EU Commissioner visits Kosovo, urges reform and Serbia relations

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos carried out her first official visit to Kosovo, on Friday, where calls were reignited over Pristina’s stalled membership bid to the EU.

Kos reiterated the EU’s support for Kosovo and its place in Europe, encouraging the country to normalize relations with Serbia and continue implementing reforms to begin negotiations over EU membership. “There can be no security in Europe without Kosovo,” said Kos.

The Slovenian politician assumed office in 2024, but she postponed her visit to Kosovo due to political developments, as the country prepares to hold its third election in just over a year.

“Kosovo urgently needs to catch up on EU-related priorities,” Kos said during a press conference with caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti in Pristina. “Kosovo needs stable institutions and an effective government,” she added.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and applied for EU membership in 2022, but major hurdles still stand in the way of candidate status.

Five EU countries — Spain, Greece, Romania, Slovakia, and Cyprus — still do not recognize Kosovo, while Belgrade also refuses to recognize its independence, which hinders the normalization of relations between the two sides.

Both issues remain paramount to Kosovo’s EU path, and its political instability has also deterred its progress, as it will hold snap elections on June 7 after its government collapsed after being unable to elect a president.

Some “41 months after we applied for EU membership, it is time for Kosova to receive its candidate status and open the accession negotiations,” Kurti wrote on social media. “The EU accession process will further consolidate Kosova’s democracy, increase economic growth, and improve the well-being of our citizens, which is a shared goal and a mutual interest.”