Kosovo may face a return to “hard borders” with Albania and Montenegro within the next five to seven years if current political trends continue, Kosovo political analyst Agon Maliqi has warned.

His comments, shared on social media and reported by Gazeta Express on July 24, highlight growing concerns about the region's future in light of Albania’s progress towards EU membership.

Maliqi argued that Kosovo’s delayed EU-Atlantic integration, driven by a decade of populist and nationalist policies, is leaving the country increasingly disconnected from its neighbours.

“If Kosovo and Serbia had resolved their issues 5 to 10 years ago, Kosovo would already be on a path of closer integration with Albania and Europe,” he said.

According to Maliqi, Albania’s EU accession and access to significantly larger financial resources are already producing visible shifts. He cited the Croatia-Balkan example, where Croatia’s EU membership deepened economic disparities with its non-EU neighbours.

“In recent years, we have seen a sharp increase in Kosovar direct investment in Albania, and the expansion of Kosovar businesses in strategic sectors there,” he noted.

If the trend continues, Maliqi believes Kosovar companies may relocate their headquarters to Albania, a Nato member with realistic EU prospects. As a result, Kosovo risks becoming a “secondary and peripheral market.”

He also predicted that Kosovo citizens will increasingly seek Albanian passports or emigrate to EU countries in search of better opportunities—furthering the country’s economic and political marginalisation.

“This scenario marks a bitter irony,” Maliqi added, accusing so-called “patriots” of contributing to Kosovo’s stagnation and voluntary isolation, rather than advancing its integration with the West.

His warning comes amid growing frustration over Kosovo’s stalled progress in normalising relations with Serbia and deepening regional cooperation—key conditions for advancing towards the European Union.