EC proposes lifting visa requirements for Kosovo

EC proposes lifting visa requirements for Kosovo

The Commission also presented a positive assessment "confirming that Kosovo has fulfilled the requirements of its visa liberalization roadmap," an EC statement said.

"This is the result of the hard work and successful efforts of the Kosovo authorities in achieving far-reaching and difficult reforms in the Justice and Home Affairs area and beyond, impacting areas such as the rule of law and justice reform," said European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos.

In a progress report, the Commission confirmed that that Kosovo "has met all the requirements of its visa liberalization roadmap, on the understanding that by the day of adoption of this proposal by the European Parliament and Council, Kosovo will have ratified the border/boundary agreement with Montenegro and strengthened its track record in the fight against organised crime and corruption."

The EC today also recommended to EU member-countries to lift visa requirements for Turkey by June, if the country fulfills all 72 criteria - among them those on issuing of biometric passports and respect of human rights, AFP reported on Wednesday.

The European Commission will on Wednesday recommend the EU Schengen visa regime "for citizens of Kosovo, Turkey, Ukraine and Georgia," Beta said on Tuesday.

The agency said this would need to be ratified first by the EU Council of Ministers and the European Parliament.

"This was expected as the EC had confirmed that the authorities in Pristina, Ankara, Kiev and Tbilisi had met the main conditions for canceling the obligation of citizens asking for visas for stays of up to three months in countries in the Schengen space," Beta said, quoting its sources.

The reported added that "the entire procedure of introducing the EU's non-visa regime could be wrapped up in six months, and Kosovo, Turkey, Ukraine and Georgia will have to meet some of the other conditions."

The EC's December 2015 report said that Pristina was "slow to meet the main conditions breaking the reign of corruption, organized crime and illegal immigration."