Dear Saša,
Fear of the administration of Donald Trump appears to be dictating a new Kosovo “presidential drama.” Concern over a new agreement on the political and legal regulation of relations between Kosovo and Serbia—an agreement that cannot be ruled out—is also manifesting itself through yet another domestic crisis, seemingly designed to “buy time” until the U.S. midterm elections.
In short, this is one of the key reasons why—rather than demonstrating genuine leadership—the country is entering a new electoral cycle. This also includes the relations of President Vjosa Osmani with the U.S. administration, as well as her participation in the Peace Committee. In other words, responsibility is being avoided.
Formally, the Assembly of Kosovo did not elect a new president by March 5—the final deadline to avoid new elections. That deadline was preceded by a real game of thrones led by Albin Kurti, aimed at politically eliminating Vjosa Osmani. Acting within the constitutional deadline, she dissolved the Assembly by decree. The government then initiated a constitutional review of the presidential decree, claiming it was unconstitutional because the procedure for electing a president had not been completed. The Constitutional Court imposed a temporary measure suspending the implementation of Osmani’s decree dissolving the Assembly until March 31, and at the same time prohibited any action by the Kosovo Assembly until that date.
The drama surrounding the case brought before the Constitutional Court, together with the frontal attack by Kurti’s party and government against Osmani, follows a pattern already seen before. She has been labeled a traitor who allegedly conspired with Edi Rama, Richard Grenell, and indirectly Aleksandar Vučić to bring down Kurti’s government. A familiar vocabulary, isn’t it?
The Constitutional Court has become the go-to address for the absence of a genuine political process and political accountability, as well as for the continuous crises that Kosovo cannot endure much longer.
Serbs in Kosovo now have a new preoccupation as well—the beginning of the implementation of two laws, on foreigners and on foreign vehicles, whose enforcement has long been postponed. However, Kosovo’s entry into a visa-free regime with the European Union has brought that postponement to an end. In Kosovo there are actually more vehicles with Albanian registration plates than with Serbian ones; the latter are also used by Albanians from the Preševo Valley and from North Macedonia. This is important to understand in the broader context.
Among the Serbs, however, there is anxiety because these laws indirectly affect the entire system of education and healthcare that operates within—and is financed by—Serbia, that is, the parallel institutions in Kosovo. The core of the concern lies in the uncertainty over how work permits will be issued to those employed in healthcare and educational institutions.
These concerns are growing because of the absolute lack of information about the process underway in Brussels regarding the modalities for implementing these laws. The Kosovo government has not exactly distinguished itself in communicating with the Serb community, nor in providing the facilitations needed to obtain the required documentation. The government of Serbia remains silent, as does Brussels. As a rule, the less transparency there is, the more speculation emerges—and speculation inevitably leads to fear and collective anxiety.
Perhaps by March 15 we will learn the results of the talks in Brussels on how these laws will be implemented. What we certainly will not know by then is the outcome of Kosovo’s presidential drama.
I cannot believe we keep going around in circles with the same issues, simply wrapped in different packaging. And that will continue until a genuine value-based political alignment emerges—one that will finally put an end to the, unfortunately dominant, politics of the past that dictates our present and steals our future.
Sincerely,
Ilir
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