Kurti’s Board for Peace and Restraint: Minimizing Osmani’s credits or a tactic to avoid offending Europe?

Kosovo’s membership in U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace is largely regarded within the Kosovo public as a positive step, even a privilege. While President Vjosa Osmani has been strongly promoting the initiative, the Government has remained notably silent on the matter. Given the global divisions sparked by the Board and the fact that the European countries that have joined it can be counted on one hand, it is not inconceivable that Albin Kurti’s tactic is to “have his cake and eat it too.” His silence may also aim to minimize Osmani’s credits ahead of the vote for the President of Kosovo, who will hold the position for the next five years. According to Kosovo Online’s interlocutors, both options remain in play.

Written by: Dusica Radeka Djordjevic

After signing on behalf of Kosovo during the founding ceremony of the Board of Peace in Davos in January, Vjosa Osmani last week also attended the Committee’s first meeting in Washington.

According to her, U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated strong support for Kosovo, and the participation of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) in an international stabilization mission will open the door to achieving the goal of NATO membership.

Apart from a brief comment—that Kosovo wishes to contribute to peace wherever needed—the absence of public support from Prime Minister Albin Kurti for the Board of Peace is striking.

On the other hand, Kosovo’s participation in the initiative was openly welcomed by Bedri Hamza, leader of the opposition Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), who stated that the PDK always supports Kosovo being wherever the United States is.

Although EU foreign ministers met yesterday in Brussels with the Director of the Board of Peace, Nikolay Mladenov, most European capitals continue to view the scope of the initiative and its compliance with the United Nations Charter with suspicion.

At last week’s meeting in Washington, the European Commission participated as an observer, with a clear message that it would not become a member of the body, and in recent days the Vatican also declined an invitation to join the Committee.

Aleksandar Rapajic, Program Director of the NGO Center for the Advocacy of Democratic Culture from North Mitrovica, views Albin Kurti’s reservation on the matter as an attempt to avoid angering European partners, who are generally opposed to the Board of Peace.

He does not believe that Kurti and Osmani are acting differently, noting that over the years they have generally coordinated their work.

“I think they are trying not to upset the Europeans, who are generally against the Board of Peace, and that is why Kurti remains silent while Vjosa Osmani embraces it. It is a game where they are trying to be on good terms with everyone and not offend anyone. I do not believe that Vjosa Osmani and Kurti have disagreements. European partners, especially Britain and Germany, are not in favor of this Board of Peace, and given that in recent years they have been the main sponsors and supporters of the Kosovo Government, that is why Kurti is reserved toward it,” Rapajic told Kosovo Online.

By accepting the invitation to participate in the Board of Peace, Kosovo, in his view, is seeking to improve relations with the United States.

“These relations have deteriorated significantly in recent years, particularly due to certain instances in which Albin Kurti’s government spoke out against the Constitutional Court and judicial institutions in general, which greatly displeased the Americans. Participation in the Board of Peace is an excellent opportunity for Kosovo to repair relations with the United States,” Rapajic said.

As for the election of the President of Kosovo, which must take place by March 4 to avoid new elections, he does not believe Vjosa Osmani will be re-elected, though he adds that one can never be certain in Kosovo.

“Anything is possible. That will give us the main answer as to whether Vjosa Osmani and Kurti are on the same track,” he emphasized.

Political analyst Armend Demaku believes that rivalry exists between Kurti and Osmani.

By attending the Board of Peace meeting, Kosovo’s president, Demaku says, overshadowed Prime Minister Albin Kurti, particularly on the international stage.

“The Prime Minister of Kosovo is not particularly favored by the Americans, especially by the Trump administration. Mr. Kurti should have been there, but he is now isolated from the Americans. Of course, through this move, Vjosa Osmani overshadows Albin Kurti, particularly internationally. It is clear that rivalry has developed between Kurti and Osmani, and how desirable she is for Kurti will be seen when a presidential candidate is proposed,” Demaku told Kosovo Online.

He believes that for Kosovo and its positioning, it is extremely important that President Vjosa Osmani attended the Board of Peace meeting led by President Trump.

Whenever Kosovo has aligned itself with the United States, he notes, it has always gained long-term benefits and guarantees.

“I believe significant credit also belongs to the Prime Minister of Albania, Mr. Edi Rama, who, it appears, now has good cooperation with President Osmani. It should be added that Kosovo’s membership in the Board of Peace is not exclusively the credit of Ms. Osmani. Kosovo is an American creation and has naturally always been on the agenda of every U.S. administration,” Demaku stated.

Nikola Vujinovic, a security studies researcher from Belgrade, sees two reasons for Kurti’s silence on a topic that has sparked conflicting reactions worldwide.

First, so as not to elevate Vjosa Osmani’s significance, since the invitation to participate in the Boardwas addressed to her; and second, because Kurti aligns himself with European allies who have refused to join the Board.

Vujinovic notes that Vjosa Osmani is America’s interlocutor, which is why she was Washington’s choice.

“That is the first message. They invited Vjosa Osmani to attend all these summits and to sign the founding act in Davos. Albin Kurti is not their interlocutor, and his silence thus becomes even louder. He remains silent so as not to give Ms. Osmani greater significance, as the campaign is underway and she is making every effort to become a presidential candidate, which, at least at this moment, does not appear likely,” Vujinovic told Kosovo Online.

On the other hand, he emphasizes that Kurti is closely aligned with European allies, primarily Germany and the United Kingdom, which are currently in very negative relations with Donald Trump.

“They have all refused to join the Board of Peace because they do not agree with something that appears to counter the United Nations. We can conclude that Mr. Kurti is aligned with those European allies, given his very poor relations with the United States—not only with Donald Trump’s administration but even before that—and the fact that the strategic dialogue between Kosovo and the United States remains frozen. We can conclude that Ms. Osmani has gained a certain degree of importance, but due to the nature of the political system in Kosovo and Metohija, where the president is elected by parliament, this will not have a decisive impact on her election unless political actors reach an agreement,” Vujinovic concluded.