Antonijevic: For membership in the Council of Europe, Kosovo needs to meet a broader set of standards

Lawyer Milan Antonijevic tells Kosovo Online that within the upcoming debate within the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe regarding Kosovo's request to become a member of the Council of Europe, not only the three points singled out by Kosovo rapporteur Dora Bakoyannis as "major unresolved issues" will be considered, and that it is necessary to take into account a broader framework of rule of law and human rights, meaning a broader set of standards must be met if Kosovo wishes to proceed further in this membership process.

In Dora Bakoyannis's Information Note, presented on Tuesday before the Political Committee of the PACE, and which Kosovo Online had access to, the main unresolved issues regarding Kosovo's membership request to the Council of Europe include the Constitutional Court's judgment on ownership of 24 hectares of land of the Visoki Decani monastery, effective protection of the Serbian community in northern municipalities, and expropriation of land in municipalities with a Serbian majority.

Even if Kosovo were to fulfill its obligations regarding these three issues in the foreseeable future, Antonijevic says that membership in the Council of Europe is not solely tied to these topics.

"Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe is not only and exclusively related to the implementation of their international obligations such as the obligation to form the Community of Serb Municipalities, the obligation to implement decisions of the Constitutional Court, or the issue of expropriation, but it concerns a much broader rule of law, human rights, or other issues that are currently open. Promptness in problem-solving must be demonstrated, rather than fulfilling something in crisis situations to achieve some international steps towards independence," Antonijevic says.

He adds that it should not be forgotten that Kosovo is still under certain forms of sanctions or measures from the European Union.

"A broader set of standards is expected from Kosovo if they want to proceed further in this membership process. Of course, there are also political questions, whether they can obtain a two-thirds majority in the PACE with these quite numerous incidents happening on a daily basis, so I think all this is much further than Kosovo authorities might perceive," Antonijevic says.

When asked whether Kosovo's recognizing countries in the Council of Europe will take into account the reality that ethnic incidents in Kosovo are daily and human rights are not respected, Antonijevic says it's a question for Serbian diplomacy.

"It depends on how successful it will be to establish sufficient contact and clear cooperation with each member of the Council of Europe, where we will argue that Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe is something that should demonstrate Kosovo's ability to enforce laws and consistently fulfill obligations it undertakes internationally, rather than waiting for it for so many years," Antonijevic says.