The United States ambassador in Pristina, Jeffrey Hovenier, reiterated on Monday the request to the Government of Kosovo to postpone the decision on the implementation of the regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK).<\/p>\n
He made these statements after a meeting held on Monday with the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and other foreign diplomats.<\/p>\n
The CBK regulation \u2013 which came into force on February 1 \u2013 stipulates that the sole currency for payment transactions in Kosovo will be the euro.<\/p>\n
Thus, the use of the dinar by Serbs in Kosovo is prevented.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe certainly support efforts to prevent financial crimes, money laundering, terrorism financing, and the like, but we have deep concerns about the way this regulation is being implemented, as we believe it does not take into account some community concerns,\u201d stated Hovenier.<\/p>\n
When asked if the U.S. Government could take action against Kosovo if it does not respond to this request, Hovenier said, \u201cWe hope the Government will be a partner with us\u201d, adding that if the opposite happens, it \u201cwill have an impact on the quality of our partnership\u201d.<\/p>\n
Hovenier said that although the United States welcomes Kosovo\u2019s decision to respect the country\u2019s Constitution, the U.S. believes that there should be an educational period for the new regulation.<\/p>\n
When asked about the Government\u2019s reaction to his request and the international factor, Hovenier said he \u201cwill let them speak\u201d in this direction.<\/p>\n
The United States, the European Union, and other mechanisms criticized the Government of Kosovo a few days ago for not implementing the regulation.<\/p>\n
Kosovo\u2019s Deputy Prime Minister, Besnik Bislimi, has pledged to ensure a smooth transition.<\/p>\n
Hovenier hopes that during this transitional period, the concerns of the international community will be taken into account.<\/p>\n
Regarding the dinar<\/strong><\/p>\n In Serb-majority municipalities in Kosovo, the Serbian dinar has been circulating since the post-war period.<\/p>\n The Serbian state pays salaries, pensions, social assistance, and other benefits to Serbs in Kosovo \u2013 through a parallel system.<\/p>\n The Law on Local Government Finance in Kosovo allows for the sending of financial aid from Serbia.<\/p>\n This year, Serbia has allocated 139 million euros for Serbs in Kosovo \u2013 about 11 million more than in 2023.<\/p>\n The Serb List \u2013 the largest party of Serbs in Kosovo \u2013 strongly criticized the decision of the CBK, considering the authorities\u2019 decision as an attempt to expel Serbs from Kosovo.<\/p>\n Serbian President Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 has pledged that Serbia will find institutions that will obtain licenses to enable money transfers for Serbs in Kosovo.<\/p>\n The head of the CBK, Ahmet Ismaili, mentioned financial integrity as the main reason for implementing the regulation a few days ago.<\/p>\n According to him, the decision protects Kosovo \u201cfrom counterfeit money, terrorism financing, and the use of non-original currencies\u201d.<\/p>\n Others mention tax evasion in the absence of control over the dinar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The United States ambassador in Pristina, Jeffrey Hovenier, reiterated on Monday the request to the Government of Kosovo to postpone the decision on the implementation of the regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK). He made these statements after a meeting held on Monday with the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and other […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":54170,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[163],"tags":[1271,5351,1851,2480,300,2785,243,151,383,5926,490],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n