• Vote count ends, Kurti’s Vetevendosje wins over 51 percent (Koha)

• Gervalla: Election result, a clear verdict to avoid blockades and delays (media)

• US ready for strategic dialogue with new govt, but wants concrete actions (TeVe1)

• Kosovo’s election shows its democracy is solid (The Economist)

• COMKFOR Ulutas meets with new UNMIK chief Peter N. Due (media)

• €1 billion for Kosovo are waiting for a “yes” from the MPs (RFE)

• Kosovo arrests 39 over alleged insurance fraud (Prishtina Insight)

• Osmani thanks COMKFOR Ulutas for his continued leadership (media)

• German KFOR troops conduct specialized C-UAS training (media)

• Serbia fails to align with new EU foreign policy decisions on Ukraine, Russia and Venezuela (N1)

Vote count ends, Kurti’s Vetevendosje wins over 51 percent (Koha)

The Kurti-led Vetevendosje Movement has won over 51 percent of votes in the December 28 parliamentary elections, becoming the first party in Kosovo to win 486,994 votes. VV got 51.11 percent and will have 57 seats in the new Kosovo Assembly. It needs cooperation with non-majority community parties to secure a sufficient majority of 61 MPs to form the government.

Gervalla: Election result, a clear verdict to avoid blockades and delays (media)

Kosovo’s caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs and leader of Guxo, a partner in the coalition with the Vetevendosje Movement, Donika Gervalla, said on Thursday that in the December 28 parliamentary elections, the people wanted a clear verdict after a difficult political year. “I was not surprised by the result of December 28 because it was clear that the people will want a clear verdict in order not to have more delays and unnecessary blockades, because we really have no more time to lose,” she said in an interview with Kanal 10.

Gervalla said that people were not pleased with 2025 and that they were clear about their wishes for 2026 to be a different year, with much more stability and institutional functioning.

US ready for strategic dialogue with new govt, but wants concrete actions (TeVe1)

The US State Department said in a statement to the TV station on Thursday that they hope to strengthen the partnership with the new government of Kosovo, including resuming the strategic dialogue, but also called for concrete actions that will push forward the joint agenda for regional peace and stability and mutual economic prosperity.

A spokesperson for the caretaker government of Kosovo, Perparim Kryeziu, said they will continue to cooperate with the allies, especially with the United States, in the new mandate. “We have regular communication with the State Department and with the US Embassy in Kosovo in order to address every issue and to work together on issues of mutual interest. In our first mandate, we cooperated closely in the areas of defense and development. Our alliance, partnership and friendship are firmly rooted in our shared objectives, values and orientation. As a reelected government after the December 28 elections, we will continue to work with our friends and allies, especially with the US, to further strengthen relations and partnership between our countries,” he said.

Kosovo’s election shows its democracy is solid (The Economist)

Anyone who doubts whether Western military actions have ever sincerely aimed to foster democracy should have a look at Kosovo. The country owes its independence to an American-led NATO intervention in 1999 that halted a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing by Serbia, of which it was then a province. Some 26 years on, Kosovo is relatively stable and democratic, though poor. On December 28th it held its tenth parliamentary election. The result was a resounding win for Albin Kurti, the prime minister, giving him a mandate to ratify a co-operation agreement with the European Union and unlock €880m ($1.03bn) in stalled aid.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/XnfaV

COMKFOR Ulutas meets with new UNMIK chief Peter N. Due (media)

Commander of the NATO-led KFOR mission, Major General Ozkan Ulutas, met on Thursday with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of UNMIK, Mr. Peter N. Due. “The meeting focused on the current security situation in Kosovo and highlighted the close cooperation between KFOR and UNMIK. Major General Ulutas reaffirmed KFOR’s commitment to continued coordination between the two missions, aimed at maintaining a safe and secure environment for all people across Kosovo,” KFOR said in a Facebook post.

€1 billion for Kosovo are waiting for a “yes” from the MPs (RFE)

Over €1 billion are waiting for over a year to be used by Kosovo, while the receipt of funds remains “hostage” to the approval by members of the Kosovo Assembly. The lack of new institutions in 2025 prevented Kosovo from getting €882 million from the EU Growth and Reforms Plan and over €120 million from three agreements with the International Development Association of the World Bank.

Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti, who won the December 28 parliamentary elections, said he counts on the cooperation of opposition parties to receive the funds. The results of the elections made it clear that there will be a simple majority to constitute the 120-member Assembly and the new government. But the adoption of international agreements, and the election of the President, requires 80 votes.

Senior member of the Vetevendosje Movement, Albulena Haxhiu, told Radio Free Europe that they expect the opposition parties will not condition the vote for the international agreements with the issue of the President. “I don’t believe that international agreements should be included in discussions on the issue of the President. It is important for the Assembly to meet its obligations regarding the agreements. While the issue of the President is another phase that will be discussed. We expect the opposition will be willing to vote [on the agreements] and not present conditions,” she said.

Deputy leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Anton Quni said in an interview with the news website that they will not block the adoption of international agreements. “The LDK has voted in the past and will again vote for agreements that are in the interest of the Republic of Kosovo,” he said.

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) did not respond to the news website’s requests for comment.

Kosovo arrests 39 over alleged insurance fraud (Prishtina Insight)

An operation led by the Basic Prosecution in Prizren into large-scale fraud at the Kosovo Insurance Bureau resulted in the arrest of 39 people after nationwide raids were carried out on Thursday morning at 40 locations.

Kosovo police arrested 39 individuals suspected of alleged large-scale financial abuse at the Kosovo Insurance Bureau, BKS, with estimated damages exceeding 1 million euros. The arrests were done after raids across several cities on Thursday, in an investigation led by the Prizren Basic Prosecution, where 23,700 euros in cash, watches, weapons, and electronic equipment were seized, while 1.3 million euros were frozen.

Among the arrested is Sami Mazreku, former Executive Director of BKS and Valon Berisha, former Director of Finance at BKS.

At a press conference the Chief Prosecutor of Prizren, Petrit Kryeziu, explained that during the course of investigations which started in March 2025, prosecutors found 166 suspicious transactions ranging in amount from 6,800 to 68,000 euros.

According to Kryeziu, the arrested are suspected of “abusing the authorisations given by BKS, enabling themselves and others to conduct various transactions and prepare falsified documents.”

Prosecutors allege that Berisha and Mazreku unlawfully benefited from bureau funds between July 2022 and October 9, 2023.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/IoUAd

Osmani thanks COMKFOR Ulutas for his continued leadership (media)

Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani said in a post on X that she thanked COMKFOR Major General Ozkan Ulutas for his continued leadership and for KFOR’s contribution to the safety and security of all in Kosovo. “I reaffirmed the importance of close and continued cooperation with NATO to address threats to peace and security stemming from Serbia’s ongoing destabilizing actions. We will continue contributing to ensuring the safety and security of our Republic and the entire region,” Osmani said.

German KFOR troops conduct specialized C-UAS training (media)

German soldiers from Regional Command-East, part of the NATO-led KFOR mission, recently conducted specialized Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS) training to sustain their ability to detect and track UAS, KFOR said in a Facebook post on Thursday. “The activity focused on the employment of cutting-edge systems, enhancing technical proficiency in counter-drone capabilities while reinforcing coordination, teamwork, and adaptability in a multinational environment. Through continuous training, KFOR strengthens its overall readiness and operational effectiveness, in support of the mission’s mandate to maintain a safe and secure environment for all people living in Kosovo,” the post notes.

Serbia fails to align with new EU foreign policy decisions on Ukraine, Russia and Venezuela (N1)

Serbia is the only European Union (EU) candidate country in the Western Balkans that has not aligned itself with the EU’s three latest foreign-policy decisions related to Ukraine, Russia and Venezuela, although it did align with decisions concerning the situation in North Korea, Mali and Haiti.

According to the EU, Serbia failed to align with Decision (CFSP) 2025/2594, dated December 15, extending the list of persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.

Serbia failed to align with Decision (CFSP) 2025/2586 of December 15 concerning restrictive measures against persons and entities in view of the situation in Venezuela, the undermining of democracy and the rule of law, human rights violations, and the repression of civil society and the democratic opposition, including events following the presidential elections.

Serbia also failed to align with Decision (CFSP) 2025/2572 of December 15, which extended the list of individuals and entities subject to restrictive measures in view of Russia’s destabilizing activities.

Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/27exwazk