Kosovo's membership into OIC: An opportunity or a dangerous road?

In May 2018 it was announced that Kosovo would apply for the the observer status in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation[1]. This statement was met with an extensive public debate in Kosovo’s media, academic and civil society circles. The debates were mostly instigated by the fact that OCI’s scope and raison d’etre before being political, diplomatic or economic remains first and foremost religious. Linked to this, it was intensively debated on what membership in this organization entails for Kosovo and its citizens. Concerns were raised on if membership violated Kosovo’s constitutional and legal order, as well as if the benefits outweighted the costs.

Stimulated by these debates, the following sections of this paper aim to answer this question through a triangular approach: legal, economic and diplomatic. In terms of the first angle, the aim is to offer a perspective on how membership into OIC stands in face of Kosovo’s current constitutional and legal architechture. In terms of the economic angle, the investment mechanisms and opportunities of OIC are discussed, hereafter offering a perspective on if membership is worth regarding the economic wellbeing of the country. The third aspect of the paper discusses the implications of OIC membership for Kosovo’s state-recognition agenda, in other words, how membershup would influence Kosovo’s international legitimacy and position.