Kosovo Parliament elects new government

N1

The Parliament of Kosovo elected the new government on Wednesday with 61 votes in favour and 24 against out of 120 MPs, N1 reported.

The former ruling Self-Determination MPs did not take part in the vote.

The new Prime Minister is Avdulah Hoti of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK). This party was the key coalition partner of the ousted cabinet led by Albin Kurti whose Self-Determination, the winner of the general elections held in last October.

 However, after Kurti dismissed an LDK minister, the party turned against him and voted for the ouster on March 25.

Hoti’s new cabinet was backed by the deputies from the Serb List, the party supported by the official Belgrade.

 According to the KoSSev website, unofficial information was that the Serb List's officials would hold two ministries in the new cabinet and a post of a deputy prime minister.

Earlier on Wednesday, Miroslav  Lajčák announced he would start talks with Pristina as soon as the new cabinet was elected to prepare the resumption of the dialogue with Belgrade which he said would start this month.

Presenting his programme, Hoti said he would “take up the responsibility for the improvement of the dialogue with Serbia in line with Kosovo's Constitution.”

He added Pristina would cooperate with the European Union and the US in the process “and will not allow any border changes or territory swap.”

As his Government priorities, Hoti listed the curbing of the coronavirus epidemic and the economic recovery.

The other tasks would include “the strengthening of the state, an increase of employment, and empowering of the competition.”