Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi: Kosovo’s message is loud and clear, Europe is our present and future

The first Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Development and Dialogue of the Republic of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi, participated in the discussion with MEPs in the Committee for Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament (AFET), in Brussels. In his speech, Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi emphasized that Kosovo has made significant progress in recent years and has shown that it is a reliable partner and fully committed to the values and principles of the EU. He expressed the clear but challenging objective of obtaining the status of a candidate country by the end of this year.

“We are using this opportunity to demonstrate that we are ready to take our place in the European community. And this is what our achievements and successes in the last two years show to our friends and allies: that Kosovo is a reliable partner, ready to take further steps to intensify its efforts to get closer to the EU.”

“We are capable of making progress, despite the challenges and obstacles, our commitment remains the same. Our walk will not stop. Kosovo’s message is loud and clear: Europe is our present and our future,” said Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi.

Below, the full speech of Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi:

Esteemed Chair of the Committee, Mr. Mc Allister,
Honourable Vice Chairs,
Honourable Co rapporteur Mr. Mandl,
Respected Members of the AFET Committee,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you for the opportunity of having this exchange of views on Kosova’s EU Integration, a very important topic for my country. It is always a great honor and pleasure to come here and discuss with Parliamentarians. European Parliament is the backbone of democracy as well as our shared destiny. This understanding is reflected in your collective decision-making, where you have always found consensus on the future of the Republic of Kosova, be it on membership perspective, the signing of the SAA, visa liberalization and now our EU membership application.

Dear friends, let me start by remembering that last week we marked one full year since the beginning of the Russian invasion on Ukraine. I would like to remember with pain all the civilian victims, to remember with great respect all Ukrainian martyrs who fell defending their homeland. Ukraine still does not recognize Kosova, but Kosova knows very well the pain and wounds of Ukraine, having faced a very similar cruelty in our recent history. As we continue to stay side by side with Ukraine and solidly confirm our stance and alignment with EU, I repeatedly call for freedom for Ukraine and express solidarity from Kosova.

This war was eye-opening to many of us and made us realize the importance of freedom and unity. There is a strong sense of common purpose among European Union members to see more clearly the common threat. Once again we all realized how crucial is democracy for the defense of peace and prosperity and how important it is to defend Europe and the European Union as the most successful project of peace in Europe.

Dear Parliamentarians, my country has made significant progress in recent years, but we must be relentless in our efforts to demonstrate that we are a reliable partner and fully committed to the shared EU values and principles. We have shown our willingness to tackle the difficult road of substantial reforms and our continuous committment to promoting democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

Dear friends, let me remind us all that Kosova is the last country in the Western Balkans that applied for membership. Having been recognized as a potential candidate a long time ago, along with other countries in Western Balkans six, on December 15th of last year, we finally moved forward to turn our potential status into an official candidate status.

Please let me briefly present few key points, I find to be relevant in the light of our progress on the EU path.

First and foremost, our decision to apply for EU membership answered the call and aspirations of our citizens who believe deeply that their future is within the European Union. As a democratic government that governs with their consent, this application answers to their call.

Second, our application honors and seeks to bring to life the EU promise made almost 20 years ago in Thessaloniki, but also most recently reinforced at the Tirana Summit where the EU called for an accelerated accession process.

Third, we truly believe that time has arrived. Compared to other countries in the region, Kosova is the most democratic country and is recognized so every day by international acknowledged indices and rankings.

Our objective is clear: we seek to receive candidate status by the end of this year. This might be seen as a challenging goal, but it is one that we are fully engaged to achieving. It is essential for the development and prosperity of Kosova and the Western Balkans region and most importantly for our political stability and security.

Dear parliamentarians, in now almost two years of our governance, we have convincingly and continuously demonstrated the will to fight crime and corruption, as well as effectively implemented reforms in justice and public administration. This got confirmed in regular assessments of international reports such as the Transparency International index or the EU Commission’s Country Report.

In an environment, where a sizeable number of democracies in our continent went through a democratic erosion in the last five years, Kosova is the most democratic country in the region recognized so by internationally acknowledged indices in Rule of Law, Good Governance, Democratization, Anti-Corruption and Media Freedom. We have experienced noticeable progress in the last two years. By improving our ranking by 20 spots on Transparency International and 17 places on World Press Freedom Index. We were ranked 1st for the second time in the rule of law in the Western Balkans by the World Justice Project, and 2nd globally for improvements in the past year.

Our high quality of democracy and resulting political stability was transformed into a macroeconomic dividend with remarkable national economic, social and welfare indicators. Our economic growth reached a double digit of 10.7% in 2021, while in 2022, the economic growth continued, with expected growth of around 4%. This year we had a 17% increase in budget revenues compared to the previous one. Exports increased by 23%, tax revenues by 22%, custom revenues by 11% and FDI by 47%.

We have delivered in many long overdue reforms which were repeatedly recommended by EU since 2012. Last year was also very successful in the aspect of European agenda where the SAA and European Reform Agenda, half way through have been implemented at 60% rate.

We are seizing this opportunity to demonstrate that we are ready to take our place in the European community. And this is what our achievements in the last two years demonstrate to our friends and allies: that Kosova is a reliable partner, ready to make further steps to intensify its efforts in coming closer to EU.

Kosova sets an example and standard in the Western Balkans. And the region calls also for bold action from both the EU and the Western Balkans countries to strengthen the commitment and ties that would accelerate common reforms and positively direct the trajectory of development and path toward the European family.

Kosova is also the second country to ratify the three agreements from the Berlin Process signed last November, while with 2/3 of the votes it becomes the first country in the Western Balkans region to ratify them in the Assembly. We have proven that our country stands for prosperous regional cooperation and for progress in the implementation of the Common Regional Market and we look forward to other Western Balkans countries approving them.

We have shown our commitment, readiness and constructiveness also within the dialogue process, where we agreed on the EU Proposal and negotiations on its implementation will follow soon. We believe that full normalization of relations requires mutual recognition as the agreements’ center piece and also respect for minority rights, in both countries.

Security and peace in the region and whole wide Europe, is a must. Every improvement, every step towards greater development and compatibility with European defense and security policies, brings us closer to this important goal for us.

We are capable of making progress, despite challenges and obstacles, our commitment remains the same. Our walk, will not stop. Kosova’s message is loud and clear: Europe is our present and future.
Our voice needs to be heard and embraced inside the European family. Because as the beloved friend of us all, David Sassoli said: ‘’Europe has still a lot to say, if we – and you – will say it together’’.

Thank you.

Last modified: February 28, 2023