{"id":81979,"date":"2025-12-19T14:03:16","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T13:03:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/euronews.al\/en\/?p=81979"},"modified":"2025-12-19T19:24:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T18:24:10","slug":"kurti-welcomes-eus-lifting-of-measures-we-were-not-responsible-for-tensions-in-the-north","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/euronews.al\/en\/kurti-welcomes-eus-lifting-of-measures-we-were-not-responsible-for-tensions-in-the-north\/","title":{"rendered":"Kurti Welcomes EU\u2019s Lifting of Measures: We Were Not Responsible for Tensions in the North"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\">Kosovo\u2019s acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, welcomed on Friday the European Union\u2019s decision to lift punitive measures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\">The EU imposed the measures on Kosovo in 2023 due to tensions in the north of the country, an area predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\">However, during a meeting of the executive, Kurti said that Kosovo\u2019s institutions \u201cwere not responsible for the escalation of the situation\u201d in the north, adding that the reduction of tensions in that area \u201cwas precisely the merit of state institutions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\">He stated that after the imposition of the punitive measures\u2014which will be fully lifted by the end of January and will enable the country to receive millions of euros in financial assistance\u2014Kosovo faced two attacks: one in September 2023 in Banjska, Zve\u010dan, and another in November 2024 on the Ib\u00ebr-Lepenc canal.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s2\">Regarding both attacks, Kurti reiterated the position that there is evidence of the involvement of the Serbian state.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s2\">\u201cIn retrospect, any compromise on the rule of law would have been fatal for Kosovo. The calm situation, freedom of movement, and the functioning of state institutions in northern Kosovo are precisely because the rule of law and public order have prevailed. Despite all this, throughout this entire time we have never been resentful toward the EU. We have remained fully committed to European integration and to meeting the criteria for membership,\u201d he emphasized.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s2\">Speaking about the measures, he also criticized the parties that were in opposition during the previous mandate for not voting in November for the Growth Plan and three agreements with the World Bank before the Assembly was dissolved.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kosovo\u2019s acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, welcomed on Friday the European Union\u2019s decision to lift punitive measures. The EU imposed the measures on Kosovo in 2023 due to tensions in the north of the country, an area predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs. However, during a meeting of the executive, Kurti said that Kosovo\u2019s institutions \u201cwere [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":81980,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[163,1803],"tags":[243,151],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Kurti Welcomes EU\u2019s Lifting of Measures: We Were Not Responsible for Tensions in the North - Euronews Albania<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/euronews.al\/en\/kurti-welcomes-eus-lifting-of-measures-we-were-not-responsible-for-tensions-in-the-north\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Kurti Welcomes EU\u2019s Lifting of Measures: We Were Not Responsible for Tensions in the North - Euronews Albania\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kosovo\u2019s acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, welcomed on Friday the European Union\u2019s decision to lift punitive measures. The EU imposed the measures on Kosovo in 2023 due to tensions in the north of the country, an area predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs. 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