On Monday, 25 March, European Union Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue Miroslav Lajčák met with Kosovar Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi and Director of the Serbian Office for Kosovo Petar Petković in order to try to find a solution on the issue of Priština’s decision to ban transactions in Serbian dinars (see EUROPE 13342/15). Since this meeting did not produce any concrete results, there will be another meeting on the subject next week.
“Today, the chief negotiators of Kosovo and Serbia presented proposals on a way forward for people affected by the CBK [Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo] regulation on cash operations. Our long discussions helped to clarify important details. [W]e agreed to reconvene [next week] with the ambition [of] find[ing] a solution,” assured Mr Lajčák.
These remarks from the EU special representative are in sharp contrast with those of the Kosovar deputy prime minister, who felt, “[T]hese proposals are still very far from each other”, describing the proposal that Priština put forward as “very constructive”.
The ban on transactions in Serbian dinars in Kosovo was reportedly expected to take effect on 1 February. Fearing that this decision would “affect the financial support that Kosovo Serbs receive from Serbia”, the European Union had, on 1 February, called on the Kosovar government [through the EEAS] to establish a transition period.
The topic of transactions in Serbian dinars comes on top of a long series of other problems (see EUROPE 13373/8 and 13279/4) that are preventing the two Balkan countries from continuing down the path of normalising their relations—a condition that is a sine qua non for advancement in their respective EU accession processes. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)