Kosovo has the votes ready to pass the first stage for membership in the Council of Europe, said the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Kreshnik Ahmeti.

In the discussion organized by the Institute for Political Studies (PIPS) on Tuesday in Pristina, he said that compared to other countries in the region, he expects Kosovo to join in record time. However, he was reserved to give a date when the door will finally be opened to Kosovo for membership in the Council of Europe.

"Ours job as the Government of the Republic of Kosovo has been to initiate this process and this has been very important. I don't know when it will end, but I am optimistic that in relation to other countries in the region we will have a record deadline, except for Montenegro, which has had a special situation after independence from the union that has been together with Serbia. But I believe we will have a record deadline. However, I also know that if we were to do it with other countries, we would already be there," said Ahmeti.