web counter
LEXO PA REKLAMA!

SHKARKO APP

App Store
Google Play

E fundit!

x

Takes office on September 1st/ Here's who will be the EU Special Representative in Kosovo

2026-07-13 14:57:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Takes office on September 1st/ Here's who will be the EU Special

The Council of the European Union appointed German diplomat Dirk Schubel as the new EU Special Representative for Kosovo. He will take up his post on 1 September 2026, for an initial two-year term, succeeding Estonian Aivo Orav.

Schubel is a diplomat with extensive experience in the European External Action Service (EEAS), the European Commission and the German Foreign Ministry. He currently heads the Russia Division at the EEAS.

Previously, he served as EU Special Envoy for the Eastern Partnership (2022-2024), and was also Head of the EU Delegation to Belarus (2019-2022) and Moldova (2009-2013).

According to the EU Council decision, Schubel's mandate will focus on promoting a stable, democratic and multiethnic Kosovo, as well as supporting the country's European perspective.

It will monitor progress on political, economic and security priorities, contribute to strengthening human rights, the rule of law and the protection of communities, and promote European Union political coordination in Kosovo.

His mandate also includes providing political guidance to the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) and supporting the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, with the aim of strengthening regional stability and good neighbourly relations.

In the last two years - from 2024 until the end of March - Aivo Orav was in this position.

In one of his recent statements to the media in Kosovo, Orav said that the issue of establishing the Association of Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo "will not disappear."

"Dialogue also means Association ," he said.

After his departure, the deputy head of the EU in Kosovo, Eva Palatova, took over the task.

In an article published last week, Palatova said that the European Union remains Kosovo's strongest and most reliable partner, as well as the largest provider of financial assistance, but stressed that the responsibility for advancing Kosovo's European future lies with Kosovo's political leaders and institutions.

On that occasion, she called for the formation of new Kosovo institutions, saying that the winning party - in this case the Vetevendosje Movement - has a special responsibility to engage with other political parties to reach a compromise.

Kosovo has not had stable institutions for more than a year and a half now, as three elections held within this period have failed to give the country a functional majority.

"Political competition is a normal and healthy feature of democracy. Advancing Kosovo's European future should be a shared objective ," Palatova wrote. /REL





Lajmet e fundit nga