Ambassadors of European Union countries in Pristina have called on Kosovo to "do its homework" and seize the "new opportunity" in its efforts to join the European bloc.
Among the main tasks for them remains dialogue with the neighboring country Serbia, and in particular the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, according to them.
Speaking at a conference in Pristina, titled “Kosovo towards the European Union: The Road to a Solution,” the head of the EU office, Aivo Orav, German ambassador Jorn Rohde and French ambassador Olivier Guerot said that Kosovo now has an “open window” on its path to the EU.
Kosovo applied for membership in the European Union on December 15, 2022, but its application has not yet been reviewed, and as a result it is the only country in the Balkans that does not yet have candidate country status.
"Now, what we expect most from Kosovo is, first of all, to have a partner. Yes, we have a partner, the president – but we also need executive power," Orav emphasized at the conference organized by the FOL Movement and the Pristina Institute for Political Studies.
He added that the EU "needs a partner with whom we can talk about the next steps, how to move closer to the European Union. We very much hope that the government will be formed as soon as possible."
Kosovo is failing to form new institutions, despite more than three months having passed since the February 9 parliamentary elections, as no party won a majority to govern alone.
German Ambassador Rohde said that now that the EU has a new composition – with Kaja Kallas as the bloc's chief diplomat, and Antonio Costa as president of the European Council – Kosovo must work to meet the conditions for membership.
"We have a new composition in the EU now, seize the opportunity and you have an open window. My plea again is do your homework and seize this opportunity and start this by forming the new institutions," said Rohde.
Rohde said that Kosovo should not always look at what its neighbor is doing, but should "do its own homework."
"I think we also need a different mindset. Yesterday I spoke to a member of the incumbent government, and I told him that there are many issues regarding EU membership, among them the issue of obtaining [policies] for visas. He told me that Serbia doesn't do it, we don't do it either," Rohde said, adding that "this is not serious."
French Ambassador Guerot echoed Rohde's comments, saying that Kosovo now has a new opportunity for EU membership.
"In the past, there have been opportunities that were not used, and now there is another one that will not come again. Political will is needed from everyone in Kosovo, from the outgoing government, or in office or incoming, and from the opposition. In order not to lose this opportunity, Brussels dialogue with Serbia and reforms are needed," said Guerot.
He stressed that Kosovo is not isolated, "unless it isolates itself."
"How do you isolate yourself? By not listening to your friends, by cultivating attitudes that only I am right, by finding all the reasons not to respect your commitments. My prayer is listen to your friends, Kallas and Costa were here, while [Kosovo President Vjosa] Osmani and [French President Emmanuel] Macron met in Tirana," he said.
The ambassadors called on Kosovo to re-establish the Association, as one of its main tasks on the path towards the EU.
"A topic that everyone talks about - but which politicians here in Kosovo do not like to mention - is the Association. It needs to be done and it is better to do it sooner rather than later, to move forward. My message is that we in the EU are ready to move forward and we very much hope that Kosovo will do the same," said Orav.
In October 2023, the then envoys of the EU, the US, France, Germany and Italy offered Kosovo and Serbia a draft statute for the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, but Kosovo has not agreed to establish it.
The acting Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has refused to send this draft statute for review to the Constitutional Court of Kosovo - an action that would mark the first step towards its creation.
President Osmani said in March that the draft statute of the Association drafted by the EU is not in line with the Constitution of Kosovo and that she also told the EU's envoy for dialogue, Peter Sorensen, during his visit to Pristina.
Guerot said that Kosovo should not "ask itself what will happen if the Association is not established, but what happens if it is not established. I believe you know the answer."
Kosovo and Serbia have not held any round of political dialogue since September 2023, due to the crises in northern Kosovo, which increased tensions between the two countries.
Since then, only talks have been held at the level of chief negotiators.
The European Union has repeatedly made it clear to Kosovo and Serbia that normalizing neighborly relations is a condition for each on their path towards integration.
They reached an agreement on a path towards normalizing relations in 2023 – under EU mediation – but have not implemented it to date./ REL (A2 Televizion)
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