Joining the Ministry of Integration with the MPJ would be wrong

The Vetevendosje movement and the Democratic League of Kosovo have agreed that Kosovo's future government will have no more than 12 ministries.

An idea has even been given to join the Foreign Ministry of European Integration.

But Epic Institute Executive Director Demush Shasha, in an interview given for Online Economy, has cited several reasons why such an idea is wrong.

It says that European integration is national and strategic interest, so there should be room for action in this area.

“in this context we are based on the experiences of the countries of the region we have recommended that the Ministry of Integration merge under the Office of Prime Minister, so that the integration process is under prime minister's responsibility. And here we've mentioned some reasons why: The first is that the integration process is the process of national interest, is the strategic determination of our society to join the EU. As such, he enjoys 90 per cent support from citizens to join the EU”, he says.

He says the integration process has more to do with internal reforms, and that very little is involved in foreign affairs.

A responsibility this big cannot be delegated to any government dictatorship, such a huge institutional responsibility belongs only to the prime minister. The integration process is the process of internal reforms, it has nothing to do with foreign affairs, such as foreign ministry affairs. The integration process concerns our internal reforms, and as such in the government is a person who is in charge of all these reforms, and he is Prime Minister”, Shasha has said.

If that happens, Shasha warns that the prime minister may be unaware of all developments in the integration agenda. While the foreign minister says there will not be much time to deal with integration processes.

But what happens in such a scenario. The preconditions necessary for slowing our reforms on the integration path will be created, because now a situation where the prime minister will not be informed of all developments in the integration agenda, the prime minister will create a working distance with the integration process, while on the other hand, the foreign minister will not have enough time to deal with the integration process, since the priority for it will be the foreign affairs of our Republic<1>, Shasha said.

While the merger of other ministries, he sees it as the process that can be done.

Parties expected to come to power LVV and LDK this week have held the fourth consecutive meeting to co-ordinate their programme.