Kosovo’s bid to join the Council of Europe remains uncertain, as the agenda for the upcoming May meeting of the Committee of Ministers has not yet been published and it is still unclear whether Kosovo’s application will be included.
The major political meeting of the Committee of Ministers, expected in mid-May, will gather representatives of 46 member states. However, the official website of the Council of Europe does not yet list the draft agenda for this session, where final decisions on membership are typically made.
Estelle Steiner, media and communications advisor at the Council of Europe, confirmed:
“Draft agenda for the next session of the Committee of Ministers is not yet available, but we will keep you informed of any developments.”
Meanwhile, Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo says it is closely monitoring developments but has not received official confirmation on whether the application will be reviewed in the upcoming meetings.
Kosovar diplomacy continues active engagement with member states, parliamentarians, and political groups within the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to push forward the process. The Ministry emphasized that efforts are ongoing to secure support in line with the positive opinion adopted by the Assembly in April 2024.
Kosovo formally applied for membership on May 12, 2022. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe appointed Dora Bakoyannis as rapporteur, and on March 27, 2024, its Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy approved a positive opinion on Kosovo’s membership by a large majority.
However, in 2025, Kosovo was ultimately left off the agenda of the Committee of Ministers.
At that time, the Government of Kosovo took a significant step regarding the long-standing property dispute involving the Visoki Dečani Monastery. The implementation of the ruling of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo on this issue had been a long-standing condition from the international community. While this move was linked to Kosovo’s membership efforts, it was not the sole determining factor.
According to experts, the political deadlock and failure to fully constitute institutions during 2025 caused serious delays in Kosovo’s progress across multiple areas, including international membership processes.
Professor Valon Murtezaj highlighted that Kosovo’s internal political situation last year significantly slowed down its path toward membership in international organizations.
Despite the delays, membership in the Council of Europe remains a strategic priority. Full membership would strengthen Kosovo’s international subjectivity, granting it full representation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and allowing it to participate directly in European parliamentary debates as a sovereign actor.
Kosovo is closer than ever politically—but procedurally still waiting. The key question now is whether May’s agenda will finally open the door, or once again delay a decision that has already received strong parliamentary backing.
