The United States Ambassador in Pristina, Jeff Hovenier, said that despite the decision on the regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK) for the use of only the euro for payments in Kosovo being made on December 27, 2023, but was announced in January of this year, Washington was not informed in advance about it.

In an interview with RTV 21, Hovenier said that if they had been aware of the approval of this regulation – which prohibits the use of the Serbian dinar for payments – Washington would have been willing to discuss with the Government of Kosovo the challenges of such a decision.

“If the Government had been concerned about the armored vehicles that have brought large amounts of cash and wanted to find alternative ways to make this less disruptive, we would have been very willing to discuss those issues. I don’t think there have been such discussions,” said Hovenier.

The CBK’s regulation on cash operations came into force on February 1, despite international concerns about the impact it may have on the Serbian community, as this regulation prevents payments in Serbian dinars.

The American diplomat reiterated that the U.S. does not contest the authority of the Kosovar executive or that of the CBK, but emphasized that “we are concerned about how Kosovo aims to implement what we believe does not address or take into account the impact it will have on the vulnerable community”.

Serbia pays Kosovo Serbs – through a parallel system – salaries, pensions, social assistance, and other benefits.

Hovenier reiterated that the U.S.’ request to the Government of Kosovo is clear: “postpone the implementation of the decision until a good strategy is established to mitigate the effects on the vulnerable population, and I am speaking, among other things, about the ethnic population in Kosovo and a good public information plan”.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti admitted on February 6 that the communication of the decision had not been clear, but he pledged that during a transition period, authorities would provide information about this regulation.

Ambassador Hovenier again warned that there could be consequences “in the quality of partnership” between the U.S. and Kosovo if the latter does not heed Washington’s demands, but did not specify what consequences are meant.

Asked whether recent U.S. criticisms could have consequences for Kosovo’s earlier request to purchase weapons from the U.S., Hovenier said that the U.S. supports the Kosovo Security Force in terms of treatment and equipment. However, he emphasized that cooperation in this depends on how strong the partnership between Pristina and Washington is.

“I expect the Government of Kosovo to work with us to improve and strengthen our partnership,” said Hovenier.

The U.S. Ambassador also said that his country wants Kosovar society to maintain its multi-ethnic character and expects the Government in Pristina to provide security and dignified living conditions for all communities, regardless of their ethnic affiliation.

Meanwhile, speaking about the issue of establishing the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, Hovenier said that Kosovo must implement its part of the Basic Agreement for the road to normalization of relations and the Annex of the implementation of this agreement – reached last year by Kosovo and Serbia within the framework of the European Union-mediated dialogue – stressing that Kosovo has the responsibility to establish this association.

Asked if there could be new consequences for Kosovo if it does not establish the Association, Hovenier said:

“We will make those decisions when we get there. But it is not wrong to say that we are concerned and would like to see greater responsiveness to our demands from what we are seeing at this time”.

Among other things, the agreement on the road to normalization of relations obliges Kosovo to establish the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, which would enable Serbs in Kosovo a certain level of self-management.

Previously, the parties had reached an agreement in 2013 to establish the Association, but that agreement has not yet been implemented.