Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani said that the institutions of Kosovo are close to a “forward solution” regarding the tensions in the north of the country.

During a press conference in Strasbourg, after her speech to the European Parliament, Osmani said that Kosovo is currently facing challenges, but added that “we are on the right track to overcome them”.

“I am constantly in discussions, in contact with our partners, with the United States, with our partners in individual European Union member states, with EU institutions, and I would say that we are close to reaching a common solution for the way forward. There are some details that still need to be discussed, but I have full confidence that this challenge will be overcome because the way forward needs to be a shared path,” said Osmani.

The President stated that the international community’s demands and those of Kosovo are similar.

“As far as international demands are concerned, we are close. Many of the issues that exist and our demands, such as the rule of law, are also their demands. So, it is a common demand. Then, the issue of new elections depends on the will of the Kosovo institutions. There are two legal options. The first depends on the political will of the current leaders – the possibility of resignation, which I do not interfere with. The second, which I believe is much more democratic and ensures the participation of Serbs in the election process, is through gathering 20% of signatures of those listed as voters. And for other issues, there are still discussions, but I believe we are close to finding a solution,” Osmani said.

The European Union has taken measures against Kosovo for its disregard of its demands regarding the reduction of tensions in the north and has warned that further measures will be taken. However, during her stay in the European Parliament, Osmani said that possible sanctions were not mentioned to her.

In addition to the replacement of the newly elected mayors in the municipal buildings and the withdrawal of special units of the Kosovo Police from the north, another request from the Serbs is the establishment of the Association.

President Osmani stated that Kosovo is drafting a proposal for this Association because, according to her, it is an obligation of Pristina arising from the dialogue process.

“The institutions of the Republic of Kosovo have undertaken obligations in the dialogue process in Brussels, for the Kosovo institutions to prepare the draft. That draft is being prepared, work is being done, and it is that draft that will form the basis of discussions in Brussels regarding the Association, always taking into account three very important parameters. The first is our Constitution, the second is the Constitutional Court decision of 2015, and the third is the U.S. position, published in writing by [Derek] Chollet and [Gabriel] Escobar. These are the premises, the parameters. Our experts are working, and the drafts are being consolidated,” said Osmani.

The President referred to an article by Derek Chollet, a senior adviser at the U.S. Department of State, and Gabriel Escobar, the U.S. envoy for the Western Balkans, in which they argued that the U.S. does not support any association that threatens the sovereignty of Kosovo or resembles a Republika Srpska – the Serbian entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Kosovo and Serbia reached an agreement on the Association in 2013 and later in 2015 on the principles for its establishment.

However, in 2015, the Constitutional Court of Kosovo found that the agreement was not fully in line with the Constitution.

Serbia insists that Kosovo implements the agreements reached, but the current government of Kosovo has declared its opposition to an ethnically-based association.

Currently, there are four draft statutes and draft visions for the implementation of the Agreement on the Association of Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo: the Management Team Statute draft, Kurti’s vision draft, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s statute draft, and the Association Statute draft prepared by the German organization Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES).