Prishtina, 24 April, 2024
The first Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, Development and Dialogue of the Republic of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi, together with the Minister of Internal Affairs, Xhelal Sveçla, the Minister of Economy, Artane Rizvanolli and the Minister of Justice, Albulena Haxhiu, talked with the delegation from the Council of EU – Working Group for the Western Balkans (COWEB). 25 diplomats from member states were present as well as representatives from the Directorate General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) and the European Union External Service (EUES).
Throughout his speech and the answers to the questions of the participating delegates, Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi spoke about Kosovo’s journey and goals in European integration, with an emphasis on handling and reaching consensus on obtaining the status of a candidate country for EU membership, membership in international organizations, especially in the Council of Europe, where our country, after successfully passing the preliminary stages, is now in the last step necessary to achieve this success, as well as the European Union Growth Plan was discussed.
He also spoke about the internal performance of the institutions, the trajectory of progress and development in which our country is now, underlining the positive macroeconomic indicators, from economic development and employment growth to the growth of foreign direct investments, among others.
Furthermore, he emphasized that the unfair measures of the EU towards Kosovo should be removed as soon as possible, since all the conditions of the Bratislava agreement have already been met, and he again expressed our position that the proposal to grant visa liberalization for illegal KU passports, is contradictory and the same violates the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Kosovo.
On the process of dialogue with Serbia, the deputy prime minister addressed the escalations on the ground by the Serbian side and their continuous violations of the Brussels Agreement and the Ohrid Implementing Annex, as well as the non-acceptance of these agreements and the refusal to sign them, continuously evidenced through the public statements of the leaders state document stamped with the letter of the former Prime Minister of Serbia, addressed to the European Union last December.
Thanking them for the conversation and meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Bislimi wished the delegation a productive and fruitful stay in Kosovo.
Last modified: April 26, 2024