Atifete Jahjaga, female deputy police chief, elected Kosovo President

Kosovo's parliament has elected Atifete Jahjaga, the female deputy chief of the country's police force, as president in an emergency session.

The 38-year-old was elected Thursday with 80 votes in the 120-member parliament, with only 100 members voting.

As she was sworn in, Jahjaga spoke of her desire for Kosovo to secure a better future and gain EU membership.

"I believe and I am convinced our dreams will come true," she said in her first speech to parliament, according to Deutsche Welle.

She replaced a Swiss-based businessman Bedzet Pacoli, who resigned last month after only one month in office, following the Constitutional Court ruling that that there had been irregularities in his election.

In her first address to the parliament, Jahjaga said Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo had shared a "bad past", but expressed the hope the talks will bring about a turn for better future.

"Since we can't change the past, we will build future, learning on the errors of the past," she said. "The dialogue will be successful and it should return peace and stability to the region," she added, Adnkronos International English reports.