Prishtina, 25 November 2011
Following there is the full address by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, in the ninth meeting of the Ministerial Council for European Integration
Honorable Deputy Prime Ministers,
Honorable Ministers
Following the publication of the Progress Report 2011 the Government immediately initiated important processes in order to address the challenges pointed out in the Progress Report.
Two days after the publication of the Progress Report, I communicated to all the ministers the key objectives related to addressing of challenges deriving from the report.
We are gathered today to discuss the progress achieved in addressing some of the most prioritized objectives.
I would like to point out that discussions on the conclusions of the progress report are not mere seasonal discussion, but they represent a strong determination of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo and other Kosovo institutions.
As I have stated before, the Government considers the progress report as a means to undertake the necessary reforms in all the fields of governance.
This will be the agenda of the Government for 2012 and for the years to come.
So, all the work in the Government will be sub-coordinated with the European and Development Agenda. After the publication of the progress report, the Government started reviewing its European Partnership Action Plan 2012.
We intend to have the amended European Partnership Action Plan approved at the Government by the end of 2011.
So far, all the preparatory procedures have been reviewed in line with the scheduled timeframes and the contribution by respective line ministers is highly appreciated.
After the finalization of the European Partnership Action Plan and considering the intensification of the work of inter-governmental European integration structures, the focus will be on monitoring of the implementation of the objectives ahead of us.
The Ministry for European Integration, as of January 2012, will come up with quarterly statements on implementation of the key objectives.
This will be the basis of the implementation of the work by every minister, secretary and department.
Honorable participants,
The year 2012 is the year of the visa liberalization process. In 2011, the central and local institutions made considerable progress in terms of the reintegration of the repatriated persons.
This has also been confirmed by the 2011 Progress Report on Kosovo and the Enlargement Strategy for the Western Balkans.
The Government considers that all the requirements for launching of the visa liberalization dialogue have been accomplished.
At the same time, the Government remains committed to implementing in an effective way and record time all the requirements needed after the launch of the dialogue on visa liberalization.
On the other hand, I expect the European Union to treat the Republic of Kosovo as an equal partner in the visa liberalization process.
We do not expect favors or a special treatment, all we expect is an equal approach and treatment like with any other country in the Western Balkans based on strict and fair criteria.
A similar approach with other states of the Western Balkans would be an important impetus for the entire Kosovo society to continue with regional initiatives and with the implementation of the necessary reforms.
I would like to thank the European Parliament as it has continuously supported the integrating process of the Republic of Kosovo.
In this respect, I invite the European Commission and other member countries to show concrete and decisive steps for the implementation of the European perspective for the Republic of Kosovo.
Honorable participants,
Having in mind today’s agenda and not wanting to take more of your time, I invite you to continue with the agenda and discussions on the progress made in relevant fields by the Kosovo institutions.
Thank you!
Last modified: July 31, 2022