The European Union’s mission for observing the February 9 parliamentary elections announced on Saturday that its long-term observers come from 18 different countries.

“The teams are mixed in terms of nationality and gender. They will assess the campaign and election preparations while covering all municipalities in Kosovo. The observers are independent and impartial,” said the head of the mission, Nathalie Loiseau.

During a press conference, Ms. Loiseau stated that maintaining democratic standards has never been more important for Kosovo.

“We live in a time when democracies are being questioned and sometimes globally threatened. Therefore, the importance of ensuring a sustainable democracy in Kosovo has never been greater. We will observe, evaluate, and, if necessary, will not shy away from pointing out any areas for improvement where we see potential,” she said, emphasizing that the mission’s presence also demonstrates ongoing European support for Kosovo on its path to further strengthening democratic governance.

“We are also demonstrating the importance of this through numbers. On election day, there will be over 100 European observers on the ground. Thus, the European Union mission is the only international observation mechanism with a long-term presence,” said Ms. Loiseau.

Twenty-eight political entities, including 20 political parties, five coalitions, two citizens’ lists, and one independent candidate, will participate in the February 9 elections, where approximately two million voters are eligible to vote, including about 105,000 citizens living outside Kosovo.

The coalition of non-governmental organizations “Democracy in Action,” which monitors electoral processes in Kosovo, said on Saturday that the campaign for these elections has been marked by inflammatory and hateful language.

On Thursday, the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel fined the Democratic League of Kosovo €20,000, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo €12,000, and the Vetëvendosje Movement €3,000 for what was described as “violations of the code of conduct” during the parliamentary election campaign.