Kosovo Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, said today that Kosovo’s institutions will fulfil the remaining eight conditions for visa liberalization by November 30. In his address at the government meeting in Pristina today, Mustafa said the European Union has no reason not to set a date for visa liberalization for Kosovo. He also briefed his ministers on the visit of the Kosovo delegation to New York and meetings with several world leaders there.

It is not up to NATO to decide on the structure, mandate and mission of the Kosovo Security Force. Future of the KSF is an internal matter of local Kosovo institutions. NATO currently supports the development of the KSF in the framework of their original mission and mandate, through the NATO Liaison and Advisory Team.

Vetevendosje MP Rexhep Selimi accused the Kosovo government today over the constitutional amendments for the establishment of the Kosovo Armed Forces. During his address in the Assembly, Selimi said “a dirty game” is being played with the fate of the armed forces. “Knowing that the constitutional amendments require a double majority in the Assembly, knowing that the ruling majority does not have these votes and knowing that the Serbian List is against this, the question is why did the government submit the constitutional amendments in the first place? The goal of the government is clear.

The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) issued a communiqué today calling on the Kosovo Assembly to establish the Kosovo Armed Forces as soon as possible. The AAK said that Prime Minister Isa Mustafa and Kosovo Security Force Minister Haki Demolli should provide direct explanations as to why they are not submitting the draft law on the Armed Forces to the Assembly. The AAK communiqué also argued that the Kosovo government led by Prime Minister Mustafa and his deputy Hashim Thaci is ignoring the key sector of security and defence.

Kosovo’s institutions are hesitating to follow up on the government’s recommendation last year to establish the Kosovo Armed Forces (KAF). Meanwhile, security experts and civil society representatives argue that the failure to establish the Armed Forces came as a result of the decision of then-opposition parties not to vote in favour of extended parliamentary seats for minority communities. The latter consequently refused to vote in favour of the Armed Forces.

The Presidency of the Kosovo Assembly today did not include on the agenda of 21 May the constitutional amendments required for the establishment of the special court that will address war crimes allegations. Assembly Speaker Kadri Veseli told reporters after the meeting that additional consultations were needed to reach a consensus among the parliamentary parties. “The most important thing is to have international partnership and a national consensus,” Veseli said. “Allow me to reiterate that Kosovo’s economic development should be our priority.

Political analyst Halil Matoshi argues in an opinion piece that if the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) led by Isa Mustafa had said “yes” to another mandate of reserved seats for minority communities in the Kosovo Assembly last year, the Kosovo Army would be a reality today and its troops would be executing the orders of their superiors.

Kosovo’s Prime Minister, Isa Mustafa, said in the meeting of the Kosovo government today that the draft law for the establishment of the Kosovo Armed Forces (KAF) is ready and that now 2/3 of MP votes need to be secured for the adoption of the law. Mustafa also said that the Armed Forces will not go to the northern part of Kosovo without a prior agreement with NATO.

The creation of the Kosovo Armed Forces (KAF) would mean annulment of the Kumanovo Agreement and the Resolution, according to the Office for KiM.

Repeating the story on the army of Kosovo and a new draft law on the armed forces, the authorities in Pristina try to make room for political pressure and manoeuvre for negotiation with Belgrade in Brussels. It is necessary to modify the Constitution of Kosovo in order to create the legal basis for the military, which means that Serb representatives in the Kosovo parliament need to vote.