EU hands Kosovo €2m grant to help create functioning judiciary

The EU is spending €2m on helping to reform the judiciary of Kosovo as the province moves towards independence.

Final status talks are expected this year or next to make Kosovo a fully fledged state, instead of being overseen by the United Nations as it is at present.

International administrators want to establish a properly functioning judiciary. Recent reforms have involved the creation of a ministry of justice and a Kosovo Judicial Council responsible for court administration. Judges and magistrates have also been appointed.

"Kosovo should establish an effective judiciary to guarantee freedom, security and justice for all its citizens," said Miriam Fuchs of the EU's European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR).

This latest grant from the EAR will help both institutions overcome teething troubles and assist Kosovo's longer-established public prosecutor office.