MEPs Urge All EU Members to Recognize Kosovo

A general view during a voting session of the European Parliament members in Brussels, Belgium, 29 March 2012. EPA/BGNES

The European Parliament has urged the five EU Member States that have yet to recognize Kosovo's independence to do so.

With a resolution adopted at Thursday's plenary session on EU enlargement, the MEPs told the five EU non-recognizers of Kosovo – Spain, Romania, Greece, Slovakia, and Cyprus – they should recognize the independence of the former Serbian province, noting that 88 countries have already done so.

The resolution welcomes the start of the visa dialogue in January in order to counter the growing isolation of Kosovar citizens. It expects the Commission to present the roadmap on visa liberalization this spring, and backs its plan to produce a feasibility study, by autumn 2012, for an EU-Kosovo stabilization and association agreement.

MEPs also hope that the International Olympic Committee will enable Kosovar athletes to take part in the upcoming London Olympic Games.

Parliament says the key remaining challenges for Kosovo include returning refugees and internally displaced people, fighting corruption and remedying the unstable and tense situation in the north. It also calls for swift constitutional and electoral reforms.

The resolution was passed with 375 votes in favor, 97 against, and 76 abstentions.

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