As Kosovo approaches its parliamentary elections on February 9, the country faces several critical challenges that could shape its future.
From the establishment of the Association of municipalities with a Serbian majority to the normalization of relations with Serbia, the agenda seems busy.
With the question of how they will address them, Radio Evropa e Lire addressed the four candidates for prime minister – Albin Kurti of Vetëvendosje, currently in power; Bedri Hamza of the Democratic Party of Kosovo; Lumir Abdixhik of the Democratic League of Kosovo and Ramush Haradinaj of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo - but he did not receive an answer from either of them.
Party officials answered instead of them, and in the case of Vetëvendosje, neither did they.
How will the issue of the Association be addressed?
For the Association of municipalities with a Serbian majority, Kosovo and Serbia reached an agreement as early as 2013, but Kosovo did not implement it, fearing that it could affect the functionality of the state.
In 2023, the prime minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the president of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, also reached what is known as the Basic Agreement, which, in addition to a level of self-management for the Serbian community in Kosovo, requires the parties to respect the integrity and each other's territorial sovereignty, as well as recognize each other's national documents and symbols.
Serbia has, on several occasions, spoken out against it and, according to Kurti, Vucic has refused to sign it.
Speaking recently in an interview for the Kosovar media Kosovapress, Kurti said that the Association should not be placed at the center of relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
According to him, the Basic Agreement, which also addresses the issue of the Association, should be fully implemented.
"I believe that we should focus on the Basic Agreement. Article 7 talks about the self-management of the Serbian community. Let it be addressed there", said Kurti.
Speaking for Radio Free Europe, Mimoza Ahmetaj, vice president of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, says that the formation of the Association is an obligation of Kosovo, also because it was accepted by Kurt through the Basic Agreement.
"For us, it is important to respect the Constitution", says Ahmetaj, but he does not specify what PDK's plan is for the Association in the future.
The international community has drawn up a draft statute for this association and has asked Kosovo to send it to the Constitutional Court for evaluation - which Kosovo has not done.
For the vice president of the Democratic League of Kosovo, Lutfi Haziri, this draft statute is the result of the Basic Agreement, which he considers to be bad.
He says that in the event that the LDK wins the February 9 elections and takes power with its leader, Lumir Abdixhiku, he will make an effort to revise the Association's draft statute, so that it is not in contradiction with the constitutional organization of Kosovo.
"The document, as such, before it goes to the next level [for evaluation in the Constitutional Court] must - with international mediators, in particular with a strengthened role of the Americans in this process - be seen, so that it is in accordance with the obligations, the constitutional commitments that the Republic of Kosovo has", says Haziri.
Lulzim Blaka, information officer in the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, says that the candidate for prime minister of this party, Ramush Haradinaj, plans to send the draft statute for the Association to the Constitutional Court for evaluation.
"After the response of the Constitution, it should be proceeded according to the obligations that Kosovo has received as a state", says Blaka, adding that this also means the implementation of the Agreement for the formation of the Association of municipalities with a Serbian majority.
How will the dialogue with Serbia be addressed?
Since 2011, Kosovo and Serbia are in negotiations for the normalization of relations.
Many of the agreements reached remain unimplemented and the parties accuse each other of improper commitment.
Kurti and Vucic met for the last time in September 2023. A few days after that meeting, an armed attack took place in Banjska in Zveçan, for which Kosovo blamed Serbia.
In order to continue the dialogue, Kurti has on several occasions asked Serbia to hand over Millan Radoicic, who has accepted responsibility for organizing the attack, as well as Vucic to sign the Basic Agreement.
Ahmetaj from the PDK says that this party plans to approach the dialogue with the aim "to reach the final agreement".
"...so that Kosovo can continue further in the process of consolidation of the state", according to her.
In an appearance on Kosovo's TV21, PDK's candidate for prime minister, Bedri Hamza, said that in the further dialogue with Serbia, the Basic Agreement should be reviewed, which is the "poorest offer" that Kosovo received.
"This means that some parts must be reviewed and changed", said Hamza.
Haziri says that for the LDK and its candidate for prime minister, Lumir Abdixiku, the "de jure" recognition of Kosovo by Serbia will be the main goal of the dialogue with this country in the future.
"We will create an environment for Kosovo at the table, in direct relation with the European Union, with a strengthened role of the USA as a facilitator, as well as in extremely good coordination with NATO as a major partner, to close the issues related to the dialogue process", says Haziri.
Blaka of AAK says that the dialogue for the normalization of Kosovo-Serbia relations has degraded.
If Haradinaj takes power, according to him, he will aim to conclude this process with mutual recognition.
"The dialogue should be restored as it was, we should dialogue about the comprehensive and binding agreement for both parties, with mutual recognition. This has been what Mr. Haradinaj has always emphasized and we think we will continue this way even after the February 9 elections", says Blaka.
How will relations with Western allies be addressed?
During the past year, Kosovo was several times the target of criticism from international allies, due to some actions in the north of the country inhabited by a Serbian majority.
The international allies demand that Kosovo address in dialogue every issue related to this area, but this has not happened.
Therefore, American officials, in some cases, have said that the actions of the Government of Kosovo have shaken the relations with the USA.
In response, Kurti emphasized that the USA is the main partner of Kosovo, but this, according to him, does not mean that they must always agree.
Kurti has also emphasized that he will cooperate closely with the elected president of the USA, Donald Trump.
Due to the tensions in the north, Kosovo has long been subject to some punitive measures of the European Union.
Ahmetaj of PDK says that if this party wins the elections, it will continue to coordinate Kosovo's agenda with international partners.
"We will continue, in coordination with our friends, to remove these measures [of the EU]", says Ahmetaj.
"We will change the conditional reports that the Government of Kurti has brought to Kosovo", says Haziri of the LDK on the other hand.
Similarly, for AAK, restoring friendship and trust with international partners will be a main task, says Blaka from this party.
As a sign of good faith, he says, Kosovo will fulfill all the obligations it has taken in front of international partners.
The candidates who will participate in the February 9 elections officially started the election campaign on January 11, but they have been making promises and promises for a long time.
In a survey that Radio Free Europe published on its website on January 13, foreign policy does not appear to be decisive for the participants in this survey - economic policy, health and education reforms are ranked ahead of it.
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