Arbëresha Loxha, executive director of GLPS, assesses that the chronic lack of progress is leaving the country suspended on the global agenda. She emphasizes that this is one of the mechanisms through which Kosovo can prove to the European Union its seriousness in the integration journey and its ability to be a reliable partner of the bloc.

Despite the situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora stands by its strategy. In a written statement, this institution assures that the diplomatic apparatus continues to be active and is operating in several directions simultaneously.

According to the Ministry, efforts for membership in organizations in the political, economic, security, and cultural fields are underway. These initiatives, officials inform, are at various stages of consultations and coordination, while communication with international allies to gain support and new recognitions is uninterrupted.

Regarding membership in international mechanisms, the Ministry confirms active participation in organizations and forums of the political, economic, security, cultural, educational, and health spectrum. The steps taken, it clarifies, are in full compliance with the circumstances and the level of international support at any given moment.

At the same time, Kosovar diplomacy maintains ongoing contacts with various partner states and parties to expand the circle of supporters of the Republic of Kosovo and to create premises for further recognitions.

Experts on political developments stress that the swift formation of the new government is essential to avoid losing over 100 million euros from the EU’s Growth instrument. Every day of delay in consolidating executive power risks definitively blocking these strategic financial resources, which depend directly on meeting strict deadlines and implementing the reforms demanded by Brussels.

After failing to fully meet the objectives in the first deadline of June, where only half of the reforms were achieved, Kosovo now has time only until the end of this year to make its institutions functional. In the absence of an immediate agreement, the country faces the real risk of permanently forfeiting more than 100 million euros allocated from European funds.

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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.

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”.

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After the certification of the results of the June 7 elections, the focus of Kosovo politics has shifted to establishing new institutions. Among the first developments from political consultations, the Democratic Party of Kosovo has confirmed it will remain in opposition. This position was made public by PDK chairman Bedri Hamza after a meeting with the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement and acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti.

Although considerable time has passed since the election process ended, political parties have not yet reached an agreement that would allow the constitution of the Assembly and the formation of a new government.

As the party that came first in the elections, the Vetëvendosje Movement has opened the first round of talks with parliamentary parties, aiming to secure support for setting up the institutions. So far, these contacts have not produced concrete agreements, while differences among political sides remain pronounced.

Albin Kurti has announced that communication with other parties will continue in the coming days, indicating that negotiations have not yet reached a decisive moment. Meanwhile, the opposition has reaffirmed its positions on possible cooperation, presenting conditions and limits for any eventual deal.

In this situation, the main dilemma remains whether the talks will produce the necessary political compromise or whether Kosovo could face a prolonged institutional blockade.

According to assessments presented in the debate, the drama unfolding on Kosovo’s political stage aims to further weaken the LDK.

Qarri: Inter-party cooperation is not only a matter of political will, but also a responsibility to the electorate and a constitutional obligation to the state

Political analyst Gani Qarri spoke about the developments to “Bota sot,” assessing that the June 7 elections did not resolve the political stalemate.

According to Qarri, the parties must reach a consensus without delay on the creation of institutions and the election of the president. He stressed that the June 7 elections were the third in less than a year and a half, after the regular constitutional elections of February 9 and the snap elections of December 28, 2025.

The analyst said that even though Kosovo went through about 19–20 months of political deadlock and institutional blockades, the June 7 elections did not bring change to the institution-building process, except for determining which party would govern the country.

Qarri assessed that these elections also offered no solution for the issue of the president. He said that there is still no concrete agreement, despite the prime minister’s meetings with PDK and LDK representatives, adding that the parties’ games in Parliament should no longer be tolerated by Kosovo’s citizens. In his view, if the need arises, they should also be opposed through civic protests, so that staged and fictitious causes are no longer used as excuses for blockades and political delays.

He said that the consensus for electing the president has turned into an issue that worries citizens as well and has concentrated political and public attention in Kosovo. For this reason, Qarri called for the efforts of the ruling and opposition sides to be directed towards forming new institutions and electing the president, in order to restore the normal functioning of the state.

Further, the analyst argued that Vetëvendosje must continue talks, especially with the LDK, to secure an agreement on the president. He warned that the absence of an agreement could plunge the country into a political crisis again.

According to him, the ruling party won 47.13% of the votes, namely 53 seats in the new legislature. Qarri said that together with the non-Serb minorities, it has 61 guaranteed votes, enough to constitute the Assembly and form the Government, but not to elect a new president.

He added that it is claimed that under the “constitution,” for presidential voting in the 120-seat Assembly to be valid, the presence of 2/3 of deputies is required. According to Qarri, this fact caused the political crisis this year as well and led the country to the snap elections of June 7.

Qarri assessed that Vetëvendosje should enter a coalition with the LDK, not with Vjosa as president, but with her as Minister of Foreign Affairs or first Deputy Prime Minister, as a goodwill compromise on both sides.

The analyst said that Kurti, being aware that any delay harms the political process and sends a negative signal to Kosovo as a young state also in relation to the international community, must carry efforts for an agreement through to the end. According to him, negotiations with the opposition should continue in the days to come until a consensus is found for the election of the president.

He recalled that the failure to reach agreement among parties on a consensus president at the end of April this year resulted in the dissolution of the Assembly and the holding of the June 7 snap elections.

According to Qarri, the latest elections not only did not resolve the president issue but produced a roughly identical situation on the political scene. He warned that once again not electing a consensus president, even though it is a more ceremonial post, could lead Kosovo to yet another snap election, the fourth in just two years.

He stressed that such elections are not necessary and would not solve the president issue. According to him, Kosovo cannot be blocked and must not be forced to stand still or hold elections every three or four months, because the country and its citizens would bear the greatest consequences.

Qarri called on elected MPs and parties represented in Parliament to take their responsibilities seriously, as without a political agreement the country could again go to snap elections. He said that inter-party cooperation depends not only on political will but also constitutes a responsibility to the electorate and a constitutional obligation to the state.

According to the analyst, deputies who have received citizens’ trust must demonstrate responsibility, secure the necessary quorum in the Assembly, and make a personal contribution to electing the president. In this way, he said, the deadlock can be overcome and further damaging and unnecessary elections avoided.

Qarri concluded by saying that only in this way can the odyssey of unusual political blockades be closed and the unhindered work of institutions guaranteed. He criticized the blockades that, according to him, are staged by the current parties, which receive hefty salaries from the country’s poor taxpayers, saying these approaches have no real legal foundation and serve to delay the formation of institutions and obstruct the normal functioning of the Republic of Kosovo.

Tahiraj: Weakening the LDK would simultaneously weaken the main pillar of Euro-Atlantic orientation

On the same topic, diaspora activist Saim Tahiraj also spoke to “Bota sot.”

Tahiraj assessed that the political actions of the Vetëvendosje Movement, according to him, are not only related to the creation of institutions but also aim to politically weaken the LDK.

He expressed doubt that the current meetings and talks could be part of a strategy to damage the LDK’s position, even if an agreement for co-governance is reached.

According to Tahiraj, the political war of the left wing, inherited from the LPK and continued by its political successors—the LVV, PDK, and AAK—has never ceased. He said the objective remains weakening up to the destruction of the LDK, so that the direction of the Kosovo state ultimately remains in the hands of the left.

He referred to the meeting between LVV chairman Albin Kurti and PDK chairman Bedri Hamza, which was presented to the public as a meeting without result or agreement. However, Tahiraj said there is a possibility this was a tactical move to create space for new contacts and a potential coalition with the LDK.

If this thesis is correct, according to Tahiraj, every political action by Kurti would aim to politically weaken the LDK, compromise it before the electorate, and remove it from the scene as a decision-making factor. He assessed that forming institutions does not appear to be the main priority, while political gain at the expense of the opponent appears as the principal goal.

Tahiraj declared that he remains skeptical about a possible coalition between the LVV and the LDK. Even if such an agreement were reached, he warned it could be used as a tool for the political consumption of the LDK and its subsequent removal from the game.

In closing his statement, the activist called on the leaders and members of the LDK to act with prudence, unity, and care in decision-making. He said that the weakening of this party would affect not only its political weight but also Kosovo’s Euro-Atlantic and state-building orientation.

According to Tahiraj, the LDK leadership must display wisdom, prudence, and determination, weighing every decision carefully. He said the consequences would not be limited to the party but would also affect the political orientation of the state of Kosovo.

He assessed that weakening the LDK would simultaneously mean weakening the main pillar of Euro-Atlantic orientation and the state-building philosophy this party has represented over the years.

Tahiraj said that the ongoing political attacks by leftist opponents, accompanied by the actions of persons many consider a “fifth column” within the LDK itself, could produce severe consequences. For this reason, he called for vigilance, unity, responsibility, and resilience from every LDK member, from the rank-and-file to the Central Presidency.

History, according to Tahiraj, has shown that the greatest challenges are overcome not with emotions but with wisdom, unity, and faith in the values upon which the LDK was built. He stressed that precisely these values must be preserved today as well.

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Former delegate Jakup Ballatovci stressed that lawmakers should play a unifying role and place the state’s interest above individual interests, recalling that, in his view, the delegates of 1990 were distinguished by their unity.

Ballatovci: Grudges should be set aside and the new institutions should be formed

“I appeal to them to be unifying. They should be fully worthy of the role of a lawmaker and have state interests, not personal ones. As a people, as delegates of that time, we were united and dealt only with the national cause, not personal matters. I appeal for the state institutions to be constituted within a short time,” he says.

A similar message was also delivered by former delegate Nezir Sallahu, who assessed that unity remains the key element for overcoming every political and state challenge. He recalled that the delegates of that time achieved major results precisely thanks to their unity, even though they were operating under harsh circumstances.

Sallahu: Parties should come together to form the institutions

“My message is that they should be together. They should solve problems together because without unity there is nothing. Therefore, I ask them to be united on every issue, whether political, economic or any other. We were very united, because if we had not been united, we would not have managed to achieve these results and great work. At that time, when we proclaimed the Constitutional Declaration, the buildings here were full of snipers,” Sallahu says.

Former delegate Agush Balaj also urged lawmakers to show commitment in fulfilling their obligations and to act for the benefit of citizens. He underlined that after the elections, the Assembly should be constituted, the Government should be formed and the president should be elected, calling on political representatives not to be guided by ego and party interests.

Balaj: The government should be formed and the president elected – leaders should not become selfish

“Now I appeal to the lawmakers elected on June 7, although it is still unclear whether their certification will take place, for everyone to commit themselves professionally and implement the interests of the base they come from. With certain goals, for economic development, education and justice…. The elections have been held, the Assembly should be constituted, the government formed and the president elected; they should not be selfish, regardless of which party they belong to,” he emphasizes.

The Central Election Commission published the final results of the June 7 elections on June 27.

From this electoral process, Lëvizja Vetëvendosje emerged as the leading force, in a pre-election coalition with Guxo and Alternativa, with 47.13%, securing 53 seats. The Democratic Party of Kosovo received 19.44% and won 22 seats, the Democratic League of Kosovo secured 18 seats with 16.69%, while the Alliance won seven seats with 6.74%.

In addition to constituting the Assembly and creating the government, lawmakers of the eleventh legislature also have the obligation to elect the new president, for which the deadline is 60 days from the moment the Assembly is constituted.

The June 7 elections were held precisely after the parliamentary parties failed to elect the country’s president following the end of former President Vjosa Osmani’s term.

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In a joint appearance before the media, representatives of the Kosovo Police, the Emergency Management Agency, the Kosovo Forestry Agency, the Kosovo Hydrometeorological Institute and the Department of Forestry stressed that every act of arson, whether intentional or caused by negligence, will be treated seriously and in accordance with the legislation in force.

The Director General of the Kosovo Police, Gazmend Hoxha, said citizens must act responsibly during the hot season, recalling that the Criminal Code provides penalties ranging from six months to 10 years in prison for the criminal offense of arson.

According to him, during 2025 and 2026, the Kosovo Police carried out 1,222 interventions in fire cases, opened 258 criminal cases and arrested 37 people.

Hoxha stressed that the conference was also organized as a public appeal for caution during the summer, but also to coordinate actions among institutions so that there are as few fires as possible and damage from reported cases is kept to a minimum. He added that people identified and arrested by the Kosovo Police in these cases are sent to the prosecution for further procedures, while for arson, under Article 322, the prescribed sentence is from six months to 10 years.

He also announced that, compared with 2024, reported cases of intentional arson increased from 264 to 469 cases in 2025, or about 70 percent more.

Acting Director of the Emergency Management Agency, Shefki Avdullahu, said the institution he leads has raised the level of readiness across all structures.

He underlined that 11,466 fire hotspots were recorded in Kosovo in the last season alone, which according to him requires broad involvement of institutions at both the central and local levels.

Avdullahu said emergency operations centers work without interruption, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, while regional emergency management centers carry out continuous monitoring and coordinate with the local level. He stressed that all arson cases, regardless of whether they are intentional or the result of negligence, will be handled in full compliance with the law in force. According to him, those responsible will face punitive measures and legal procedures without any exception, describing this as a clear message of the state’s commitment to protecting public order and the environment. However, he stressed that no institutional mechanism can be fully effective without the cooperation of citizens.

Avdullahu repeated that those responsible will face the appropriate punishments and called on citizens not to light fires in open spaces, not to burn waste, and to report every case to the emergency number 112.

For his part, senior hydrologist at the Kosovo Hydrometeorological Institute, Bashkim Kastrati, said the institution monitors meteorological conditions in real time through 24 automatic stations, which supply data to the national forest fire management platform.

Kastrati said that during periods of high temperatures, the Kosovo Hydrometeorological Institute continuously increases vigilance through notices it publishes for the wider public, as well as to inform institutions.

The acting executive director of the Kosovo Forestry Agency, Menderes Ibra, said that in 2025, fires affected 2,230 hectares of forest, of which 1.37- hectares were state forests and 863 hectares were private forests.

He said the consequences of fires are not measured only by economic loss.

According to Ibra, there were 34 reported cases in the Prishtina region, 20 in the Mitrovica region, 3 in the Peja region, 44 in the Prizren region, 6 in the Ferizaj region and 32 in the Gjilan region. He stressed that forest damage is a major concern not only for the Forestry Agency, but for society as a whole, because in addition to burning forests and economic loss, it also brings destruction of flora and fauna, devastation of water resources, an impact on the release of carbon dioxide and changes in air quality.

Director of the Department of Forestry, Tahir Ahmeti, said high temperatures and low soil moisture significantly increase the risk of fires breaking out, which is why greater institutional coordination and cooperation with citizens are required.

Ahmeti said the country is entering a period of high temperatures and low soil moisture, creating great potential for fires. He stressed that, from a legislative standpoint, the forest law stipulates that setting fires or burning these wooded environments is sanctioned by law and all persons who commit such an act will face the full force of the law. According to him, preventive measures for protecting forests from fire are defined through ten-year management plans, and the institutions that manage forests are legally obliged to have and implement them as prescribed. He added that dependence on climatic conditions makes this process quite complex, as forests have always been among the ecosystems most threatened by degradation as a result of fire.

Ahmeti also recalled that the law prohibits lighting fires within a distance of 500 meters from forests, except in specially designated areas for that purpose, and stressed that violators will be punished according to the sanctions provided by law.

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He stressed that he will ask the Vetëvendosje Movement to use all possible initiatives to secure agreement with political parties, especially regarding the election of the president.

“First, in this case, I will ask the prime minister, or Vetëvendosje, to use every form of initiative that can bring us to cooperation, especially with the Albanian parties regarding the selection of the president, because I consider this to be the key, so to speak, or a potentially weak point in this whole process we now have after the elections,” Rashiq said.

According to Rashiq, political entities must act in a way that prevents the country from once again facing a lost year as a result of a political crisis.

“I place great trust in the strategic assessments made by the European Union. Since we acknowledge that the EU is an unavoidable goal, the only goal that all of us politicians and all systems in the Balkans should have, then their words, when they said that 2025 had been a lost year, personally affected me, because I do not want us as institutions to have lost years because of political crises. Therefore, let us avoid the next assessment that 2026 is also considered a lost year,” he declared.

He appealed to the parties to set aside clashes and enter into cooperation, assessing that there would be no justification for failing to form the institutions.

“To tell you the truth, if there is no solution now, then we politicians truly need a special law, a special commission, where a psychiatrist should chair the commission. There really is no other explanation, because for me this would personally be a failure of the system I have believed in for 20 years now,” Rashiq said.

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This statement came after a meeting between the acting head of the EU in Kosovo, Eva Palatova, and the EU Director for Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood for the Western Balkans, Valentina Superti.

Palatova welcomed Superti to Pristina before she was due to hold meetings with institutional representatives and civil society.

“The acting head of the EU in Kosovo, Eva Palatova, is pleased to welcome the EU Director for Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood for the Western Balkans, Valentina Superti, to Pristina this evening, ahead of her meetings with institutional and civil society representatives tomorrow. Kosovo needs institutional stability to fully benefit from the new momentum of EU enlargement, the Growth Plan and IPA,” the statement said.

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According to him, the country has gone through a difficult year, as the failure to form a government and elect a president makes it hard to create an impression of institutional stability.

Serwer underlined that such episodes are familiar in parliamentary systems, but assessed that the period Kosovo has gone through politically has not been a good one.

“You know, parliamentary systems have moments like these and you have had many of them over the past year. That has been regrettable. Frankly, I think it has not been a good year for Kosovo. It is difficult to project an image of institutional stability and durability when you are unable to form a government, when you cannot elect a president. Therefore, I very much hope that this time you will succeed. Compromises will be necessary,” Serwer said.

He added that building institutions requires compromise and shared governance, stressing that in parliamentary systems the president is elected by parliament, which he said often produces political difficulties.

“I think I just said it: get to work, form the government,” he said.

Regarding the issue of energy and American gas, Serwer said he does not have enough information to make a full assessment, but stressed that from an environmental point of view, natural gas is more favorable than lignite.

In conclusion, he assessed that Kosovo’s relationship with the United States remains stable and unchanged, despite changes in government.

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