Phillips: Repeated elections would discourage Kosovo’s friends from continuing to provide support

David Phillips, Director of the Peacebuilding and Human Rights Program at Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights, said that all political parties bear responsibility for the institutional deadlock in Kosovo. Repeated elections, he believes, would only disappoint voters and discourage Kosovo’s friends in the international community from continuing to provide support.

Phillips also assessed that a power-sharing government could help overcome the political crisis.

Regarding caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s insistence that an agreement on the president be reached before the Assembly is fully constituted, Phillips sees this both as a political strategy and as a serious challenge to Kosovo’s democratic institutions, Front Online reports.

“An agreement on the president represents a political strategy, but also a serious challenge to Kosovo’s credibility. Kosovo’s friends are tired and have had enough of this struggle for power,” Phillips said.

In his assessment, prolonging the institutional crisis could further undermine Kosovo’s position in relations with its international partners.

Commenting on the possibility of Kosovo going to early elections again, Phillips said that such a scenario would not represent a sustainable solution.

“Early elections would probably produce the same result as previous attempts. Repeated elections would only disappoint voters and discourage Kosovo’s friends in the international community from continuing to provide support,” he said.

According to him, the United States and the European Union should become more directly involved in resolving the crisis. He proposes that the US appoint a special envoy with powers similar to those of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina (OHR).

“The US special envoy, with powers comparable to those of the OHR High Representative, should draft a compromise and a timetable for rotation,” Phillips said.

Asked what the most likely scenario for Kosovo would be if the Assembly remains blocked, Phillips said that it would be a disgrace.