Kosovo became full-fledged member of the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission, since such membership is not reserved only for CoE members, said Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kosovo and officer in charge for public information in the cabinet of the Kosovo Prime Minister, Petrit Selimi to Danas.

Selimi explained that members of the Venice Commission are also and the US, South Korea and Mexico, states which are not in the CoE. He added that Kosovo received two-third of votes what is almost identical results to last year voting for the membership in the Council of Europe Development Bank.

“There are no doubts at all that we’ll become, in the near future, member of the CoE and thus enable our citizens to address the European Court for Human Rights, like all other Europeans,” said Selimi.

Danas learned in diplomatic circles in Pristina that Kosovo will apply for the membership in CoE in December. According to paper’s source ‘two-third support is already secured for the membership’.

Commenting the statement of the Serbian Minister for Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic that Kosovo did not become full-fledged member of the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) Danas’ source from the Kosovo government explained that the only thing which Serbia has got is that word ‘membership’ is not mentioned in the SEECP Resolution which was recently adopted at the summit in Bucharest, however it was said that it is about ‘full and equal participation’ in that regional initiative.

“Kosovo has all rights, like other members of the SEECP, including voting, right to veto, and signing of legal documents. Summit in Bucharest was organized at the presidential level however Serbia was represented by the Deputy Prime Minister Kori Udovicki, instead of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic. There is possibility that such maneuver was made because Nikolic didn’t want to be a ‘silent observer’ of Kosovo’s membership in the SEECP’, said Danas’ source.

In the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania, which presides the SEECP, said to Danas that in line with the ‘permanent devotion to the inclusive character of the regional cooperation’, Bucharest has invited Pristina representatives to all relevant SEECP meetings during its mandate, in line with the rules of that initiative.

“All members decided to invite Kosovo* to participate on the permanent basis in activities and meetings of the SEECP at all levels and under equal conditions, which recognizes that its participation in many aspects contributes to reinforcement of the regional cooperation, stabilization and security in the region,” reads the reply of the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Danas.

Venice Commission was established in 1990 in the town of the same name in Italy where its sessions are taking place, whereas its seat is in Strasbourg. The Commission, which is one of the main advisory bodies of the Council of Europe, is tasked with providing legal advices to the CoE member states which want to harmonize their legislation with the European standards.