Tallinn, Estonia, November 18, 2022
Dear Prime Minister Kallas,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you Prime Minister Kallas for your invitation and your warm welcome in this first visit of me and our delegation as Prime Minister and the new government of the Republic of Kosova.
The Republic of Estonia is a friend and a strategic partner for the Republic of Kosova. We share the common values of freedom, democracy and equal opportunity for all.
With the Prime Minister, we have discussed important topics for our two countries, but also for our continent.
We spoke about the war in Europe, that is, Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion and military aggression in Ukraine, and its global implications, with a particular focus on Estonia as well as Kosova.
The Republic of Kosova has strongly condemned the invasion since day one and we stand in solidarity with the people and the state of Ukraine, by imposing sanctions in line with the European Union and the United States of America.
Allow me to express again our appreciation for Estonia’s continuous support throughout our state-building phases, especially in the advancement of Kosova towards EU integration.
The Government of Kosova appreciates the support of the Republic of Estonia for visa liberalization and also the support for Kosova’s membership in international organizations.
We consider integration into the EU and NATO as a natural process that is based on the strategic orientation of Kosova. We intend to start the process of applying for the Status of Candidate Country and Estonia’s support in this regard will be highly appreciated.
Our two countries, Kosova and Estonia, have excellent bilateral relations as well as a similar historical past. Hence, the Republic of Kosova takes seriously the Estonian model in many aspects of state building, particularly in relation to institutional capacities in public administration reform. We have to have a strong and democratic state. We have a lot to learn from the Estonian success story in digital government.
We are very happy that we have already established cooperation with the Estonian e-Governance Academy. eGA is helping us with the development of our new e-Government strategy which will serve as a roadmap for digital transformation in our government.
I spoke with Prime Minister Kallas about Kosova’s progress in a year and a half that we are governing and the results we have achieved in the development of the economy, but also in the improvement of all indicators of democracy.
We have shown that democracy and economic progress go hand-in-hand. Because there are some autocratic powers and superpowers who want to show that development does not need democracy, but actually it does.
Of course, essential to democracy is the closely related principle of rule of law. In the past year, we improved by 17 places in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index, and another 17 places in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index. And we are number one in the Balkan’s region regarding rule of law, according to the World Justice Project.
We have made great efforts to strengthen the rule of law and we have succeeded in fighting smuggling, crime and corruption.
We have also started reforms in the administration and the justice sector and recently opened the Commercial Court to resolve disputes between businesses in record time. Our progress on democratization has been equally matched by our economic advancement. All of this has helped to create a better environment for doing business in Kosova. And I look forward to increasing our economic cooperation and trade exchange.
Economic potential, educated human capital, a young and talented population, a favorable business climate, and an advantageous geostrategic position make Kosova a very attractive country for foreign direct investments.
And our democratic government makes Kosova a factor of security and peace and stability in the region.
We are strongly committed to good neighborly relations, and Kosova has proven itself to be a reliable partner, and a faithful ally to all democratic states.
Thank you again Prime Minister Kallas and I am very happy to welcome you to Prishtina.
Last modified: November 21, 2022