Pristina, December 19, 2022
The rehabilitation of the railway from Fushë Kosova to Mitrovica, not only preceded the economic development, but also serves the better connection of Kosovo with the region and with Europe, said the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, on the occasion of the start of the works in this railway line.
Prime Minister Kurti emphasized that with the favorable economic situation and development potential, projects like this one today serve the Government’s initiatives to increase cooperation for the further development of our country. This project will contribute to the economic and social development, the opening of new jobs, the advancement of inter-neighborly cooperation, even closer to the countries of the European Union, he said.
Prime Minister Kurti emphasized that the central geographical position in the Western Balkans, the good road infrastructure, the modern airport, the proximity of the Mediterranean ports make Kosovo a favorable commercial and transport location. We are working to modernize other railway connections in the future, so as to increase the transport and commercial potential.
This rail link will result in improved rail capacity, both for passengers and goods, and a significant improvement in travel time. We will transport more, we will go faster. Trains will run on this line at a speed of 80 km/h to 120 km/h. And just as important, this connection will operate with reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide, the prime minister added.
The 10th Railway Line belongs to the Main Railway Network of the Trans-European Transport Network Corridors Extension (TEN-T). The Pan-European line “10” which starts from Salzburg, and passes through Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Kosovo and Macedonia, ends in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Prime Minister Kurti’s full speech:
Honorable Minister of the Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure, Mr. Liburn Aliu,
Honorable Minister of Economy, Mrs. Artane Rizvanolli,
Honorable head of the European Union office in Kosovo, Mr. Tomas Szunyog,
Honorable Acting Chief Executive of the Infrakos company, Mr. Uran Mulaj,
Honorable Deputy Ambassador of the Republic of Italy in Kosovo,
Honorable Deputy Minister Durmishi,
Honorable directors of the interim board of the Infrakos company,
Honorable railway workers,
Ladies and gentleman,
Honorable participants,
I am happy to be with you here today to inaugurate the works of this project of special importance for our country. The rehabilitation of the railway from Fushë Kosova to Mitrovica, not only preceded the economic development, but also serves the better connection of Kosovo with the region and with Europe.
This line, the 10th Railway Line belongs to the Main Railway Network of the Trans-European Transport Network Corridors Extension (TEN-T). The Pan-European line “10” which starts from Salzburg, and passes through Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Kosovo and Macedonia, then ends in Thessaloniki, Greece.
The citizens of Kosovo, we know, use the train relatively little as a means of transportation. This is also due to the fact that the railway network does not cover the entire country, but also because of the poor and outdated network. For the railway network to serve the movement of the country’s citizens, we are now rehabilitating the 10th line. Through the considerable help of the European Union, which crosses and connects seven states, including the Republic of Kosovo, we think we can achieve this. This project originates from the Berlin agenda, namely from the meeting of the six countries of the Western Balkans led by the former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which is being implemented day by day, led by the new Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, who recently, a month and a half ago, enabled and organized the signing of six countries of the Western Balkans for three agreements that give a boost to the common regional market.
This project will contribute to the economic and social development, the opening of new jobs, the advancement of inter-neighborly cooperation, even closer to the countries of the European Union.
The central geographical position in the Western Balkans, the good road infrastructure, the modern airport, the proximity of the Mediterranean ports make Kosovo a favorable commercial and transport location. We are working to modernize other railway connections in the future, so as to increase the transport and commercial potential.
In order to facilitate economic development, we are working on strengthening the legal order, we have established the Commercial Court, and we are committed to further improving the environment for doing business in our country.
Kosovo is the most democratic country in the Western Balkans. We are ranked first in the Balkans and second in the region of Eastern Europe, not yet included in the European Union, and Central Asia for the rule of law, according to the World Justice Project 2021, which measures the perception of the population and legal professionals about how functional is the law in that country. There are eight characteristics and we have come first in the Balkans and second in this great region of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. We are also second in terms of the rule of law worldwide. We have also risen to 17 places in Transparency International’s index for the fight against corruption, namely for the perception of corruption in the public sector. 17 countries have also risen in terms of media freedom according to Reporters Without Borders.
With the favorable economic situation and development potential, projects like this one today serve the Government’s initiatives to increase cooperation for economic development.
Honorable attendees,
This rail link will result in improved rail capacity, both for passengers and goods, and a significant improvement in travel time. We will transport more, we will go faster. Trains will run on this line at a speed of 80 km/h to 120 km/h. And just as important, this connection will operate with reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide. Otherwise, rail transport is well known as green transport.
The full implementation of the general rehabilitation and modernization of the 10th Railway Line is expected to be completed in 2024/2025.
Thus, Kosovo will have a railway line which meets all the interoperability requirements defined according to the European Union directives. We are grateful to the European Union and in particular the European Commission for supporting the financing and rehabilitation of this railway line, which will bring the citizens of Kosovo even closer to the European Union.
Thank you!
Last modified: December 21, 2022