Escobar visits Kosovo this week to discuss dialogue and the dinar

2024-03-11 09:04:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The American envoy for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, will visit Pristina this week to talk with the leaders of the Government of Kosovo about the dialogue between it and Serbia, as well as about the suspended Serbian dinar in Kosovo, the US State Department announced on Sunday.

Escobar will visit Belgium, Kosovo, Austria and Montenegro from March 10 to 18, 2024, according to the announcement.

"His visit will re-emphasize the commitment of the United States to the countries of the Western Balkans, which aim at Euro-Atlantic integration and deeper regional cooperation," said the State Department.

Escobar is visiting Kosovo at a time when relations between US officials and the Kosovo government appear strained over the issue of the Serbian dinar, which the Central Bank of Kosovo banned through a regulation last month.

Last month, Escobar said that the Government of Kosovo is not treating the USA as a partner, due to not listening to the American request on the issue of the Serbian dinar.

"We are very worried because the Government of Kosovo is not treating us as a partner, they do not work with us for regional stability and undermine the dialogue, a process to which the US is fully committed", Escobar said on February 23. The US has requested the postponement of the implementation of this decision, arguing that it was approved without prior consultation and without considering the negative impacts on the Serbian community in Kosovo, which uses the national currency of Serbia.

The State Department said the American envoy will also meet with civil society and the Serbian community in Kosovo, in addition to government officials.

"He will also hold meetings regarding the impact of the new regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo on cash payments and to call for steps to be taken to meet the needs of the citizens of Kosovo without obstacles," the announcement states. .

The CBK regulation, which foresees only the euro as the currency with which cash payments can be made, began to be implemented from February 1. The Serbian state allocates millions of euros to Serbs in Kosovo after paying them in dinars - through a parallel system - salaries, pensions and additional assistance.

The regulation has been criticized by the European Union.

On March 4, the American ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey Hovenier, and the head of the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo, Tomas Szunyog, called on Kosovo to fulfill the agreements reached in the dialogue with Serbia, if it wants to join the EU. and in NATO.

"The international community wants Kosovo to progress on the European path, we have created the conditions to achieve this, and the only way is through dialogue mediated by the EU... We hope to see efforts to move forward", said Hovenier.

With the mediation of the EU, Kosovo and Serbia reached the Agreement for the normalization of relations on February 27, 2023.

The agreement on normalization, of 11 articles, provides, among other things, a level of self-management for the Serbian community in Kosovo and mutual recognition of state symbols, while it asks Prishtina and Belgrade to also implement all previous agreements reached during the dialogue.

The EU has said that the agreement, which although not signed is binding on the parties, has not yet started to be implemented.

Meanwhile, in Belgium, Escobar will meet with European Union envoy Miroslav Lajcak and European and NATO officials to discuss "efforts to advance reforms that will bring prosperity, stability and long-term peace." in the region of the Western Balkans", the announcement states./ Rel