Members of the European Parliament adopted without a vote the decision on visa liberalization for Kosovo, which was the last step towards the cancellation of visas for citizens who have Kosovo passports, however, they will not be able to travel to Spain despite the decision to cancel visas.
Kosovo has not been recognized by five EU member states – Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus, Greece and Spain, which, unlike the mentioned countries, does not even recognize Kosovo travel documents.
Also, Spain will preside over the European Union from 1 July to 31 December this year and did not want visa liberalization for Kosovo to come into force during its presidency. That is the reason why the deadline has been moved to 1 January 2024, when the mandate of the Spanish presidency of the European Union expires.
“Recognition of travel documents is a national competence. Among the Schengen countries, all but one have recognized Kosovo’s travel documents. This means that visa liberalization for Kosovo will allow holders of Kosovo passports to travel without visas to all but one Schengen country,” she confirmed to Radio Free Europe Anita Hipper, spokeswoman for the European Commission (EC).
The Spanish government has repeatedly reiterated that it stands by its position that it does not recognize the declaration of independence adopted by Pristina in 2008, and that it defends the need to resolve the issue through a dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.
