US Embassy: Political impasse is costing Kosovo, leaders must prioritize progress and stability

2025-08-21 17:30:17 / KOSOVA ALFA PRESS

US Embassy: Political impasse is costing Kosovo, leaders must prioritize

The US Embassy in Pristina said on Thursday that political deadlock is costing Kosovo and called on political leaders to prioritize the country's progress and stability.

In a written response to Radio Free Europe, an Embassy spokesperson said that parliamentary parties in Kosovo should work together to establish new institutions in accordance with the country's Constitution and the decisions of the Constitutional Court.

"This ongoing political deadlock is costing Kosovo lost opportunities. It is time for the leadership to prioritize progress and stability, for the good of all citizens," she said.

This statement by the US Embassy comes a day after the latest failure of MPs to break the deadlock, almost five months after the parliamentary elections.

The MPs gathered on Wednesday to continue the constitutive session, after two days ago the country's highest court published the full verdict regarding this issue, which obliges them to form a new Parliament within a period of 30 days, which expires on September 18.

However, the constitution failed after neither of the two candidates proposed by the election-winning party Vetevendosje – Albulena Haxhiu and Donika Gërvalla – managed to receive more than 57 votes, which is 4 votes less than the minimum 61 votes required to be elected.

On Wednesday, both the European Union and the Italian Embassy in Pristina called on parliamentary parties to establish the new institutions as soon as possible.

After the session, Vetëvendosje accused the other major parties in the Assembly, such as PDK, LDK and AAK, of proving that Haxhiu's name was not the main problem, but that they "are aiming to block the formation of institutions."

PDK reiterated its position that it only has votes for a Vetëvendosje candidate, who was not part of the Government in the previous mandate.

LDK said Vetevendosje knew that Haxhiu and Gërvalla did not have enough votes. In the past, LDK has repeatedly said that it will not vote for any Vetevendosje candidate for speaker of parliament.

Meanwhile, AAK said it expects that in the next session, Vetëvendosje will propose names for which it does not have support.

Kosovo held parliamentary elections in February, but has not been able to establish new institutions since then.

This entire months-long crisis comes as a result of the lack of a political agreement between parliamentary parties, as neither party won the majority to govern alone.

Vetëvendosje won 48 seats, PDK came in second with 24 seats, LDK third with 20, followed by the Serbian List – the largest Serb party in Kosovo – with 9, and the coalition between AAK and the Social Democratic Initiative, with 8.

Another 11 seats belong to minorities. /REL

 

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