Germany for liberalisation for Kosovo, other states still hesitate

But they have no firm answers as to when the decision on this would be in order in the European Union Council, as well as whether some member states have requested any new report on meeting the criteria on the part of Kosovo.

From the European Commission has told Radio Free Europe that as far as visa liberalisation is concerned, the European Commission stands behind the assessment given since July 2018 that Kosovo has fulfilled all criteria”.

In the question of whether there will be any new reports, this Commission has said it regularly reports on annual progress reports on Kosovo's success in various areas that are related to the criteria for liberalisation.

The latest report on this was that of 2019, and on it the Commission had reiterated the assessment that Kosovo has met all criteria.

Radio Free Europe's diplomatic sources in Brussels have said that the Commission in the autumn, when it will release its enlargement package and annual progress reports for all Western Balkan countries, it will also include the assessment about meeting the criteria for visa liberalisation on the part of Kosovo. At the moment, sources in Brussels say, the Commission is expected to reiterate that Kosovo continues to meet the necessary criteria and that the Commission holds the recommendation for visas to be removed for the journey of Kosovo citizens to EU countries and other Schengen countries, which are not formal EU members as: Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Litenstein.

From some diplomatic sources, it has been heard that some states that are reluctant to support visa liberalisation for Kosovo '%sic is the case with France ʹ seek a new assessment to see whether Kosovo continues to meet the conditions or not. These countries have some remarks in the area of rule of law and some concerns about the number of asylum seekers from Kosovo, which, although small, still exists, especially in France.

The European Parliament also continues to support visa liberalisation. Moreover, many European Parliament deputies have turned to the German Presidency to take a day's turn and ensure that Kosovo citizens get their visas removed. They have recalled that Kosovo is the only country in the region that does not enjoy that right.

The only obstacle for visa liberalisation now lies in EU member states, which, by qualified majority, must decide on the Council.

Official sources from the German Foreign Ministry have said Germany praises Kosovo's efforts in recent years in order to meet all criteria, especially those dealing with the fight against organised crime and corruption. But the same sources remember that the decision should be made on the Council of the European Union.

“Under that, Germany supports Kosovo on the road to realisation of visa liberalisation. To that end, we have already had expert talks on an expert level between Kosovo representatives and experts from the German Federal Foreign and Interior Ministry, where we have discussed all open issues”, this source has said.

The German Foreign Ministry has also recalled a European Affairs Minister Michael Roth's proposal a month ago, where he said that as regards Kosovo “The EU must implement what we have promised and finally move forward on the road to visa liberalisation”.

Diplomatic sources in the EU estimate that visa liberalisation is still likely to take place before the end of this year if Germany, which has the rotating chairmanship of the European Presidency, is more likely to be engaged in this topic during the autumn. While it is possible to ensure the qualified majority in the EU Council, there will still be efforts to ensure the removal of the opposition of France and the Netherlands, the two states which have so far been reluctant mostly to support visa liberalisation for Kosovo.