Kosovo’s President Fatmir Sejdiu resigned on Monday following a constitutional decision, a move that could affect upcoming negotiations on territorial independence between Serbia and Kosovo to be brokered by the European Union.
The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has found it illegal for Sejdiu to hold the positions of president as well as the leader of his political party at the same time.
The court handed down its decision last Friday in which it said, “There has been a serious violation of the Constitution of Kosovo.” The complaint was filed by 32 members of Parliament in June.
“I have believed that keeping the position of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) leader but not exercising that function, as the constitution provides, does not constitute a violation to the constitution,” Sejdiu said in a statement
“However, since the Constitutional Court has ruled otherwise, I respect its ruling,” he added.
Fatmir Sejdiu, 58, became president in 2006 after Ibrahim Rugova’s death of lung cancer in January of that year. In 2008, he became head of the Democratic League of Kosovo, the second largest party in the country.
The LDK is a junior partner in a parliamentary coalition led by the Democratic Party of Kosovo, the party of Prime Minister Hashim Thaci.
According to Kosovo’s Constitution, the Speaker of Parliament Jakup Krasniqi will be the interim president until the country’s head is elected. There is no strict deadline for the next presidential election, but the next candidate must win 2/3 of the votes of Kosovo’s 120-seat Parliament to win.
Sejdiu’s resignation comes before territorial talks between Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, and Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, which has never recognized its former province as an independent state.
Kosovo began a debate worldwide when it seceded from Serbia in 2008 after almost a decade of administration by a U.N. interim mission that followed a bloody war with Serbia from 1998-1999.
At present, 70 out of 192 U.N. member states, including the United States and most European Union countries, have recognized the tiny Balkan country, its 1.8 million population consists of 90 percent ethnic Albanians. For official recognition as an independent state by the United Nations, Kosovo needs the nod from 100 U.N. members.
The U.N. General Assembly approved a nonbinding resolution of Kosovo’s independence in September as ruled by the United Nations-led International Court of Justice in July.
Serbia continues to see Kosovo as its cultural heartland and part of its territory. Belgrade has called on the U.N. member states that have not recognized Kosovo’s UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence) not to support the secession while the dialogue continues.
The dispute has troubled Serbia’s bid to join the EU, as has Serbia’s failure to capture Bosnian Serb Gen. Ratko Mladic, who was in command of the 1995 massacre in the country. Mladic is still at large and believed to be hiding in Serbia.
Earlier this month the EU said that it would discuss Serbia’s candidacy after Belgrade’s agreement to hold EU-facilitated talks with Kosovo.
The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has found it illegal for Sejdiu to hold the positions of president as well as the leader of his political party at the same time.
The court handed down its decision last Friday in which it said, “There has been a serious violation of the Constitution of Kosovo.” The complaint was filed by 32 members of Parliament in June.
“I have believed that keeping the position of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) leader but not exercising that function, as the constitution provides, does not constitute a violation to the constitution,” Sejdiu said in a statement
“However, since the Constitutional Court has ruled otherwise, I respect its ruling,” he added.
Fatmir Sejdiu, 58, became president in 2006 after Ibrahim Rugova’s death of lung cancer in January of that year. In 2008, he became head of the Democratic League of Kosovo, the second largest party in the country.
The LDK is a junior partner in a parliamentary coalition led by the Democratic Party of Kosovo, the party of Prime Minister Hashim Thaci.
According to Kosovo’s Constitution, the Speaker of Parliament Jakup Krasniqi will be the interim president until the country’s head is elected. There is no strict deadline for the next presidential election, but the next candidate must win 2/3 of the votes of Kosovo’s 120-seat Parliament to win.
Sejdiu’s resignation comes before territorial talks between Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, and Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, which has never recognized its former province as an independent state.
Kosovo began a debate worldwide when it seceded from Serbia in 2008 after almost a decade of administration by a U.N. interim mission that followed a bloody war with Serbia from 1998-1999.
At present, 70 out of 192 U.N. member states, including the United States and most European Union countries, have recognized the tiny Balkan country, its 1.8 million population consists of 90 percent ethnic Albanians. For official recognition as an independent state by the United Nations, Kosovo needs the nod from 100 U.N. members.
The U.N. General Assembly approved a nonbinding resolution of Kosovo’s independence in September as ruled by the United Nations-led International Court of Justice in July.
Serbia continues to see Kosovo as its cultural heartland and part of its territory. Belgrade has called on the U.N. member states that have not recognized Kosovo’s UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence) not to support the secession while the dialogue continues.
The dispute has troubled Serbia’s bid to join the EU, as has Serbia’s failure to capture Bosnian Serb Gen. Ratko Mladic, who was in command of the 1995 massacre in the country. Mladic is still at large and believed to be hiding in Serbia.
Earlier this month the EU said that it would discuss Serbia’s candidacy after Belgrade’s agreement to hold EU-facilitated talks with Kosovo.
