Pristina, 9 May, 2023
On Europe Day, May 9, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, welcomed the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia, Gordan Grlić Radman, which coincidentally is also the last country to become part of the European Union.
As two friendly, allied and partner states, Prime Minister Kurti expressed his honor to welcome the Croatian Foreign Minister, Radman, to the Prime Minister’s office today, whom he thanked for the contribution, help and unwavering support of Croatia since the time of the former Federation -Yugoslavia, after the liberation war until the declaration of independence.
Croatia was one of the first countries to recognize Kosovo’s independence, as next month we mark the 15th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
Prime Minister Kurti informed Minister Radman about the current developments, the government’s work and the main achievements of recent years. This progress is also supported by credible international reports, which year after year are showing Kosovo as a leader among the six countries of the Western Balkans, especially in the field of democracy, freedoms and rights, the rule of law and the fight against corruption.
Minister Radman expressed gratitude for the hospitality and conveyed the thanks of the Croatian Prime Minister, Andrej Plenković. He congratulated the prime minister for the good work in governance, while he congratulated Kosovo and its people for the liberalization of visas and the successful passage of the first phase of membership in the Council of Europe, processes that have also had the strong support of Croatia. He said how much his country supports Kosovo in its membership in international organizations, including Kosovo’s candidacy for the European Union.
The meeting also discussed the dialogue process mediated by the European Union and the Basic Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia and its Implementation Plan, according to the agreement in Brussels and Ohrid. The Prime Minister informed Minister Radman that in the last high-level meeting, which was held last week, he presented his vision for the implementation of Article 7 of the Basic Agreement, based on the Croatian model of treatment of Serbian national minorities. Regarding it, he said, being a member country of the EU and NATO, Kosovo sees Croatia as a success story and a model that should be followed in terms of economic and democratic achievements, but also in terms of respect of minority rights.
In this meeting, Prime Minister Kurti was accompanied by the Ambassador of Kosovo to Croatia, Martin Berishaj, the Chief of Staff, Luan Dalipi, the Advisor for Defense and Security, Colonel Ejup Maqedonci, the Senior Advisor to the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, Nora Arapi, The Prime Minister’s political advisor, Zoje Surroi, and his Executive Assistant, Valë Gjonbalaj.
This was the second international delegation to be welcomed at the Prime Minister this week. Yesterday, the Prime Minister hosted the Speaker of the Assembly of the Republic of Austria, Wolfgang Sobotka.
Last modified: May 10, 2023