NATO, EU reinforce contingents in Kosovo before February 9th elections

NATO and the European Union are sending resources to Kosovo for regular parliamentary elections on February 9th.

NATO's Western military alliance said it has sent an additional 200 Italian soldiers to Kosovo to strengthen its peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR, which now has close to 4,000 troops out of 50,000 as many as there were in 1999 when the soldiers of this mission were deployed.

KFOR said it is strengthening its presence in Kosovo and the Italian infantry brigade “Sasari” will carry out “a series of activities, along with KFOR troops”.

This “force will be deployed in response to any important development of the security situation, including during the election period”, KFOR said.

Days earlier, concerns over Kosovo election period even chief NATO, Mark Rutte. He said he is in contact with Kosovo and Serbia, to make sure there is no destabilisation during the February 9th parliamentary elections.

Parliamentary elections in Kosovo will also be monitored by the European Union, which has announced a mission of 100 observers.

Natalia Loisau, French member of the European Parliament, will lead the European bloc's mission for monitoring elections. It has declared that this mission highlights the EU's continued support for Kosovo to further strengthen its democratic governance”.

She said the February 9th vote will show “the purity of Kosovo's political landscape”.

This will be the EU's seventh election observer mission in Kosovo.

The election campaign, which began on January 11th, according to nongovernmental organisations in Kosovo monitoring the process, is being characterised with stimulating and hate speech on political grounds.

In the February 9th parliamentary elections, 28 political subjects and an independent candidate compete.

Four candidates for prime minister Albin Kurti from the Vetevendosje Movement, Bedri Hamza from the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Lumir Abdzidzic from the Democratic League of Kosovo and Ramush Haradinaj from the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo ) have focused energy on domestic politics and charges against each other.

These elections are seen by many as a test for the power of Prime Minister Albin Kurti and his party, while tensions are high with Serb minority and neighbouring Serbia.

Neither of them has cited as the main pledge normalising reports with Serbia.

Finally tensions have increased due to some actions taken by Kosovo authorities in the municipalities where Serbs live. On January 15th, Serbian institutions were shut down in ten Kosovo municipalities, as authorities in Pristina said they were illegal institutions.

However, the closure of several parallel municipalities in Serbia, as well as post and tax offices in ten municipalities south of Ibri, was described in contradiction.

This, after the Constitutional Prosecutor in Pristina, declared on January 15th that he had not authorised the Kosovo Police for conducting this operation, as there was no official request.

The closure of such institutions by Kosovo authorities has started since early 2024.

In addition to their provisional municipal bodies and public enterprises, Serbia's Post in the north, the Savings Post Bank, the National Bank Treasury, the Fund for Pension Security and Invaldor Directorate, the Administrative Circle of Kosovo Mitrovica and others. Mostly, only educational and health institutions, which in Serbian areas also work in the Serbian system, have continued to operate.

Serbs in northern Kosovo enjoy Belgrade's support, which has financed parallel structures there, but has also supported Serbian citizens through pensions or even other additions.

The United States and the European Union have rejected much of Pristina's actions in northern Kosovo, as well as the European Union, praising them as unregistered acts.

The European bloc has called on Kosovo and Serbia to normalise reports within the Brussels dialogue, saying normalisation is a condition for advancing states towards European integration. / REL