Free travel at last: Serbia and Kosovo settle dispute over car numbers

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Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on the online network Facebook on Friday that his government had “made the decision to allow vehicles with Serbian license plates to enter the country across the border.”

At the end of December, Belgrade had already decided that cars registered in Kosovo could enter Serbia from January 1 without having to cover their license plates. Kurti also said that the Serbian side had implemented this “fully” and that his government was also prepared to do so. The whole is based “on the principle of reciprocity as a starting point for regulating relations between independent states”.

“Purely practical decision”

Previously, drivers of cars registered in Serbia had to hide Serbian symbols on their license plates when entering Kosovo. Conversely, Kosovo symbols also had to be covered when entering Serbia. By withdrawing these regulations, the governments of Pristina and Belgrade have settled a dispute that had been going on for years.

However, the Serbian government’s representative for Kosovo, Petar Petkovic, said early this week that the registration of all vehicles was “a purely practical decision” and “cannot be interpreted as recognition of the unilaterally declared independence of the so-called Kosovo.”

Kosovo and Serbia want to join the EU

The country of Kosovo, with a population of 1.8 million and a predominantly Albanian population, declared its independence from Serbia in 2008. Many Western countries recognize Kosovo, while Serbia, Russia and China reject its independence. Therefore, the country cannot be admitted to the United Nations.

About 120,000 Serbs live in Kosovo, and both Balkan countries are seeking to join the EU. The EU demands that both sides reach an agreement to normalize relations. The issue of license plates was one of the main points of contention.

(SDA)

Source: Blick