Hovenier asks the Central Bank of Kosovo to postpone the implementation of the decision on the dinar

2024-01-29 11:32:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Hovenier asks the Central Bank of Kosovo to postpone the implementation of the

Jeff Hovenier

The American ambassador in Pristina, Jeff Hovenier, has asked the governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Ahmet Ismaili, to postpone the implementation of the decision to use only the euro currency in terms of cash operations.

The USA made the same request a few days ago.

The regulation approved by the CBK, which was seen by the Serbs in Kosovo as a decision that will prevent them from using the dinar, is expected to enter into force on February 1.

"Today I held a productive meeting with the governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Ahmet Ismaili. I reiterated US concerns regarding the implementation of the approved regulation on cash transactions. We call for the implementation of this regulation to be delayed to allow time for a more effective transition and communication with the public to mitigate the negative impact on citizens," Hovenier wrote on "X," formerly known as "Twitter."

The meeting between Ambassador Hovenier and Governor Ismaili came a day after the QUINT countries – the US, Britain, Germany, Italy and France – made the same request to postpone the implementation of the decision on the cash operations regulation.

The Government of Kosovo has argued that the CBK's decision is in accordance with the Constitution of Kosovo, but QUINT has said that this decision "raises concerns about the impact, in particular, on communities with a Serbian majority".

Meanwhile, the European Union has said earlier that it has requested clarifications from Kosovo for this decision, which according to the Serbian List - the main party of the Serbs in Kosovo, which enjoys the support of Serbia - endangers the survival of the Serbs in Kosovo.

In Kosovo, in all Serbian-majority settlements, the population uses the Serbian dinar to make payments, and those who work in Serbian institutions in Kosovo also receive their salaries in dinars.

Pensions are also paid with dinars, according to the Serbian system, as well as child allowances and social benefits.

In commercial facilities, in the areas where Serbs live in Kosovo, in addition to the euro, the dinar is also used./ REL