The President: Kurt left no one without offense, left without political allies

Power can present dilemma when you have reached the name you have achieved as a rebel, as Kosovo's pending prime minister Albin Kurti is learning.

Kurti, 44, became known as an activist in the late 1990s, demonstrating against the growing depression against Kosovo Albanians from Serbia's Slbodan Milosevic. With long, rock-style hair, he led student protests at Pristina University, worked for the political arm of the Kosovo Liberation Army and was imprisoned by Milosevic's regime for nearly three years, Coha.net broadcasts.

In the postwar era, he began to criticise international missions committed to overseeing Kosovo's recovery, first the UN and then the EU.

When Kosovo gained its independence in 2008, he also criticised her, refusing to recognise her flag and preferring to present the flag to Albania's two-headed eagle, with which he assists the union. He has thrown tear gas into parliament and organised street demonstrations. International Democrats speak of him with tones of love, admiration and anger.

Kurti seemed to be enjoying his image of a problem, but in October, his party Vetevendosje received mostly votes in parliamentary elections; the surprising result that brought large crowds to the streets of Pristina. For his supporters, Kurti is an almost-Messian figure who promises to lead the troubled country into a new era.

But it's been three months and he's still waiting to get the keys to his office. With only 26.3 per cent of the vote, his party must form a coalition to govern and the problem is that its potential partners are the same parties he has so loud and consistently rejected. The Belgrade-backed Serbian list, which won the most votes among the Serb minority in Kosovo, representing 6 per cent of the population, has charged him with “and hatred of all Serbs” after he said the party would not be included in his government.

When he spoke of the “The Times” recently, Kurti was trapped in negotiations with the Democratic League of Kosovo, the second party in the elections, negotiations for which he said are “99 per cent finished”. But when the agreement seemed to have been reached, the negotiations failed again. Late last month, parliament gathered, but indicated there might be new elections. Isa Mustafa, the leader of the LDK, blamed Kurt for this blind road, saying Vetevendosje has a “feiting policy”.

Kurti meant there are many reasons to blame (LDK). Along with the PDK, the LDK has dominated Kosovo politics since the end of the 1998-1999 war. President Thaci, 51, former member of The PDK, too soon, could face an international tribunal about claims that it has led a network of organ trafficking during the war.

Corruption and nepotism have flourished during their leadership, while Serbia has launched a campaign to persuade states to withdraw recognitions of Kosovo's independence. In an effort to strengthen his international image and reach a quick agreement with Belgrade, Thaci launched secret negotiations for exchange of territories with Serbia's president, Allexander Vuciq; a plan unbacked by many helping Kurti, the harsh critic of this plan, win in the October elections.

The president had two years to convince the people of Kosovo of his idea of exchanging territories, and he succeeded in promoting the biggest protests in the history of post-war Kosovo against him. Failed”, Kurti said, broadcast Time.net.

For war crimes claims, Kurti says that if Thaci and Ramush Haradinaj, Kosovo's outgoing prime minister, have any charge of what they should answer, they should do so in a Kosovo court, not international. But he insists that the greatest concern is what they have done since the war ended.

We have tons of evidence of crimes during peace, and nothing is being done about them. How come they're some of the richest people in the country?

While Kurti has been negotiating with the LDK, Vetevendosje activists have continued to protest, the latest was against Vucinqi's visit to Tirana to talk with other Balkan leaders about creating the Balkan Mini-Schengen.

Kurti himself has changed our tone, more like a statesman, since the election, writing in his Twitter account that: “The principles of inclusion and reciprocity should guide regional initiatives. The road from Belgrade to Tirana runs through Pristina”. These days, he holds more frenzied and more visible costumes.

But critics say it may be impossible to rid Kosovo enough of its radical past, and make the compromises needed to reach a solution with Serbia, which is preventing Kosovo from exceeding its post-war paradigm. Even in his party, internal strife has flourished. Shpend Ahmeti, 41, chairman of Pristina from Vetevendosje, left the party in May 2018, saying he “no longer believes that the organisation, in its current situation, is the fastest way to change”.

Shkodran Ramadani, political analyst and former VV member who was expelled from the party six years ago because he accepted dialogue with Serbia, says Kurti, who has now opened up for the possibility of talks, is “-moded, but not much”.

That's why he won because people believe he's reformed. He has always said that Kosovo's demands are very small, and that he viewed as a weakness of the elite. Now he will see that he cannot force Serbia. If he thinks he can get Serbia's recognition without giving anything, then failure is guaranteed”, Ramadani says.

But his victory is positive in many ways. It is a breath of fresh air despite criticism. It will be easier for him to lead better than Haradinaj, but I will judge him according to his” standards.