Macron's statement on Kosovo, EC: A single state cannot suspend the visa-free regime

2023-10-21 10:24:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Macron's statement on Kosovo, EC: A single state cannot suspend the

The European Commission refuses to make comments on the statement made by French President Emmanuel Macron during his visit to Tirana, and nevertheless emphasizes that the visa-free regime for Kosovo will come into force at the beginning of next year.
"Visa liberalization for Kosovo citizens will come into effect on January 1, 2024 and will allow them to travel within the European Union for 90 days."

This is the answer given by the spokeswoman of the European Commission for Internal Affairs, Anitta Hiper, after being asked by A2 CNN, if France has proposed the suspension of Kosovo's visa liberalization.

In addition, in its response, the European Commission clarifies that a single country cannot decide to suspend a visa-free movement regime once the latter has been established.
Such decisions, as the EC explains to A2 CNN, can only be taken at the EU level, based on the rules of the union for granting or suspending visa-free regimes.

We recall that a statement made by the head of Eliza in a joint conference with Prime Minister Edi Rama caused quite a few debates in Albania and Kosovo.
"We trusted them on the issue of visas. The case has been suspended by France because it concerns the respect of the word given and the word is not being kept. I expect both sides to commit to moving forward in the coming weeks. It is a condition for peace in the entire area," Macron said.

It was these sentences of the French president which were interpreted in different ways, and yet, the EC clearly states in its response that the regime of visa-free movement for Kosovo remains intact.

Full statement:

We are in contact with all member states of the European Union and do not comment on comments. In April 2023, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Regulation 2023/850 of (EU), removing the visa regime for Kosovo Passport holders.

Visa liberalization for citizens of Kosovo will come into effect on January 1, 2024. It will allow citizens of Kosovo to travel within the European Union without visas for 90 days in any 18-day period.

The Commission has assessed since July 2018 that Kosovo meets all the standards of the Roadmap for Visa Liberalization. Kosovo has worked continuously to meet the standards.

Individual member states cannot decide to suspend a visa-free regime. The rules regarding the granting, suspension or termination of visa exemptions are fully harmonized at the EU level and require decisions at the EU level./ CNA