PRISTINA / BRUSSELS — Kosovo Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Mimoza Kusari-Lila announced in Brussels, that Kosovo soon will implement reciprocal measures addressing Serbia’s and Bosnia’s unwillingness to fulfill contractual duties in terms of the Central European Free Trade Agreement – CEFTA. Both the Republic of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina refuse Kosovar products to be sold on their local markets. In addition both countries blockade the transit of products from Kosovo through their territories. Likewise Serbia and Bosnia, Kosovo is a CEFTA member country.
Despite this Serbia and Bosnia (reportedly by veto of the "Republika Srpska" inside Bosnia) are intentionally failing to implement CEFTA obligations due to their non-recognition of the Republic of Kosovo as an independent state.
As to media reports Kosovo further on is the only country from the Balkans which for now doesn’t profit form EU trade preferences: The according EU free trade agreement seemingly was postponed because of legal complications, referring to the unsolved status of Kosovo and the subsequent formal problematic to contractually name Kosovo.
Kusari-Lila in Brussels met the Commissioner for the EU Enlargement, Stefan Fuele, as well as officials of the CEFTA secretariat, in order to discuss appropriate solutions on these topics .
Announced measures against Serbia refer to Serbia’s exports to Kosovo, which are valued at about 111 million Euro per year.
Filed under: Economy, Media Reports, Bosnia, Brussels, CEFTA, Kosovo, Prishtina, Pristina, Serbia
