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By:
Marigona Brahimi
- 15 May 2026 19:05
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In her first visit since taking office, Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos was welcomed by Acting President Albulena Haxhiu, Acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti, and other political representatives. Speaking about Kosovo's European perspective, Kos said that it also depends on progress in the dialogue with Serbia, while Kurti called for a meritorious integration process. The two also spoke about Serbia and its obligations in relation to the suspects in the terrorist attack in Banjska.
The European Union (EU) Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, visited Kosovo on Friday and, in a meeting with the highest state representatives, received the message for Kosovo's meritorious treatment in the European integration process.
On her first visit since taking office, she was welcomed by the acting president, Albulena Haxhiu, the acting prime minister, Albin Kurti, and other political representatives.
In a press conference after meeting with Kurti, Kos linked Kosovo's path to EU membership to the success the country can have in the dialogue with Serbia and in implementing reforms. She also called for institutional stability.
"We do not work with dates, but progress and the path followed are also important. The more successful Kosovo is in implementing reforms and the more successful it is in the Pristina-Belgrade dialogue, the greater the chances that we can start negotiations, real negotiations."
"So, this is the political part," Kos emphasized.
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She said that beyond the political aspect, it is also important for Kosovo to engage with member states individually.
"As you know, the accession process has a part of technical negotiations, while the other part is related to the political dynamics in the member states. And my call to action to every candidate country is to engage with the member states as well, and then this can happen. Therefore, I cannot give you a specific year, but I am 100 percent sure and I will work tirelessly for the goal of bringing Kosovo closer and closer to the European Union," Kos said.
Kosovo is the only country in the region that has not yet been granted candidate country status. This is despite the application it made in 2022. The application has not been reviewed, and an obstacle to its consideration is the fact that Kosovo is still not recognized as a state by five EU member states: Greece, Spain, Romania, Slovakia and Cyprus.
Prime Minister Kurti was the one who, during the Czech Presidency of the EU, submitted the application for membership.
At the joint press conference with the Commissioner for Enlargement, he said that he also raised the issue of candidate status and the opening of negotiations.
"It has been over 40 months since we applied and the renewed momentum of enlargement by the European Union should result in Kosovo's well-deserved advancement," he said, recalling that in Kosovo, public support for the European Union, for EU membership, consistently stands at around 90 percent, among the highest of all candidate countries.
Kurti said he is aware of the challenges that exist, but called for unity in commitment.
"Finding unity within the European Union to make decisions regarding Kosovo is a shared task. Of course, we are working with the member states, but it is also required that the European Union institutions push this unity forward. Enlargement is the most successful tool of the European Union's foreign policy," said Prime Minister Kurti. "We have made progress in fundamental pillars and we are convinced that this deserves to be recognized by the European Union in the context of enlargement. We are not looking for shortcuts or backdoors, only a meritorious process."
He stressed that the vacuum left by the European Union is intended to be filled by other malicious actors, who, according to him, undermine the values of the EU and endanger common security. In emphasizing this, he assessed that it is everyone's responsibility for Kosovo to advance in the integration process.
The Prime Minister announced that regional cooperation was also discussed during the meeting.
"The main key to successful regional cooperation is good European neighborliness. Kosovo has experienced two terrorist attacks in the last three years, in Banjska, on September 24, 2023, and in the Iber-Lepenc canal, on critical infrastructure on November 29, 2024. Both of these were directed and financed by our northern neighbor," Kurti said. "Accountability for these attacks is essential, as without accountability the risk to our security remains high. We have an aggressor and aggressive neighbor who attacks instead of cooperating. This is a challenge for both security and regional cooperation."
Meanwhile, Commissioner Kos said that the EU enlargement process should be pushed forward also due to the security aspect and assessed Kosovo's role in this regard as key.
"When we discussed Kosovo's role in this, there can be no security in Europe without Kosovo. Kosovo is an integral part of a bigger picture, which is why enlargement today is much more than just enlargement. It is about taking care of security in Europe, about being together, about regional cooperation that you mentioned, and of course through integration into the European Union," Kos said.
Meanwhile, when speaking about Serbia's membership in the EU, she emphasized that her lack of commitment regarding the terrorist attack in Banjska should not be interpreted as such.
"Regarding Serbia and the omissions that have been made in the past, it is an important part of how Serbia will pave its own path, meaning its commitment to Banjska and their lack of commitment is not good to pass by like that," she emphasized.
Kos stressed that institutional stability is also important for the path forward in the integration process, which Kosovo has not had for more than a year, when two national elections were held and the third is scheduled for June 7.
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"One of my greatest tasks is to ensure a much stronger integration of Kosovo into the European Union. My very clear call during this visit is also to ask all political actors here to find a way to restore institutional stability," she said.
Meanwhile, asked whether Kosovo risks losing funds if institutions are not established by June due to early elections, Kos said that payments depend on Kosovo fulfilling its obligations.
"So, this Growth Plan is based on a special financial instrument with some rules. And the rules are that if your country, Kosovo, implements its obligations, then you can receive the payments. I am very happy that during this election period and the interim period, your parliament has been able to ratify two important agreements, which have again made possible the first payment, of more than 60 million euros," Kos emphasized.
Kurti also referred to the issue of lack of stability and its consequences.
"We have ratified the Growth Plan agreements, we also approved the decision on the implementation system and on April 16 we started receiving pre-financing in the amount of 61.8 million euros. Six steps of the reforms have been confirmed by the European Commission and we expect further steps by the June deadline", said Kurti. "However, the lack of a functional Parliament during the past year, but also now, has caused some reforms to be delayed and are now at risk even for the June deadline. We are working maximally to minimize the impact on the reforms that the blockade in the Parliament is causing."
He said that in recent years, Kosovo has advanced in preparation in many chapters. According to him, progress has been marked at a moderate level of preparation in 5 chapters and at a certain level of preparation in 8 other chapters. Also, from limited progress to significant progress, according to Kurti, it has gone from 18 chapters and from significant progress to good progress in 5 other chapters. He described this as continuous and sustainable progress.
He also spoke about other achievements.
"We have the most advanced constitutional framework for minority rights in the region. The Council of Europe's report on the assessment of our application for membership emphasizes that Kosovo's legal framework, in the case of the Constitution, goes beyond international standards," Kurti said.
Before Commissioner Kos, the Prime Minister also referred to statistics for the state.
"In the last six years, we have advanced 28 places in the Corruption Perceptions Index, while this year we advanced 15 positions in the Media Freedom Index. We are third among 15 countries in Southeast Europe and second among six countries in the Western Balkans for advancement in the rule of law. Our economy has been growing continuously and is stable in progress, with an increase of 4 percent of the gross domestic product," he said.
Likewise, he emphasized that Kosovo shares common values with the European Union and is fully aligned with the EU's Foreign and Security Policy.
"We have condemned Russian aggression in Ukraine in the strongest terms; we have provided military and humanitarian support to Ukraine, we have provided shelter to Ukrainian journalists, and we have joined all sanctions against the Russian Federation," Kurti recalled.
During the conference, he emphasized that Kosovo is a proactive state and has also contributed to the economic integration of the region.
"In CEFTA, in our direct representation for the first time, we successfully chaired it while also passing all the remaining protocols in the Assembly. We have five agreements that we have signed in the Berlin Process which is now closely linked to the Regional Common Market. Those agreements must be implemented. Bosnia and Herzegovina, as you know, has not yet lifted visas for Kosovo, while Serbia is blocking the agreement on the recognition of diplomas which is in full compliance with the standards and directives of the European Union", said Kurti.
Kosovo has contractual relations with the European Union, has visa liberalization, is part of the Regional Common Market and the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, as well as part of the EU's pre-accession instruments. But, so far, it does not have the status of a candidate country.
The EU remains Kosovo's strategic partner and its largest donor. Since 1999, the European Union has invested over 3.7 billion euros in Kosovo.
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And, Friday's visit to Kosovo is the first for the EU Enlargement Commissioner since taking office in 2024. Her agenda does not include any visits to other countries in the region, before or after her stay in Pristina.
Kos had planned a visit to Kosovo on March 12, but it was canceled due to the decree issued by then-President Vjosa Osmani to dissolve the Parliament.
