Muhaxhiri: Osmani’s positions do not affect requests to send the draft statute of the CSM to the court for review

The positions of Prime Minister Albin Kurti and President Vjosa Osmani have no impact on the demands of the international community to send the draft statute of the Community of Serb Municipalities to the Constitutional Court for review. That court is the only institution that can determine whether the statute complies with the Constitution or not – everything else is just politics aimed at gaining populist support, political analyst Artan Muhaxhiri told Kosovo Online.

He was commenting on a statement by Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani, in which she expressed doubt that the European draft of the CSM statute could pass the Constitutional Court’s review, arguing that it is not in line with Kosovo’s Constitution.

Muhaxhiri says that such positions have no effect on the decision-making structures, as the only valid and acceptable stance will be the Constitutional Court’s ruling.

“The Community has become the central issue in the entire dialogue process, and I do not believe there is any possibility for it to be sidelined or ignored. All major actors, including the US and the EU, are demanding that Kosovo’s leadership address the Community, and the first step is to send the draft statute to the Constitutional Court. There is no alternative to this,” he emphasized.

He also believes that Osmani’s stance cannot serve as an "excuse" for the new government in Pristina to continue delaying the submission of the draft statute to the court. Regardless of who forms the next government, the first issue that must be addressed – according to the international community – is the CSM statute.

“This has become a kind of benchmark for Kosovo’s progress in European integration. We have seen that North Macedonia and Albania will begin receiving funds from the financial package for Balkan countries, while Kosovo and Serbia cannot access this significant fund unless they make crucial steps toward a final resolution in the dialogue. Kosovo’s leadership can postpone the CSM issue indefinitely, but without addressing it, nothing important or beneficial for Kosovo can come from the EU. Everything is linked to the Community. The moment the Kosovo government submits the statute to the Constitutional Court, it will significantly advance its European agenda,” Muhaxhiri concluded.