Acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti and LDK leader Lumir Abdixhiku are expected to meet today as part of efforts to establish the new institutions.
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This will be their second meeting since the certification of the results of the June 7 elections, as well as their first since Abdixhiku survived a no-confidence motion put to a vote by delegates from his own party.
Acting Foreign Minister and Vetëvendosje Movement Deputy Leader Glauk Konjufca has also spoken about the possibility of more advanced talks between the LVV and the LDK.
On Monday, Konjufca said that further meetings on forming the institutions could take place before the Assembly’s constitutive session, scheduled for Thursday.
“I expect further political meetings between the parties to take place in the coming days, even before the session, with the aim of resolving the current situation and paving the way for the establishment of the new institutions,” he said.
The LVV deputy leader also said he expects the Vetëvendosje Movement to send the Democratic League of Kosovo an invitation for talks in the coming days.
“That is precisely why August 6 was set, and I expect an invitation to be sent to the Democratic League of Kosovo in the coming days so that we can discuss this possibility,” Konjufca said.
Asked whether the establishment of the other institutions would be completed quickly after the Assembly is constituted, he said he was very optimistic that an agreement with the LDK could be reached on all senior positions.
“There is also hope regarding the position of president. We will enter into more in-depth negotiations with the Democratic League of Kosovo, as the prime minister has also explained, and then we will see what the outcome of this process will be,” he said.
Konjufca added that the LDK, through its leadership, had also made clear that it was willing to hold talks with the LVV.
“Once that happens, I am very optimistic that we will reach an agreement on all senior positions in the Republic of Kosovo. I believe a solution will be found,” he said.
Meanwhile, LDK Deputy Leader Lutfi Haziri said a few days after the publication of the June 7 election results that his party’s MPs—all 18 elected to the Kosovo Assembly—could vote as a unified bloc if the LVV, as the winner of the June 7 early parliamentary elections, offered the LDK the position of president through a potential agreement.
According to Haziri, the votes of the LDK’s MPs could be united only if the presidential candidate came from within the party and not from outside it.
“If the name were Lumir Abdixhiku, the party leader, or my name, then we could unite. Because of his official position, Lumir would be first, since he is the party leader. After him, I have the greatest consensus within the LDK,” Haziri said.
Will the New President Be Chosen from the LDK?
Analyst Nexhmedin Spahiu interprets Glauk Konjufca’s statement as part of a normal phase of negotiations between the two parties, in which each side is seeking to strengthen its position ahead of an agreement.
“Now they are trying to drive down each other’s asking price,” Spahiu told “Bota sot,” assessing that the LVV and the LDK have entered a more concrete stage of talks in which their willingness to compromise is being tested.
Spahiu stressed that Lutfi Haziri’s statement that LDK MPs would vote together only for a candidate from their own party does not necessarily mean that the next president will come from the LDK. According to him, it demonstrates the party’s effort to leverage its parliamentary weight and secure as much influence as possible in the process.
He believes the LDK is trying to use the position of president as a political tool to strengthen its post-election standing, while the LVV aims to keep the process under control without making significant concessions.
Comparing Haziri’s harsher statements after the elections with Konjufca’s more conciliatory approach, the analyst sees a noticeable change in the parties’ political conduct.
According to Spahiu, both parties needed to consolidate their electorates after the elections and therefore used stronger language. Now, as constitutional deadlines approach and pressure mounts to break the institutional deadlock, the rhetoric has softened and more room has emerged for in-depth negotiations.
Regarding potential LDK candidates, Spahiu believes that a figure with institutional experience and a less divisive profile within the political landscape would have a greater chance of securing consensus.
He mentioned Lutfi Haziri and other well-known LDK figures as names that could be discussed, but emphasized that the final decision would depend on the LVV’s willingness to accept such a candidate, as well as the LDK’s ability to keep its parliamentary group united.
According to Spahiu, an LVV-LDK agreement on the presidency would also have a major impact on the other opposition parties.
He believes such a pact would signal the creation of a new axis of cooperation between the two largest Albanian parties and would leave the PDK and the AAK playing a more peripheral role in decision-making processes.
At the same time, the agreement could be seen as a sign of institutional stability and political responsibility, particularly at a time when the country needs functioning institutions and international partners expect greater political consensus.
Potential Offers, the Presidency and New Elections
In comments to “Bota sot,” analyst Nexhat Haziri discussed the offers Albin Kurti might make to Lumir Abdixhiku.
Citing his sources, Haziri said Kurti has taken a firm position on the election of the president.
“Regardless of the statements by Mr. Konjufca or Mr. Haziri, Kurti will offer the LDK only three or four ministries and, possibly, the position of Assembly speaker, so that the party joins the governing coalition. For Kurti, it would be a partner without political power that would not create difficulties for him during his term in government.
“Considering the internal situation within the LDK, where Mr. Abdixhiku controls only nine MPs, he could be removed from the coalition at any moment Kurti deemed necessary without jeopardizing the parliamentary majority.
“However, the main issue remains the election of the country’s president. According to my sources, Kurti is determined that the position should go to him and that even a coalition agreement with the LDK would not guarantee the election of the president.
“So far, we have not seen, nor has Mr. Kurti expressed, any willingness for the position of president to go to another party or to a potential coalition partner, which could be the LDK.
“Therefore, in this regard, several ministries and participation on boards would be enough for Mr. Abdixhiku, primarily to appease his supporters and continue his internal battle in the LDK against his party rivals,” Haziri said.
Haziri said the LDK does not have sufficient power to resolve the presidential election on its own, while warning that the country could be heading toward new elections.
“Mr. Kurti is also aware that the LDK alone is not enough to bring the process of electing the president to a conclusion. If he wants to establish new institutions in the country and pull it out of the political and institutional crisis, there is only one path: a compromise agreement with all political parties so that the president is nominated by the opposition parties.
“Any other effort will produce no result, just as today’s meeting between Albin Kurti and Lumir Abdixhiku will not produce a solution.
“The country is likely heading toward new elections with a fragmented LDK, which would benefit the LVV. I do not believe Kurti will fail to take advantage of this momentum, which could increase his share of the vote,” Haziri concluded.
