“We need a government with full powers,” said the French Ambassador to Kosovo, Olivier Guérot, in an interview with KosovaPress.
Three days ahead of the December 28 elections, he stated that the international community needs a partner in Kosovo in order to work on the EU Growth Plan, the normalization of relations with Serbia, and Kosovo’s overall development. The French diplomat welcomed the lifting of 50 percent of the punitive measures against Kosovo, while remaining more reserved on whether all measures will be fully removed at the beginning of next year.
“The message is that we need a partner. We, together, are your international supporters, your international friends. We need a government—a full government—with which we can work on the Growth Plan, of course, but also on many other issues, whether it is the normalization of relations with Serbia or the development of Kosovo and its legislation,” he emphasized.
Kosovo has failed to form new institutions following the previous elections held on February 9.
Speaking about the political crisis and the failure to establish institutions, the French ambassador said that a year without a government with a full mandate has been difficult for Kosovo.
“This year without a full government has been somewhat difficult, I must say. Not that we have been unable to work, as I mentioned with the wastewater treatment plant project. We were able to work at the technical level. There were also other initiatives we could pursue technically, but Kosovo is a democracy. As a democracy, it needs a government accountable to parliament,” he stressed.
A few days ago, the European Union decided to lift 50 percent of the measures, while committing to the full removal of all punitive measures against Kosovo by the end of January 2026.
According to Ambassador Guérot, this development is good news for Kosovo, as it will allow many important projects that were blocked in recent years to move forward.
“We have a very important project that was slowed down by the measures—the construction of a wastewater treatment plant that would cover Pristina, Obiliq, Fushë Kosovë, and Graçanica. This is a joint project with Germany. I am therefore looking forward to accelerating this project, on which we never stopped working at the technical level. It is just one of the projects we have. We also have development projects with the French Development Agency, particularly to help Kosovo with the Mediterranean Games 2030 and to support its transition to cleaner energy. Here in Pristina we see the fog, which is caused by dirty energy, and the agency is working on this,” he added.
Regarding the commitment to lift all measures by January 2026, the French ambassador told KosovaPress that the political decision has already been taken by the European Council and that it is now up to the European Commission to implement it.
“I do not know the details. I cannot tell you more. The political decision has been taken by the Council of Ministers and the European Council, and now the Commission will implement it. Therefore, I cannot go into details,” he said.
The measures against Kosovo were imposed in 2023 in response to the escalation of the security situation in northern Kosovo, when Albanian mayors—elected in polls boycotted by local Serbs—assumed office in northern municipalities.
