Bislimi: The Progress Report on Kosovo is more objective than before

Acting Deputy Prime Minister, Besnik Bislimi, in an interview with RTK, spoke about the European Commission's Progress Report on Kosovo for 2025, the internal political situation, the European Union's punitive measures, and recent institutional developments in the country.

Bislimi emphasized that this year's report on Kosovo does not contain a final assessment, as claimed by some journalists, but provides separate assessments for each chapter of the European integration agenda.

"The report does not have any qualification or final grade. Consequently, this finding that there is a qualification between 'limited support' or 'stagnation' is a slip that arose from some journalists. The report divides assessments into individual chapters and in 35 of them there is limited progress or good progress. Only in three areas is a lack of progress noted. In one of them we have not been able to make progress because it is about fisheries. Since Kosovo is landlocked, it does not have a developed sector and we do not have how to concentrate our energy and resources on the development of this sector", said Bislimi.

He added that this year's report is significantly more objective and correct compared to previous years.

"It is the first time that we do not need to spend energy convincing partners in Brussels that some of the assessments were wrong or characterized by great subjectivity. The majority of the assessments are within the framework of correctness," Bislimi emphasized.

According to him, the report should be seen in the context of the constraints that Kosovo has faced during this period, including the lack of consolidated institutions, EU punitive measures, and the inability to ratify the Growth Plan instrument in the Assembly.

“If we take these limitations into account, the report shows a disproportionate success for Kosovo,” Bislimi said.

The acting Deputy Prime Minister also spoke about the situation created after the last elections, emphasizing that the institutional impasse has come as a result of the refusal of some political entities to accept the election results.

"The institutional impasse was created at the moment when a part of the political spectrum refused to accept the election result. Even though you got 15%, you wanted to behave and be treated as the winner of the elections, and this is more or less illogical. And in this context, the idea that the one who is the biggest should give up and make compromises has dominated. And if you carefully follow the progress from the end of March until now, there is only one political entity that has behaved responsibly in this institutional impasse and has offered solutions and compromises. We were told that we do not vote for the most voted woman in Kosovo, the former Minister of Justice, and you, as a major party, must compromise, but even when you compromise, we still do not vote for you," said Bislimi, referring to the positions of the LDK.

"This has been the position of the LDK; You should reflect, you should change the candidate, but even when you change it, we will not vote for you. You should also go with the candidate for prime minister, but even when you change it, we will not vote for you. So, there is a subject that offers compromises, that makes invitations and there are other subjects that reject invitations and criticize that it is not making compromises and then when it makes compromises they say that this does not matter to us because we still do not move from our position, but compromise is necessary", Bislimi underlined.

According to him, you cannot talk about compromise when you refuse to move from a position, which as such, according to him, is a blocking position.

"We have seen this in the election of the Speaker of the Assembly, we have seen it in the election of the Deputy Speakers of the Assembly, we have seen it in the vote on the government and we are seeing it now in the invitation that we are making to move forward with some important moments, such as the approval of the Law on the Budget of 2026, the approval of the 2025 budgets for the municipalities of Pristina, Gjilan and Zubin Potok, as well as the approval of the Growth Plan, as well as the budget for RTK. There are four decisions that have a dose of urgency, that the Assembly as constituted has the opportunity to move forward, but there is a hesitation or resistance," he added.

Speaking about the European Union's punitive measures, Bislimi said that Brussels is now awaiting the smooth transfer of local government in the four northern municipalities.

"What we have heard recently is that they are waiting to see how the transfer of local government in the four municipalities in the north will happen, since the winners of these elections are different from the current mayors. It seems that some fear or concern has arisen as an anecdote within certain EU institutions that there may be tensions within this transfer. They need to be convinced that this is not happening and then the measures should be lifted," said Bislimi.

Regarding the absence of his name in the cabinet proposed by the first mandate holder to form the government, Albin Kurti, Bislimi stressed that it was his request not to continue in the government.

"I am extremely happy and proud that I have been given the opportunity to, over these four years, almost five, help Mr. Kurti in advancing the processes for which he made commitments in the 2021 campaign and took responsibility after the government was voted in. For me, this has been particularly important, because I have not gone through those testing phases in the elections, so I have not been part of the electoral lists. And taking someone who has not been part of the electoral list and appointing him as first deputy prime minister and giving him powers has not been easy for the prime minister either. It was my decision, since this commitment has been very tiring and I need some rest, some time for my family," said Bislimi, who warned that he may make his contribution in the future in another field, but without giving other details.

Finally, he emphasized that if the second candidate to form the government fails to obtain the necessary 61 votes, then the country will go to extraordinary elections in December.

"If we find that for 9 months we have not managed to fulfill our duties both vis-à-vis the EU and vis-à-vis the citizens, as is the case with the municipal budgets, the RTK budget, the Growth Plan, etc., it is very important that we explain to the citizens where the stagnation occurred, where the blockade occurred, who are responsible. Who acted in accordance with the election results of February 9, and who tried to change the result under the table. Who thought that with 15 percent thanks to embassies, thanks to blockades, thanks to resentments, they could be declared the winner," Bislimi emphasized.

He said that citizens will be clear about the situation and in the future they will not allow such a blockade to be enabled through their vote.

"In politics, you are involved in pushing processes forward, not blocking them," Bislimi concluded, as he accused other parties of blocking the creation of institutions after the February 9 elections.