Prishtina, 12 May, 2023
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, was the main speaker at the conference held today by the Balkan Group for Politics on the topic of “Balkan Dialogues Initiative”.
In his speech, Prime Minister Kurti said that platforms like these are an important agora, where ideas meet, clash and fight with each other to create a balanced synthesis.
The prime minister began his speech by mentioning the war in Ukraine, from what he said was the Russian aggressor with hegemonic ambitions, and as people struggle to defend their freedom, concepts such as freedom, unity and solidarity must become actions that guide our policy of external.
This, as he said, is the reason why Kosovo has harmonized its common foreign security policy with that of the EU and has applied all the sanctions packages against the Russian Federation. “There is no disagreement whether Kosovo should impose sanctions and align with the EU, because our vision is clear: we align with the peaceful, democratic nations in Europe that embody freedom, unity and solidarity and we are on the side of the liberation struggle of the Ukrainian people”, he said.
At today’s conference, the prime minister also spoke about the application for membership in the Council of Europe in the EU. After the successful passage of the first phase of membership in the Council of Europe, recently, the positive report for the country last year and the decision to liberalize visas after all that delay, Prime Minister Kurti said that Kosovo should also receive the questionnaire for the EU, which would confirm that Kosovo deserves candidate status.
Regarding the dialogue with Serbia, he emphasized that we are committed, constructive and creative and that he believes that the Basic Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia constitutes an advancement of relations between the two states, because it is based on universal principles of sovereign equality, respect for territorial integrity , independence, renouncing objections to the membership of the Republic of Kosovo in international organizations, exchange of diplomatic missions with ambassadors, recognition of state symbols, customs stamps, license plates and passports.
In the end, he said that internal reforms in the rule of law, economic and social progress, visa liberalization and success in the first phase of membership in the Council of Europe confirm that we are taking the right steps on the right path to the European future.
Prime Minister Kurti’s complete speech:
Thank you very much Naim and good morning to you all,
Your excellency ambassador Jens Grondahl, ambassador of Norway in Kosova
Dear Mr. Pierre Mirel, Honorary Director General at the European Commission advisor to Institut Jacques Delors
Dear Mrs. Susanne Schutz, Director of South-East Europe, Turkey and EFTA States, Federal Foreign Office, Germany,
Dear Mr. Peter Grk, National Coordinator for Western Balkans, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Slovenia
Dear ambassadors,
Distinguish guests,
Thank you for your invitation and thank you to BPRG, BFPE and the Atlantic Council for hosting this event. Platforms like these are an important Agora, where ideas meet, clash and grapple with each other to create a balanced synthesis.
As history flashes before our eyes, as a war is fought on our continent, by an aggressor with hegemonic ambitions, and as people fight to defend their liberty, concepts such as freedom, unity and solidarity should become actions that guide our foreign policy. This is why Kosova has aligned its Common Foreign Security Policy with that of the EU and applied all packages of sanctions to Russian Federation. There is no dispute as to whether Kosova should impose sanctions and align with the EU, because our vision is clear: we align ourselves firmly with the peaceful, democratic nations in Europe that embody freedom, unity and solidarity and we side with the liberation struggle of Ukrainian people.
This is why on May 12th of last year we applied for membership in the Council of Europe, and on December 15th, we applied for EU membership. On the 24th of April our country secured over 2/3 of the votes in the Committee of Ministers, thereby passing the first stage of our application. As the last democratic country on the continent to not be part of the Council of Europe, and at the same time as a country with an extensive constitutional framework that grants rights to minorities, Kosova stands ready to be become a full-fledged member of the CoE and have its flag waving in Strasbourg. Our membership in the Council of Europe would give an opportunity to all citizens of Kosova, regardless of their ethnic background, to seek justice in the highest European court for the protection of human rights.
On visa liberalization last month, on the 19th of April, the President of the European Parliament also approved the long overdue decision on visa liberalization for Kosovar citizens. As of January first 2024 Kosovar passport holders will be able to travel freely to 32 more European countries. This will lead to more ties being strengthened, more trust being built and more opportunities being explored.
As for EU membership, after a positive country report last year, and a conclusion to the visa liberalization process, we are looking forward to receiving the questionnaire which we believe will confirm that we do deserve candidate status. Indeed, Kosova’s readiness to join the EU was reinforced just this week with the the European Parliament’s report on our progress. In that report, the Parliament explicitly welcomed Kosova’s application for membership and reiterated its full support for our accession to the Council of Europe. The report also commended Kosova’s progress in strengthening democracy and rule of law. And it praised Kosova as one of the frontrunners in the entire region for our anti-corruption efforts. Our rapid progress in these areas has also been confirmed by multiple international organizations, a fact also noted in the European Parliament’s report. For example, Kosova’s standing has improved by 20 places over the past two years in Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index, and 22 places in Reporters Without Borders’ Media Freedom Index. The World Justice Project in 2022 ranked Kosova first in the region regarding rule of law, and second in the entire world for greatest improvement in rule of law. Thus, our record demonstrates that we have been more than willing to put in the hard work required to join the EU. We recognize that there is no shortcut or backdoor to membership. We are ready to be judged purely on our own merits.
And yet, twenty years after the Thessaloniki Summit, which promised membership to the whole region, we cannot say that anyone in Europe or in the Balkans is satisfied with the progress achieved toward that aim. The time has come for the EU to shift its vision for the region. It should tie the path to membership to progress on reforms. If a country backslides democratically and is called a frontrunner for EU accession, it undermines the whole enlargement process and its transformational aspect that has kept the European spirit alive. This is why EU funds should be linked with EU values and the benefactors of the EU should be countries that align with CFSP, that are showing progress in rule of law and the values the EU stands for.
On regional cooperation, we have signed the three mobility agreement as part of the Berlin Process and were the first country to ratify it in the Parliament, which proved our constructive role in the process. Every regional cooperation initiative should promote peace, security and stability, and bring the region closer to the European Union. The erection of barricades does not lead to regional cooperation, nor does informal support for organized crime groups and the non-recognition of documents. Regional cooperation should be based on the principles of equality and having in mind citizens as the ultimate beneficiaries.
As for the dialogue with Serbia, we are committed, constructive and creative. We believe the Basic Agreement between Kosova and Serbia constitutes an advancement of relations between two states. It is based on the universal principles of the equality of sovereigns, respect for territorial integrity, independence, renouncing objections to the membership of our Republic in international organizations, exchange of diplomatic missions through full-fledged ambassadors, recognition of state symbols, passports, etc. As for minority rights in Kosova, our constitution offers an extensive human rights framework and positive rights to our minorities.
The recent high-level meeting on the 2nd of May ended on a positive note where we jointly agreed on the text of the Agreement on Missing Persons. We know that there are also 1617 missing persons and here the victims are not only those who were kidnapped but also their families, and the entire people and society. We have treated the issue of Missing Persons with urgency, because the families of the victims have been living for more than twenty years in a state of traumatic anxiety.
In conclusion, I would say that all the recent positive steps, be it in our domestic reforms in rule of law and economic and social progress, or in the successes of visa liberalization and our Council of Europe bid, confirm that Kosova is making the right steps on the right path towards its European future.
Thank you very much!
