Interpol headquarters in Lyon, France. Photo: Wikipedia

Kosovo failed to secure the necessary support of two-thirds of Interpol’s 192 member states in its bid to join the International Criminal Police Organisation at its general assembly in Dubai on Tuesday.

According to Serbian national broadcaster RTS, of the countries that cast their votes, 51 were against Kosovo’s membership, 68 were in favour, and 16 abstained. Kosovo needed to secure 115 votes to join.

Kosovo’s Prime Minister, Ramush Haradinaj, expressed “deep disappointment” on Facebook over Pristina’s failed Interpol bid and accused Serbia of fighting a “vicious campaign” against Kosovo’s membership.

President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, called the result of the vote “unjust”, but maintained that Belgrade and Pristina should reach a final agreement on the normalisation of relations.

“The agreement on normalisation … means quick EU accession, otherwise both countries will pay,” Thaci told media in Dubai.

Thankful to all countries for their vote for Kosovo’s membership in Interpol. Regardless of the negative outcome, now more than ever it’s clear we need final and comprehensive deal between Kosovo and Serbia to ensure mutual recognition and membership of Kosovo in UN, NATO & EU. — Hashim Thaçi (@HashimThaciRKS) November 20, 2018

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic called on Pristina to understand that “the solution is in reaching an agreement with Belgrade, and not in having someone imposing solutions on Serbia.”

“It would be good if Albanian politicians would send that message to their people,” Vucic told media in Belgrade.

Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic tweeted a photo of the Interpol general assembly with the Serbian word “pobeda” (“Victory”).

Interpol, the international network that links police forces across 192 countries, acts as a platform for cooperation and information-sharing for cross-border crimes. Membership would have given Kosovo access to a common international database of criminal evidence available for all member countries to access.

Kosovo has unsuccessfully applied for Interpol membership in 2015 and 2016, while last year it withdrew its previous application ahead of the general assembly meeting in China, a country that has opposed Kosovo’s statehood and membership if international organisations since Pristina declared independence in 2008.

According to Balkan regional broadcaster N1, the Serbian government “fiercely opposes Pristina’s entry to Interpol”, with Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic claiming that Kosovo’s membership would be a violation of international law and UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which was passed at the end of the Kosovo war in 1999 and set out a framework for the resolution of the conflict.

But despite Stefanovic’s claim that Interpol’s rules “strictly and unequivocally” envisage only UN member states and entities with UN observer status as eligible for membership, neither Interpol’s constitution nor its rules of procedure for the general assembly mention this as a requirement for accession.

One of Interpol’s key functions is the ability for member countries to publish ‘notices,’ which are circulated by Interpol to all member countries.

These include the red notice, which communicates to member countries that the sending state requests the arrest of an individual, followed by their extradition, to face criminal charges.

Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj was arrested in France in January 2017 through an international arrest warrant issued by Serbia on the basis of war crimes charges, but the French court rejected Belgrade’s extradition request and he was released. The red notice requesting Haradinaj’s arrest was lifted in December 2017.

Read more:

Serbia’s Fears about Kosovo Joining Interpol ‘Unfounded’



Kosovo Abandons Bid to Join Interpol This Year

NOTE: This article was amended on November 20, 2018 to include reactions from Kosovo and Serbian leaders.