Bajrami: Performance of “Oj Kosovo, Kosovo” at European Commission event unacceptable

Kosovo’s Ambassador to Belgium and Pristina’s chief negotiator in the dialogue with Belgrade, Agron Bajrami, criticized the performance of the traditional Serbian song “Oj Kosovo, Kosovo” at a concert marking the opening of the EU Enlargement Forum in Brussels, describing it as “an unacceptable platforming of political claims to Kosovo’s territory.”

“At the concert marking the opening of the EU Enlargement Forum in Brussels, organized by the European Commission under the auspices of Commissioner Marta Kos, the Serbian nationalist song ‘Oj Kosovo, Kosovo’ was performed. This is not cultural exchange. The song promotes explicit political claims to the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. Its performance at an official European Commission event dedicated to enlargement, unity and good-neighborly relations is unacceptable,” Bajrami wrote in a post on the social media platform X.

He stressed that Kosovo expected an immediate explanation from the European Commission and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos as to how the musical repertoire had been selected and approved.

“European values, good-neighborly relations and the credibility of the EU’s enlargement policy cannot be reconciled with providing a platform for irredentist claims directed against a country aspiring to EU membership,” Bajrami said.