German Ambassador: Unilateral actions endanger Kosovo's application for EU membership

2024-08-06 11:12:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

German Ambassador: Unilateral actions endanger Kosovo's application for EU

The German ambassador in Pristina, Jorn Rohde, said that the unilateral and uncoordinated actions are not only contrary to the dialogue agreements between Kosovo and Serbia, but "worse, they risk leaving Kosovo's application for EU membership blocked in the mail ".

"The EU thrives by gathering around itself all the member states and their communities and we need the same approach at the national level," Rohde said in a post on X, as he shared the reaction of the European bloc's spokesman, Peter Stano, regarding with the closure of several branches of the Post of Serbia in the north of Kosovo.

Kosovo has applied for membership in the EU on December 15, 2022. However, this application has not yet been reviewed and consequently Kosovo remains the only country in the region that does not have the status of a candidate country.

Toby Vogel from the Council for Democratization Policy in Brussels hit back at the US ambassador for this statement, saying he is lying.

"Citizens of Kosovo and politicians of Kosovo know that there is no way for their country's EU membership. They also know that there is no 'dialogue agreement' since Serbia openly opposes the basic principles of dialogue".

The police action to close the branches of the Post of Serbia took place on August 5, when nine facilities were closed.

Three facilities were closed in North Mitrovica and Leposavi?, two in Zveçan, and one in Zubin Potok.

The Kosovo Police said that the action took place after the information received by the Regulatory Authority for Electronic and Postal Communications (ARKEP) that economic operators are operating in the territory of Kosovo without a license and who are not registered with the Agency for the Registration of Businesses in Kosovo ( ARBK).

The European Union criticized the action, saying it was a unilateral and uncoordinated action by the Kosovo authorities.

According to the EU, such an action violates the dialogue for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, which is mediated by the European Union.

The European bloc recalled that within the framework of the agreements reached on telecommunications, in 2013 and 2015, the two parties agreed that postal services would be discussed "at a later stage", and thus, according to the EU, it was understood that this issue could to be addressed only through dialogue.

The United States also said that they are "deeply disappointed" about the closing of the branches of the Post of Serbia.

"Kosovo's uncoordinated actions put Kosovo citizens and KFOR soldiers at great risk, fuel unnecessary escalation of regional tensions, and undermine Kosovo's reputation as a reliable international partner," the US Embassy in Pristina said in a statement. published on August 5.

The closure of the facilities was also condemned by the officials of the Post of Serbia, Lista Serbe, and the state institutions of Serbia./REL