Following the German Government's encouraging response to support Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe, the next step would be for Kosovo to submit its application, best now, so that it can be discussed in the next Session of the Committee of Ministers in Turin on the 20th of May, said for KosovaPress, Knut Abraham, member of the German Bundestag.

On Wednesday (yesterday) Abraham, MP from the CDU/CSU, on his Twitter account, gave exciting news to Kosovo after publishing the positive answer of the German Government to his question: - if it would support a Kosovo application for membership in the Council of Europe. "The German government supports Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe. It is important for this to remain in close coordination with our partners in the European Union and in the Council of Europe", it is said in the response of the Government of Germany, which was published by Abraham. Abraham told KosovaPress that Kosovo should apply to take advantage of the moment that the Presidency of the Council of Europe is currently led by Italy, a strong ally of Kosovo. “With Italy still having the presidency in the Council of Europe, Kosovo has a strong ally and should seize this opportunity to take the first step. Once an application is submitted, together with our allies in the Council of Europe from across political fractions and member states, we will advocate in favor of Kosovo’s membership, becoming the 47th member of this important institution”, he said. The Council of Europe is the oldest human rights institution in Europe uniting democracies from across the continent to defend and protect human rights. Abraham said that giving the citizens of Kosovo access to the European Court of Human Rights would be a positive step for Kosovo, the Western Balkans region and Europe and therefore deserves our full support. He said that in Germany, politicians from different political groups support Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe. “As a member of the CDU/CSU, I can tell you that my party fully stands behind Kosovo on this issue. The chair of the German delegation in the Council of Europe Frank Schwabe, my colleague from the Social Democrats, is also publicly advocating for such a step. From the German delegation at PACE, Konstantin Kuhle from the Liberals, Max Lucks from the Greens but also the Minister of State Tobias Lindner have voiced support. I believe that Germany, as one of the biggest members in the Council of Europe, together with European allies like Italy, can play a leading role to help Kosovo in this process”, said Abraham.