Kosovo's government for the “Open Balkans”: Novi Sad initiative has our approval

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has not participated in the Regional Co-operation Economic Forum under way in Northern Macedonia, which so far was known as <x0mini-Shengeni” Balkan.

From this forum, Northern Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, Serbia's president, Aleksandar Vuciq and Albania's prime minister Edi Rama have invited other countries in the region to join the “mini-Sengenin” initiative, as the only opportunity to strengthen economic co-operation and movement.

Through a written response to Radio Free Europe, the Kosovo Government's Media Office said that <x0 concentrations for the idea of Novi Sad, the so-called ʹmini-Shengenı, are now known”.

Novi Sad's <x0); initiative does not have our approval, and as a result, we have not officially had an invitation to attend the meeting. For us, the so-called ʹmini-Shengen) is an initiative without vision for the region. We have proposed advancing regional co-operation from CEFTA to SEFTA, according to the EFTA model. EEA, which would simultaneously benefit all Western Balkan countries”, says in response.

The idea of the Balkan <x0mini-Shengen” was introduced in Novi Sad of Serbia on October 10th 2019, by leaders of Serbia, Northern Macedonia and Albania.

Northern Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, as the host of this meeting, has called on all Western Balkan leaders to join this initiative.

“Nism is open to all Western Balkan countries, so we invite and encourage our colleagues to unite because of our peoples. We are all Western and European Balkans. Create a vision of real development to benefit all our citizens”, Zaev said.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has consistently rejected the initiative of “mini-Shengen”, as according to him, the region must return to integration agendas in the European Union, rather than initiatives that, according to the Kosovo prime minister, are harmful to Albanians.

Messages from Skopje to Prime Minister Kurti has sent his Albanian counterpart, Edi Rama.

He said who says this is an initiative designed in the basements of the former Yugoslavia lives in another world.

The first “lives in a parallel world. The second one, living for politics in people's skin and not for increased prosperity and for strengthening bridges between people and third, forgets that if we leave like this, then we should say that the European Union is also a big Yugoslavia. If the European Union is the great Yugoslavia, this is the small Yugoslavia”, Rama said.

In addition to Prime Minister Kurti, Kosovo Economic Ode Director Berat Rukiqi has indicated against this initiative.

He told Radio Free Europe that no regional initiative that does not involve all can succeed.

Whatever countries in the region should find in this case, it is a consultant that within the Berlin process or within any other initiative, achieve what they are aiming to have an economic region that is attractive for trade and investment. In this situation, when there are only three countries, I don't believe this initiative will succeed”, Rukiqi said.

The government of the Republic of Kosovo calls on the governments of the region to remain committed to the European Union's agenda and transatlantic relations.