Corruption, economic progress, rule of law, regional cooperation... The list of expectations towards Albin Kurti as Prime Minister of Kosovo is long even in Germany.
Official Germany is expected to soon send Kurti an invitation for an official visit to Berlin, DW learned from government circles. However, circles in Berlin view Kurti's arrival at the head of the new government with mixed feelings.
Some believe that Albin Kurti will make the process of normalizing relations with Serbia more difficult, while others are more optimistic and believe that even a radical like Kurti will change his radical stances when confronted with the limits of state reason.
The daily press in Germany has so far not commented on the new Kurti government. The enthusiasm for the historic turn of Kosovo, which for the first time will be led by the "Word-turning Man", as Erich Rathfelder calls him in 'TAZ', and by a government "Without KLA fighters", as Michael Martens points out in 'FAZ'.
However, the demand and to some extent the expectations towards Kurti are great.
Bodo Weber, one of the party consultants in Berlin, predicts in an interview with DW that Kurti as prime minister will be an uncomfortable interlocutor for the EU and internationals. "On the one hand because of his principled and democratic stances, but also because his party's beliefs and program continue to contain dogmatic-ideological elements," Weber said.
"Expectations for a positive role for peace in the region"
One of the MPs who does not hide his joy at seeing Kurti as the new Prime Minister of Kosovo is Josip Juratović. The social democratic deputy had supported Kurti already during the campaign. He told Deutsche Welles that he is very happy that a repeat election was avoided.
But the challenges are great. "Kosovo's social and economic progress, the fight against corruption, but also regional cooperation," he says. "It's not just the issue of Kosovo's independence, but also cooperation with the countries of the region, especially Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina," Juratović explains. "And we will watch this cooperation very closely, with the hope that the new government will play a positive role for peace in the region," he said.
"Visa liberalization"
Manuel Sarrazin, the Green MP, now expects the new government to prove that it "can do a better job than the previous one." He sees the challenges similarly. "Young people in particular rightly expect a strong course of reforms that will bring more democracy and the rule of law, more prospects for the future and sustainable development," Sarrazin said.
Sarrazin believes that now is the time for Kosovo to receive its deserved reward: "The new country has deserved all the EU support for this reform course. For this reason too, the long-overdue decision on visa liberalization for Kosovars must finally be reached." Sarrazin further stated to Deutsche Welle that "the path to the EU for Kosovo and Serbia will only be possible through a successful normalization process. Sarrazin also adds that there should be no border changes in the Balkans under any circumstances." /DW/
