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Will Kosovo and Serbia face off over the tariff at arbitration? (Radio Free Europe)

By   /  05/04/2019  /  Comments Off on Will Kosovo and Serbia face off over the tariff at arbitration? (Radio Free Europe)

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The news agency reports that the Serbian Government is considering possible arbitration after Kosovo introduced the 100-percent import tariff on Serbian and Bosnian goods. According to the government in Belgrade, Pristina has violated the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA). The government in Pristina meanwhile said it was ready to defend its position in the event of arbitration. Halil Matoshi, advisor to Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, told Radio Free Europe that the Kosovo Government is aware that Serbia could seek arbitration over the import tariff. “We are ready to defend our position, because our decision derives from the CEFTA agreement, which means we have consulted the CEFTA agreement, and the decision was made for reasons of national security and to protect local manufacturers. The Kosovo Government and Prime Minister Haradinaj are confident that Kosovo will win the case at arbitration. If Serbia sends Kosovo to the Court of Arbitration, it would mean that it accepts the existence of the independent legal-political entity, the Republic of Kosovo,” Matoshi said. Serbian Prime Minister, Ana Brnabic, said on Thursday that Belgrade was considering possible arbitration on the issue. “At this moment, that is the only way to protect Serbia’s interests and have everyone who signed the agreement face the consequences in line with the contract they signed,” she told reporters in Belgrade. Kosovo’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Endrit Shala, however said in a press release on Thursday that Serbia has no grounds to seek arbitration. Shala said the decision to introduce the import tariff was made because of deeply asymmetrical relations between the two countries and the political problems that both Serbia and Bosnia have caused to Kosovo. “These two countries have continuously placed unjustifiable barriers to Kosovo’s trade and economy, in opposition with the objectives of the CEFTA agreement … Kosovo has reported on these barriers but there was no reaction from CEFTA member states, and therefore, Kosovo made the decision on the tariff,” Shala said. He also said that Article 42, paragraph 2, of the CEFTA agreement, provides that parties are entitled to seek bilateral consultations in the event of problems, and that Serbian and Bosnian ministers made such requests, but with UNMIK, and not with the Kosovo Government. He said this was the reason why Kosovo did not agree to bilateral meetings.

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