Prosecutors summon Kosovo's prime minister in a move his supporters say is politically motivated

PRISTINA, Kosovo -- Kosovo's Special Prosecutor’s Office has summoned Prime Minister Albin Kurti Monday to testify in a case that remains unclear, with his supporters saying it’s a politically driven move as the country gears up for election.

According to Liridona Kozmaqi, the spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office, Kurti was on a trip abroad and that another date would be set for the summons.

She declined to give details on the nature of the case.

However, Kurti’s spokesman, Perparim Kryeziu, said in a Facebook post last week the premier was called to testify in a case under Article 414 of the Criminal Code, which regulates offenses related to “abuse of official post or authority."

Kryeziu accused the summons of being politically motivated and “an attempt to influence the outcome of the 2025 elections.”

Kosovo will hold a parliamentary election on Feb. 9, a vote expected to be a key test for Kurti whose governing left-wing Self-Determination Movement Party won by a landslide in 2021.

The main contenders for the coming election are the Democratic Party of Kosovo, whose main leaders are at The Hague tribunal accused of war crimes, and the Democratic League of Kosovo, the oldest party in the country that has lost much support after the death of its leader Ibrahim Rugova.

Local polls show that Kurti’s party is the front-runner.

The main issue overshadowing the election remains the stalled normalization talks with Serbia, which the European Union has facilitated since 2011, but with little progress. The talks are decisive toward the two countries’ membership in the bloc.

Kosovo was a former Serbian province until a 78-day NATO bombing campaign in 1999 ended a war between Serbian government forces and ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo, which left about 13,000 dead, mainly ethnic Albanians, and pushed Serbian forces out. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, proclaimed in 2008.