David Cullen, Head of Unit for Kosovo in the European Commission's DG NEAR (Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations), as well as Anna-Maria Boura, Chair of the European External Action Service's Working Party on the Western Balkans Region (COWEB), said on Wednesday 23 January that Member States' delay in granting visa-free treatment to Kosovars complicates EU-Kosovo relations.
"Kosovar society is frustrated by a perceived lack of European commitment, the non-liberalisation of visas is poorly perceived. This is against our credibility" Ms Boura explained during a debate in the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Security and Defence. Pointing out that she shared Pristina's frustration on this issue, she warned that this should not turn into inaction on the criteria necessary for this liberalisation.
"There is an impact on the perception of the EU and relations with the EU. Whether or not you agree with the critics, it has an impact and consequences", added Mr Cullen.
Several Member States are reluctant to grant a visa-free regime to Kosovo, the last Balkan country not to benefit from it. Due to the European elections, such liberalisation would still have to wait several months (see EUROPE 12152).
A "calm, but fragile" situation
More generally, the two European representatives, as well as the Commander of KFOR, Major General Lorenzo D'Addario, considered the situation in the country to be "calm but fragile".
The three interlocutors also discussed Kosovo's transformation of its security forces into a real army (see EUROPE 12160). KFOR and the EULEX mission are also cooperating on the ground. For Mr D'Addario, while the vote on transforming the Kosovar forces into an army increased "a little tension", in concrete terms, "nothing has changed in terms of capacity", because the transformation is planned over 10 years.
For her part, Ms Boura said that the EU would continue to contribute, through EULEX, to the country's security and stability. "But in the long term, the only real way to ensure good progress in a stable and peaceful Kosovo is a comprehensive dialogue and a credible European path", she said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)