PRISTINA (Kosovo), March 28 (SeeNews) – The European Parliament confirmed on Thursday its negotiating position to demand a visa waiver for Kosovo’s citizens in view of the end of the legislature.
In November, the parliament confirmed the mandate for negotiations with the Council of the EU on the proposal to waive visa requirements for Kosovo’s citizens.
The citizens of Kosovo should be able to travel visa-free to the EU for short periods, the parliament said in a press release, after MEPs backed a visa waiver in a 331-to-126 vote with 12 abstentions.
“The proposal needed the agreement of both Parliament and the Council, but since the latter did not have a position, there were no negotiations,” the European Parliament said.
“EU governments have not delivered what they promised,” European Parliament rapporteur on visa liberalisation for Kosovo citizens, Tanja Fajon, said.
“EU member states are blocking a little country without real reasons,” Fajon noted, adding that Kosovo has fulfilled all the requirements to obtain a visa waiver, as the European Commission acknowledged.
Following the abolition of visas for the citizens of North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia in 2009 and for Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2010, Kosovo is the only Western Balkan country whose citizens still need visas to travel to the EU.
If adopted, the visa waiver would allow the citizens of Kosovo to travel to the EU without a visa for 90 days in any 180-day period (provided they hold a biometric passport) for business, tourism or family purposes, but not for work.
The visa liberalisation dialogue with Kosovo was launched in 2012.