Custin: Ambassador Green has never said investment in Kosovo will be cancelled

He made these comments by responding to the Voice of America's request to clarify reports that appeared at local media in Kosovo, under which Ambassador Green has communicated during the day with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurtin, as well as Parliament Speaker Vjosa Osmani about the issue of tariffs against Serbian goods. According to Kosovo Radio Television Ambassador Green “has made it clear that the United States is willing to make millions of dollars investments in Kosovo if the tariffs are removed. “RTK referring to a source of it, “The US will cancel all these projects until the government lifts taxes and gives up plans to establish reciprocity”.

spokesman Custin said Ambassador Green never said that. He in his response said that “Ambassador Green has always made it clear that tariffs harm Kosovo's economy and send a bad message to the private sector that Kosovo is not a place to do business. He has heard from many businessmen within Kosovo, including some American companies, that the tariffs are damaging them. Ambassador Green has made it clear to political leaders in Kosovo and Serbia that American investments in Kosovo will not have the desired outcome to help the economy if the tariffs continue to be in force. And replacing more barriers as measures of reciprocity will also be counterproductive to creating jobs for young people, says U.S. special envoy Richard Green's statement of the Voice of America.

Ambassador Grenelli reaffirmed on Tuesday the demand for the removal of tariffs to Serbian goods. In a post on the social network of people, Ambassador Green said that “is essential for the tariffs to be removed so that investments can function”.

He made these comments in response to a post on the other hand of the executive chief of the Kosovo Corporation “programme. Millennium challenge”, Petrit Selimi, regarding the investments of this corporation in Kosovo.

The new Kosovo government has conditioned lifting tariffs with setting full reciprocity measures with Serbia. But it is still unclear how such a goal of the new government will be realised.

In November 2018, the Kosovo government imposed 100 per cent tariffs on Serbian goods in a sign of opposition to Belgrade's approach to Kosovo citizenship. Belgrade conditions continuing talks on normalising relations with Kosovo with removing these tariffs, but former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj's government rejected any Western diplomacy attempts to convince it of such a thing.

The opposition disagrees with Prime Minister Kurti's plans to lift tariffs, even the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, warned today that “would use all democratic means to prevent the removal of tariffs”

Immediately after the formation of Albin Kurti's government, US Ambassador Richard Greenell, US special envoy for Kosovo talks Serbia, said “expects the tariffs to be removed immediately”. Ambassador Greenell visited Kosovo and Serbia during January, demanding that Pristina lift the tariffs, while Belgrade ends the campaign to attract recognitions for Kosovo independence.

He criticised the opposition's approach by refocusing the American stance on lifting tariffs. / VoA/