With the certification of the results of the June 7 elections, Kosovo is now at a key political moment, with attention focused on establishing the new institutions.
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The consultation process has begun with the first meetings between the Vetëvendosje Movement, as the winning force, and opposition parties. However, these talks have yet to produce any concrete result.
Speaking to “Bota sot”, Professor Enver Bytyçi said that, following the completion and certification of the electoral process, the remaining issue is the establishment of the new state institutions.
He also commented on the meetings held between political leaders and reports about the possibility of an agreement between LVV and LDK.
“The elections in Kosovo have ended, the results have been announced and certified. Now the institutions must be established. Albin Kurti, as prime minister and leader of the majority, has met with two important opposition leaders: the chairman of the Democratic Party, Bedri Hamza, as well as the ‘two co-chairs’ of the Democratic League, Vjosa Osmani and Lumir Abdixhiku. Hamza has left no room for an agreement between the parties. Osmani and Abdixhiku, meanwhile, have kept that possibility open. There is much speculation about a coalition or agreement between Vetëvendosje and LDK. On the other hand, AAK has set conditions for supporting a coalition with VV. One of them is Kosovo’s acceptance of American investment in the energy sector. I cannot say that AAK is wrong, because I do not know the advantages and disadvantages of an agreement with the US on utilizing Kosovo’s energy potential. In principle, I would like close but also proper relations with the Americans; this also means tactical concessions in exchange for strategic support from Washington. But these are wishes. Concrete implementation comes through the relevant negotiations and agreements,” he said.
According to Bytyçi, negotiations have only just begun and it is still unclear whether the parties are discussing the election of the president or joint governance.
He assessed that, if the talks are related to the post of president, then the position could go to the opposition party that accepts LVV’s offer.
In this context, he considered LDK the party most likely to enter into a coalition with LVV, also mentioning the possibility that Vjosa Osmani may seek another presidential term.
“I think talks on forming the institutions have only just begun. We do not know whether the subject is the post of president or joint governance. If the discussion is about the president, then this means that the position should be given to the opposition party that responds to the majority’s offer. In this particular case, that party is expected to be the Democratic League of Kosovo. Kurti’s meeting with the two leaders of this party discussed this issue, but no one knows which name was put forward by LDK. It could be Vjosa Osmani, who had run for this post in the elections and may seek to hold it again. Another name may also have been mentioned. But I do not believe that Ms. Osmani has given up her ambition to continue serving as head of state for a second term. Her silence so far signals to me that she still hopes for this,”.
“If Kurti accepts the Democratic League’s proposal for Osmani, Abdixhiku will try to satisfy some of his associates with ministerial posts. This means that the Democratic League will seek participation in government with a considerable number of ministries, perhaps four to six of them, in addition to the post of president. An interesting development took place in recent days: the acting president, Ms. Albulena Haxhiu, decreed the appointment of the new chief prosecutor. The opposition did not react. Does this mean that Lumir and Vjosa gave their approval for the changes before the election of the president, as a guarantee that Vjosa, in that post, would not obstruct justice reform? And have they received Kurti’s consent in return to vote for her as a candidate? That, too, remains within the room or office where the discussions were held,” he elaborated.
The professor noted that LVV and LDK together cannot reach more than 81 votes. According to him, it remains uncertain whether all LDK MPs would vote for the president.
For this reason, he believes a broader agreement is needed to elect the head of state, mentioning possible arrangements with PDK or AAK to secure the required votes.
“What I observe is that the votes of the majority and LDK in parliament do not exceed 81. Fine, 80 votes are needed to elect the president, and it may be assumed that 81 are enough. But who guarantees that all these MPs will vote for Vjosa Osmani? Who guarantees that two or three MPs will not leave during the final voting session? It seems risky to me for the vote on the head of state to be held with a minimum number of votes. Therefore, a stronger solution is needed. Perhaps Bedri Hamza and his MPs will remain in the third session for the election of the president, although they will vote against, but this is not guaranteed. Perhaps Lista Srpska will also be present for circumstantial reasons or its own political calculations. This, too, however, remains a hypothesis. The problem is that a coalition with the Democratic League does not guarantee a quorum of MPs,”.
“Then, the backup scenario is the AAK MPs. If they remain in parliament, they should be publicly offered recognition of the conditions they have set. AAK aims to present itself as a pro-American party, while I believe that all political parties in Kosovo are such, except Lista Srpska. Perhaps even that list is, because of Grenell. But Grenell is against Kurti and has made no effort to persuade Lista Srpska to remain in the chamber during the election of the president,”.
In conclusion, Bytyçi stressed that these remain calculations and that there is still nothing final regarding how events may unfold. He nevertheless underlined that Kosovo must establish its new institutions as soon as possible.
According to him, the country cannot go to elections again, as such a process would harm Kosovo and set it back, as it has in the past.
“Despite all these calculations, I must say that Kosovo must have institutions at all costs. There is no possibility for the country to go to elections again. Otherwise, the new Milošević in Belgrade is ready to ethnically cleanse it of Albanians. We learned this once again directly from Vučić’s minister and Edi Rama’s partner in Serbia’s government. I do not know what more we need to learn in order to unite in the face of a new Serbian threat. Kosovo cannot return to the situation and status it had before 1999. If they want to return to that, then Bedriu, Lumiri, Ardiani and Albini with them should all drown together in a well, so that at least Kosovo can be saved from them. But God forbid that Hashim Thaçi should return in their place,” Enver Bytyçi concluded to “Bota sot”.
