As delivered by Acting Political Counselor Jennifer Bosworth
to the Permanent Council, Vienna
June 12, 2014
The United States joins with others in congratulating the people of Kosovo for the successful elections for the Kosovo Assembly held this past Sunday. We note the encouraging initial report from the EU’s Election Observation Mission, which said the voting had been “transparent and well-organized,” with a lively campaign that was focused on economic and social issues and free of nationalist rhetoric and inflammatory language. We echo the comments made by Ambassador Jean-Claude Schlumberger, Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, when he said, “We were happy to witness a smooth election operation, conducted in a professional manner. There were no major incidents or irregularities reported. This is an achievement for both the Central Election Commission and the voters.” We appreciate the hard work of Kosovo’s authorities, civil society, media, and political parties who each made vital contributions to Sunday’s success.
We echo our Embassy in Pristina in thanking EULEX and KFOR for playing an important supporting role, and for the key assistance given by OMiK, a number of neighboring OSCE field missions who provided additional support staff, and OSCE personnel at the Secretariat here in Vienna. We welcome the news from Strasbourg yesterday that the Council of Ministers extended an invitation to Kosovo to join the Venice Commission. We again encourage the OSCE and the Chairmanship to continue exploring ways in which the OSCE’s operations here in Vienna can better reflect the constructive dynamic that is emerging on the ground between Kosovo and Serbia. Kosovo should have a seat at this table.
In closing, we congratulate Kosovo’s citizens as their young country continues to take dramatic strides to further its democratic development and European aspirations.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
