“Additional tasks will need” All known about today's Brussels meeting

At his invitation, representatives of Kosovo and Serbia met in Brussels on Tuesday.

“Additional tasks will be necessary”, Lajcak said in a post on the X platform.

He did not explain whether the parties had any agreement.

BEC Governor Ahmet Ismaili, who led the Kosovo delegation, said it was not discussed the regulation, but rather about the opportunities it offers for the transfer of resources from other states to Kosovo.

There is nothing else and we have not accepted any more discussions. The order is in effect and not changed. Its implementation is not put into question”, Ismaili told Radio Free Europe.

Serbia's delegation was led by chief negotiator Petar Petkovic, who said the BEC regulation seeks political solutions.

“The consequences of such a unilateral decision [of Kosovo] are political and impact the survival of the Serb people in Kosovo”, he said after the meeting.

The regulation of the CEC, which went into effect on 1 February, defines the euro as the only currency that can be used for cash payments in Kosovo.

It sparked angry reactions from official Belgrade, which financially supports the Serb community in Kosovo.

The international community also expressed concerns about its impact on the lives of Serbian citizens.

Western diplomats urged the Government of Kosovo to suspend implementation, to give affected citizens time to adapt to the new practice.

But, Prime Minister Albin Kurti insisted the CEC's decision cannot be annulled.

 

 

According to him, the regulation does not prohibit payments from Serbia's budget, but that they should be made in euros.

What else was said in Brussels?

BEC Governor Ismaili said several technical models were introduced at the meeting as Serbia can continue funding Serbs in Kosovo legally and transparently.

“There are legal opportunities for legal transfer [of money], if Serbia is willing to accept them”, Ismaili said without offering more details.

Petkovic said that the dinar issue has never been discussed in the context of dialogue for normalising Kosovo-Serbia relations, but “, since the decision of the so-called Central Bank of Kosovo directly affects Serbs, of course, will be discussed in Brussels”.

He added that he would make “obsolutely everything” to reach a solution in Brussels.

“We insisted that a solution should be found as soon as possible, because we are on the eve of March, when our citizens should receive the revenue for February”, Petkovovic said.

At the joint Kosovo- Serbia was present only financial experts from both countries.

According to unofficial information, with the insistence of the Kosovar side, Petkov was not present at that meeting.

Kosovo's chief negotiator, Besnik Bislimi, rejected Lajcak's invitation, arguing it was not about a meeting where he would have to go because, as he said, “the dinar's issue is not part of the” dialogue for normalising Kosovo-Serbia relations.

Since post-war in 1999, the Serb community in Kosovo accepts payment in dinars from Serbia, including salaries, pensions and additions for children.

Serbia's People's Bank sent dinars to its vault in the municipality of Leposaviqi -- the northern part of Kosovo -- from the international company, Henderson, transported them through financial institutions operating under the Serbian system, such as the Post Post Post Office or the Post Savings.

The CEC now insists that this practice is illegal, because only it can export and import coins and bank notes to Kosovo territory. / REL