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Kurt cut: We cannot undo the decision on the Serbian dinar

2024-02-12 11:37:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Kurt cut: We cannot undo the decision on the Serbian dinar

Albin Kurti

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said that he will not abandon the decision that only the euro should be the currency for payments in Kosovo, but he said that he is respecting the demands of the international factor on this issue.

Since February 1, a regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo has entered into force in Kosovo, which excludes other currencies, including the Serbian dinar, for payments.

During an interview with Bloomberg, Kurti reiterated that the CBK regulation on cash operations does not prohibit the holding of Serbian dinars, as this currency can be used for payments only after it is converted into euros at one of the licensed banks in Kosovo. .

"We cannot undo this decision. So they asked for more time and we are giving them more time. Now, even our American and European partners are saying that the regulation is legal because it is fighting the financing of terrorism, illegal activities, but we should not be in too much of a hurry to fully implement it. And this is how we will act during February", said Kurti.

The Serbian state allocates millions of euros to Serbs in Kosovo after paying them - through a parallel system - salaries, pensions and additional assistance.

The regulation has been criticized by the international factor, which has argued that the decision was taken without prior consultation. Internationals have asked Kosovo to postpone the implementation of the regulation, saying that more time is needed for the Serbian community to adapt to the decision.

The Government of Kosovo has said that throughout February there will be campaigns to inform Serbs about this decision, and in this context, Kurti addressed Serbian citizens on February 11, in the Serbian language, saying that the decision does not stop Serbia from continuing to help Serbs in Kosovo.

During the Bloomberg interview, Kurti was asked what his ultimate goal is for the Serbs in northern Kosovo, where they make up the majority of the population.

Kurti said that he wants them to integrate into society, stressing that most of them have already done so, through the equipment of identity cards and passports of Kosovo.

"The problem is not the Serbs of Kosovo, the problem is the autocratic regime in Belgrade, which is a Russian collaborator. It is a regime that depends on the Kremlin. They are making this pre-apocalyptic alarm, inciting ethnic tensions because they want to cause problems in the region," said Kurti.

During an extraordinary session of the United Nations Security Council on February 8, where the situation in Kosovo was discussed after the decision to ban the dinar, Serbia and Russia said that with these actions, Kosovo is carrying out "ethnic cleansing" against the Serbs in Kosovo. .

Kurti responded to these accusations, describing them as lies. /REL