KTV’s editor-in-chief, Adriatik Kelmendi, says recent elections in Serbia brought big, but not unexpected, changes to the political scene there as well as to the country’s relations with European Union. “In Serbia, two out of three voters chose to give their vote to the people from two political parties that were in power at the time of the Kosovo war and NATO airstrikes,” writes Kelmendi adding however that many things have in the meantime changed. He suggests that the events in Serbia should be viewed objectively and that only this approach can pave way for drafting a strategy to face this new reality.
Kelmendi notes that Aleksandar Vucic’s convincing victory in last week’s elections translates into 158 seats at the Assembly of Serbia out of the total of 250 and this means that the Progressive Party can easily form the government on its own without a need for a coalition partner.
What is evident from the result of Serbia’s elections, points out Kelmendi, is that none of the ultranationalist parties managed to win seats at the parliament. At the same time, the party that recommended recognizing independence of Kosovo also failed to win any seats. The election result shows that half of Serbia’s electorate believes that its national interests are best represented by Aleksandar Vucic.
“The man who was once famous for his crazy nationalist and chauvinist ideas” has managed to convince Serbs and the international community that he is the right one.
Vucic’s victory was largely due to him being perceived as a reformer, an uncorrupt and courageous politician, says Kelmendi. However, there is fear that this man who has undergone so many transformations in his political career meets all the preconditions that make a dictator. Nevertheless, Vucic is aware that the international community expects him to reach some difficult and painful decisions and is therefore interested to create as broad a government as possible.
All the developments in Serbia will also increase expectations of the international community towards Kosovo, says Kelmendi further and adds that any government that will be formed in Pristina following elections will face a huge pressure to step up economic development, fight corruption, face the past, and dialogue with Serbia.
