5 hours agoSwedish Ambassador: Kosovo situation could be exploited by those who do not recognise independence
Periskopi(10 months ago)
(10 months ago)Sweden's Ambassador to Kosovo, Jonas Westerlund, has said Kosovo is in a sensitive situation, which states that do not recognise its independence can exploit. However, it has estimated that the country has achieved much since the war, but the process “has not yet completed”. Westerlund has remembered Sweden's experience in [...]
However, it has estimated that the country has achieved much since the war, but the process “has not yet completed”.
Westerlund recalled Sweden's experience in 2018, when government formation lasted several months, but through dialogue and compromise an agreement was reached. “But I have not seen so much dialogue among political parties (in Kosovo) to reach agreement. This is missing, compromise is not something negative,” he stressed.
“As I have said before, there are many Western democracies where the formation of government lasts and poses a challenge. But the problem with Kosovo is that it is in a very sensitive position. It is the newest democracy in Europe and is not a member of Euro-Atlantic structures, so it is more vulnerable. This situation affects some areas. First, the link between voters and political leaders is threatened if the latter fail to fulfill their promises. Second, the functioning of the democratic state is currently at risk, about 17 institutions are not functioning properly, and this is a very dangerous route for Kosovo”.
As far as the situation was concerned, we had something similar in Sweden in 2018, where two coalitions were very close to mandates, but neither had the absolute majority. It took us several months to find a solution, but we finally made a compromise. What was done was that political parties repeatedly discussed, hours of talks to find a common platform and solutions. I don't know what happens behind the scenes here, but I haven't seen so much dialogue among political parties to reach agreement. This is missing, compromise is not something negative,” the ambassador for EO added.
I would say that Kosovo is the newest democracy in Europe and has achieved much since the war, but the process is not yet complete. It has not been recognised by all member states of the international community, nor by many international organisations. So it's a success story, but we're not in a stable position yet. For this reason, Kosovo is in a sensitive situation now and that can be exploited by those who do not support its independence. That's what we need to keep in mind,” down Westerlund./Periscopi/
