Does Spain Support Proposal to Link Kosovo’s Visa Liberalisation Process With the Operationalisation of ETIAS?
Authorities in Spain have neither affirmed nor denied their position regarding France’s proposal to link Kosovo’s visa liberalisation process with the European Travel and Information System (ETIAS) operationalisation.
Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told SchengenVisaInfo.com that the position of the different European Union Member States regarding the abolishment of visas for citizens of Kosovo would be specified in the next meeting of the working group of the European Union Council that will be held in late November or early December this year, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
“The subject has just begun to be dealt with in Brussels, and it will follow its normal procedure throughout which the positions of the different Member States will be specified,” Elena Aljarilla, from the press department of Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, pointed out in this regard.
Kosovo’s visa liberalisation process was included for the first time in the agenda of the European Commission’s Working Group meeting held on October 13 this year as a topic of discussion.
During the meeting, it was reported that France authorities unfolded the proposal that this process be linked with the operationalisation of ETIAS and that at least four EU Members supported such an idea: Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands and Spain.
However, such pretensions have not been confirmed by Spain, while the press department of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasised that the EU countries’ position will be clarified in the next meeting of the Working Group.
After the meeting of the working group held on October 13, the Czech Presidency of the European Council said that it is needed to further clarify some issues in order for the visa liberalisation process for Kosovo to advance, but such comments by the visa liberalisation working group were considered as additional criteria by some politicians and political analysts in Kosovo, extinguishing once again Kosovars’ hopes that such process is finalised any time soon.
The process of visa liberalisation for Kosovo started on February 19, 2012. In 2018 the European Commission estimated that the country met the two last requirements for the process to be completed: ratifying the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro and a strong track record in the country’s fight against crime and corruption.
Since 2018, the Commission of the European Union has continuously urged to liberalise visas for citizens of Kosovo; however, the much sought-after process has not been finalised yet.
Recently, the President of Serbia has said that Serbia supports abolishing visas for Kosovo.
Vucic comments came following the comments of the European Commission President, Ursula von Der Leyen, during the meeting held with the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, in which EC President stressed that Kosovo deserves visa liberalisation, adding that the EU will try to convince all Member States that visa regime for Kosovo’s citizens should be lifted.
“Kosovo deserves visa liberalisation. We have now reconfirmed that you have met all the criteria. Our task now is to convince the entire European Council – most of them are already on your side,” Von der Leyen pointed out in this regard.
Earlier this month, the Rapporteur for Kosovo in the European Parliament, Viola von Cramon, confirmed that in the following meeting of the Working Group of the European Union, there would be a vote in the European Parliament regarding the abolishment of visas for Kosovars.
