The authorities in Kosovo prohibit the entry of Serbian dinars at the border

2024-02-07 20:10:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The People's Bank of Serbia announced on Wednesday that the authorities in Pristina have not allowed an amount of money in dinars to enter the territory of Kosovo, which is intended to make payments to Serbian citizens. The authorities in Kosovo said that this action of the institutions of Serbia is a violation of the regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo and is aimed at creating artificial tensions.

The ban on the entry of Serbian dinars followed a new regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo that came into effect on February 1, according to which the only currency allowed for making cash payments in Kosovo is the euro. According to this regulation, only licensed institutions in Kosovo can carry out the import and export of currencies.

The spokesman of the Kosovo Customs, Adriatik Stavileci, told the Voice of America that representatives of the Serbian side at the border crossing between Kosovo and Serbia in Jarinje are interested in sending money to Kosovo. "We have explained to them that without authorization from the Central Bank of Kosovo, the circulation of monetary assets is not allowed", said Mr. Stavileci. The People's Bank of Serbia said that the money that has been withheld was earmarked for salaries, pensions, social benefits and other payments for Serbs.

"We strongly condemn today's incident and reiterate that it is necessary to immediately abolish the discriminatory, illegal and outrageous measures taken by the institutions in Pristina to enable the smooth transportation and distribution of dinars and to prevent the denial of conditions for the life of the Serbian population in Kosovo", says the reaction of the People's Bank of Serbia.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo, Besnik Bislimi, wrote on social networks that the action of the People's Bank of Serbia represents a unilateral step aimed at, as he said, a flagrant violation of the functionality of Kosovo's institutions.

"Today, the Equivalent Bank of Serbia (one day before the convened meeting of the Security Council), has sent a truckload of money (full of 117,000,000 dinars) to the border, accompanied by individuals who present themselves with the credentials of a non-existent company, with the claim that they want to send the money to an entity that also does not exist in Kosovo and for the benefit of the beneficiaries, whose names they neither know nor have", he wrote. Mr. Bislimi said that Kosovo is committed to work and help in finding the mechanism that ensures that such funds are sent in a legal way to the beneficiaries and that in the fastest possible time.

Serbian citizens living in Kosovo receive their salaries and pensions from Serbia in Serbian dinars, which are used for payments in Serb-majority areas, especially in the north. The ban on these benefits in Serbian dinars has raised the concern of Western diplomats that the issue could fuel new tensions. The authorities in Pristina have asked to open communication channels between the Central Bank of Kosovo and that of Serbia on this issue, but Serbian leaders have rejected such a possibility, stressing that this would mean recognition of Kosovo's independence, which Serbia continues to oppose./ VOA