4 hours agoFrance says Kosovo has not met all criteria for visa liberalisation
Periskopi(8 years ago)
(8 years ago)France says that Kosovo has not yet met all criteria for visa liberalisation, and that decision will not be taken without the fulfillment of all criteria. Director for Continental Europe at France's Foreign Ministry Florence Mangin, in an interview given “Koha Ditore”, during her stay in Pristina this [...]
The director for continental Europe at France's Foreign Ministry, Florence Mangin, in an interview given <x0 Ditore”, during her stay in Pristina this week, has suggested that the European Commission had presented two criteria that Kosovo must address before obtaining visa liberalisation.
“Was this demarcation of the border with Montenegro and real progress in the fight against corruption, rule of law, which, as you know, is a major element of the EU alignment, and this is repeated during the Sofia Summit last May, as well as the fight against organised crime. The first has been fulfilled, after a long period of time but has been fulfilled. When it is the second condition, many things have been undertaken by Kosovo, some laws have been adopted in early March and April, laws related to reforms in the judiciary. But some other elements have yet to be fulfilled, especially when rule of law, fighting corruption”, Mangin has said in this interview.
In such cases, Mangin says that it is not about passing laws but rather about passing laws in a concrete way. As for the laws on judicial reforms, it says there are still those that have not been adopted by parliament, in the first place, the Criminal Code, as well as another law that is very important, and that is the Law on Confiscating Illegal Property.
“These laws are part of reforming the judiciary, which has begun to be undertaken but has not been finalised. For this reason we consider that the report prepared by the Commission contains several weaknesses. We do not share our opinion when it comes to a whole of appreciation, and we are not alone in this regard. Some elements, what I just mentioned, have not yet been adopted or adopted just recently to produce their own effects”, have highlighted the Director for Continental Europe at France's Foreign Ministry, Florence Mangin.
She suggested that if the visa liberalisation decision is postponed beyond December, the reason would be not to meet these criteria.
