Acting President Albulena Haxhiu highlights Pristina’s 100% alignment with Western foreign and security policies, arguing that European integration is an existential anchor for peace and democratic dignity, not just a technical process.
Standing firmly behind Kosovo’s strategic alignment amid a wave of new expansion proposals, Acting President Albulena Haxhiu delivered a clear message at the EU–Western Balkans Summit in Tivat, Montenegro. Speaking to regional and international media on Friday afternoon, June 5, 2026, Haxhiu re-emphasized that Kosovo’s geopolitical trajectory is non-negotiable: its future lies entirely within the European Union.
Her statements came at a crucial time during the summit, matching the push from Germany and France to break a 13-year enlargement freeze through gradual single-market integration.
The Pillars of Kosovo’s EU Platform
Haxhiu positioned Kosovo as a reliable partner that has already fulfilled major baseline requirements, specifically contrasting the country’s track record with regional actors who have hesitated to align with Western foreign policy.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Key Tenets of Kosovo's Diplomatic Push in Tivat │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • STRATEGIC FOREIGN POLICY ALIGNMENT │
│ Kosovo maintains 100% compliance with all EU foreign, security, and │
│ restrictive sanction frameworks, positioning itself as a reliable │
│ Western anchor in the Balkans. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • VALUE-DRIVEN INTEGRATION │
│ The accession process must look beyond bureaucratic checklists to │
│ actively protect democratic norms, peace, and human dignity. │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • RENEWED INSTITUTIONAL MOMENTUM │
│ Pristina insists that its domestic reforms merit immediate, concrete│
│ advancement, specifically the delivery of the EC Questionnaire. │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
“Our future is in the European Union—a united and expanded European Union,” Acting President Haxhiu stated to reporters. “Kosovo has undertaken deep, systemic reforms and is working harder than ever for our citizens and our European outlook. We are in absolute, full compliance with the EU’s common foreign and security policies.”
Moving Beyond a Technical Exercise
A central theme of Haxhiu’s address was a call for Brussels to view enlargement through a broader geopolitical lens rather than getting bogged down in endless administrative delays. This perspective aligns with ongoing warnings from independent analysts that treating accession as a purely economic matter allows anti-Western sentiment to grow in the region.
┌────────────────────────┐
│ EU Accession View │
└───────────┬────────────┘
│
┌──────────────────────┴──────────────────────┐
▼ ▼
[The Technical Angle] [The Strategic Angle]
• Administrative checklists • Securing regional peace
• Procedural step delays • Strengthening democracy
• Bureaucratic red tape • Preserving human dignity
“European integration is not merely a technical process,” Haxhiu concluded. “It is fundamentally about prosperity, peace, democracy, and the collective dignity of Europe and our citizens.”
Following her earlier high-level meeting with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Haxhiu’s public statements reinforce Kosovo’s unified strategy at the summit: demanding that the European Commission formally advance Pristina’s candidate status as a just reward for its democratic alignment.
