The establishment of the Association of Serb-Majority Municipalities (ASM) will be a condition for Kosovo’s membership in the European Union, not just the Council of Europe (CoE).
This statement was made by the French ambassador to Kosovo, Olivier Guerot.
The French diplomat emphasized that the February 2023 Brussels-Ohrid Agreement contains significant provisions for Kosovo regarding territorial integrity and membership in international organizations.
“This agreement has the potential to be a turning point in the history of Kosovo-Serbia relations and must be implemented. The EU considers that both countries have committed to implementing this agreement, and we view it as binding. Therefore, it is taken into account in the EU’s relations with both Kosovo and Serbia,” Guerot said in an interview with Klan.
Ambassador Guerot stated that the EU-proposed draft statute for the ASM should be submitted to the Constitutional Court. He acknowledged the concerns raised about the ASM but reiterated the EU’s intention to ensure that Kosovo becomes a fully functional state. “We have repeatedly stated that we want Kosovo to be fully functional. We were instrumental in 1998, 1999, and 2000, and we wanted Kosovo to be functional.”
The reason for the EU’s proposal of the draft statute, Guerot explained, is that no one else was making proposals.
“I believe that sending this draft statute to the Constitutional Court would be a very important step.”
The ambassador reiterated that the ASM “will be” a condition for the EU, not just the Council of Europe.
From Kosovo, he said, the expectation is the establishment of the ASM, with the first step being the submission of the draft statute to the Constitutional Court.
