Sign up to create alerts for Instruments,
Economic Events and content by followed authors
Free Sign Up Already have an account? Sign In
Quotes
All Instrument Types
- All Instrument Types
- Indices
- Equities
- ETFs
- Funds
- Commodities
- Currencies
- Crypto
- Bonds
- Certificates
Please try another search
💎 Access the Market Tools Trusted by Thousands of Investors Get Started
Kosovo backs off from Serb car plate rule after West warnings
Published Oct 28, 2022 01:42PM ET
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A driver removes a sticker covering the national markings on his car plates at the Jarinje border crossing, Kosovo September 1, 2022. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski/File Photo
PRISTINA (Reuters) - Kosovo said it will delay a rule to confiscate cars owned by ethnic Serbs who refuse to use local car plates following criticism by Western countries that such a move may aggravate ethnic tensions.
Kosovo has attempted a few times this year to require its Serb minority to change their old car plates that date before 1999 when Kosovo was still part of Serbia. However, this move has been met with strong and sometimes violent resistance by local Serbs who live in the northern part of the country.
The last deadline was Nov. 1 when around 10,000 motorists had to switch their old car registrations.
Speaking during a government meeting, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said such a decision will be implemented gradually.
"These car plates are illegal...we want to give a chance to all of those who are interested to be integrated," Kurti said.
He said the decision was taken to respect the rule of law but also address Western countries' concerns.
Kurti said drivers will first be given warnings for three weeks, then will be fined for a period of two months, followed by a period of temporary car plates and if they do not change their plates by April 21, their vehicles will be confiscated.
Local Serbs have threatened to block roads, as they did in the past, if Pristina takes any steps to stop them from using their cars.
Kosovo declared independence in 2008 but around 50,000 ethnic Serbs who live in the northern part of Kosovo refuse to recognize Pristina's authority and still consider themselves a part of Serbia.
"Kosovo has the right to implement the license plate regime...but an extension of the timeline is in the interest of making progress on the EU-facilitated dialogue to normalize Kosovo-Serbia relations," U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on the same day.
He added that his administration was "disappointed and concerned" by Kurti's rejections in the past days to delay the ruling for another 10 months.
The United States and other Western European countries are the biggest supporters of Kosovo but it remains unclear if Kurti's latest move will please them.
Mediated by the European Union and supported by the United States, Serbia and Kosovo have been holding talks for years to normalise relations but little has been achieved.
Kosovo is recognized by around 110 countries, mainly western nations, but not by Serbia, China, Russia and others.
Related Articles
Add Chart to Comment
Confirm Block
Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?
By doing so, you and %USER_NAME% will not be able to see any of each other's Investing.com's posts.
%USER_NAME% was successfully added to your Block List
Since you’ve just unblocked this person, you must wait 48 hours before renewing the block.
Report this comment
I feel that this comment is:
Comment flagged
Thank You!
Your report has been sent to our moderators for review
Add a Comment
We encourage you to use comments to engage with other users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind:
Enrich the conversation, don’t trash it.
Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed.
Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically. Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user. Racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.
Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.