one true, exact and clear thing, and this is that the Vetevendosje movement has won the elections of February 9, 2025," Kurti told supporters in the capital Pristina as crowds let off fireworks, banged drums and waved Albanian flags. Monday will likely see the beginning of coalition talks, although it is not clear which party or parties Vetevendosje will team up with. During an acrimonious election campaign, in which fines for misconduct trebled over the 2021 poll, Kurti said he would refuse to rule with a coalition. Kosovo, which is majority ethnic Albanian, is Europe's newest country, and one of its poorest. It gained independence from Serbia in 2008 with backing from the United States after a 78-day NATO bombing campaign against Serbian forces in 1999. The election campaign saw debates over corruption, crime, health and education, but looming in the background is the situation in the north, where Kurti's moves to reduce ethnic Serbs' autonomy has stoked tensions and isolated it from the European Union and the United States. The EU placed economic curbs on the country in 2023 for its role in the tensions, cutting at least 150 million euros ($155 million) in funding, Reuters found.
Al Jazeera
10-02-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
PM Albin Kurti's party on top in Kosovo election exit poll
Polls have closed in Kosovo's parliamentary election, in a vote that is seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Albin Kurti, who has been at odds with his Western allies over relations with neighbouring Serbia. Exit polls from Klan Kosova TV show Prime Minister Albin Kurti's Vetevendosje party in first place with 38.2 percent of Sunday's vote. The opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo is set to come second with 22.4 percent of the votes, with the Democratic League of Kosovo winning 20.1 percent. Al Jazeera's Maja Blazevska, reporting from Pristina, said Vetevendosje will need to negotiate with potential coalition partners to form the government. 'Exit polls are suggesting that no single party can form a government by itself, so Kosovo will go back to having a coalition government,' she said. Voting began at 7am local time (06:00 GMT), according to the Central Election Commission, as Kosovars headed to the polling stations to elect a new parliament and cabinet in a contentious race also focused on the economy and corruption. Polls remained open until 18:00 GMT – the ninth such vote in Kosovo since the end of the 1998-99 war that pushed Serbian forces out of the self-declared republic. Sunday's vote, a key test for Kurti, will elect 120 lawmakers to the assembly, determining who leads Kosovo's stalled negotiations on normalising ties with Serbia. Kurti's left-wing Vetevendosje, or Self-Determination Movement party, which has sought to dismantle remaining Serbian institutions in Kosovo, is seen as the frontrunner in the election. But the party is not expected to win the necessary majority to govern alone, leaving open the possibility the other two contenders join ranks if he fails to form a cabinet. The other contenders are the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), whose main leaders are accused of war crimes at The Hague tribunal, and the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), the republic's oldest party. The opposition parties have made big-ticket pledges to increase public salaries and pensions, improve education and healthcare services and fight poverty. Kosovo, with a population of 1.6 million, is among the poorest in Europe with an annual gross domestic product of less than 6,000 euros ($6,200) per person. 'Critical for Kosovo's future' Kurti, whose government is the first in Kosovo's history to finish its full term in office, has had a turbulent rule, marked by regular unrest between Serbs and ethnic Albanians. Tensions spiked after negotiations backed by the European Union and the United States between Kosovo and Serbia all but collapsed in March 2023. In the aftermath, NATO peacekeepers were assaulted by rioting Serbs, a deadly armed standoff in the north sent regional tensions soaring, and an explosion targeting a canal vital to Kosovo's power plants late last year saw Kurti blaming Belgrade. Kurti also drew Western criticism for controversial measures he took last year, such as a ban on using the Serbian dinar and transfers from Serbia to Kosovo's ethnic Serb minority members who depend on Belgrade's social services and payments. The US, the EU and the NATO-led stabilisation force KFOR have urged the government in Pristina to refrain from unilateral actions, fearing the revival of interethnic conflict. While Kurti retains a strong support base, his opponents have denounced him for the fraying ties with the US and the EU. Shpend Kursani, a lecturer at the University of Tartu told Al Jazeera that voters most identify Kurti with 'anti-corruption, national dignity and being – at least from a Balkan perspective – an honest politician'. Opposition parties, however, blame Kurti's willingness to confront Serbia as costing the country support and funding from the international community, even as he was able to secure the sale of anti-tank Javelin missiles from the US, Kursani said. 'It's the same with Turkey; he purchased drones and what not, so the support from international communities is a bit mixed,' Kursani said. 'He's largely not corrupt… and it's very difficult [for outside powers] to manage these small country leaders if they are not corrupt.' KFOR has increased its presence in Kosovo and added more forces for the election. A team of 100 observers from the EU, 18 from the Council of Europe, and about 1,600 others from international or local organisations will also monitor the vote.
