PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) 鈥� President Vjosa Osmani said Friday after dissolving Parliament that a snap election should be held as soon as possible to avoid another prolonged political crisis in the Balkan country at a time of global turmoil.
Osmani told The Associated Press in an interview that it is important for Kosovo to wrap up the upcoming election process and form functional institutions for political stability as the war rages in the Middle East.
鈥淧recisely because the geopolitical situation is that complex, it is important to finish this electoral process which is coming up,鈥� Osmani said. 鈥淚t is very hard now to imagine what will happen next.鈥�
Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008 after a 1998-99 war, hosts a U.S. military base as part of a NATO-led peacekeeping mission. The war ended after NATO bombed Serbia for 78 days. does not recognize Kosovo鈥檚 split and tensions have simmered ever since. Belgrade has had the support of Russia and China. Unresolved relations with Serbia have blocked Kosovo鈥檚 attempts to become a candidate country for EU membership.
Osmani dissolved Parliament on Friday after lawmakers failed to elect her successor by a midnight Thursday deadline due to a lack of a quorum in the 120-member assembly.
Osmani is yet to schedule the early vote, which would be the third ballot in Kosovo in just over a year. An election in February 2025 resulted in no clear majority and an almost yearlong that forced a snap vote in
鈥淚t is a difficult time for the country, which I hope our institutions and all of our citizens will overcome with maturity and with dignity,” Osmani, who took office in 2021, said. She expressed hope 鈥渨e will once again show that our electoral democracy is strong.鈥�
Prime Minister Albin Kurti鈥檚 ruling Vetevendosje, or Self-Determination, party swept the early vote in December and made an alliance with ethnic minority groups to form a new government in February.
The party has asked the Constitutional Court to temporarily suspend the deadline for the election of Kosovo’s next president. Kurti has criticized Osmani鈥檚 decision to dissolve Parliament as 鈥渦nconstitutional.鈥�
It was not immediately clear when the court will rule.
Asked about potential security risks in Kosovo and wider in the volatile Balkans, Osmani said 鈥渢here is always a risk, so we need to be very careful.”
Kosovo is 鈥渃onstantly in full cooperation with our and with other European partners and other partners in the Middle East,鈥� said Osmani, who has joined U.S. President Donald Trump’s for Gaza.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there is a reason to panic at this point in time, but we鈥檙e undertaking every single measure to make sure that if someone ever thinks of that (attacks on Kosovo) that it is absolutely prevented.鈥�
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Jovana Gec contributed from Belgrade, Serbia.
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