Paneuropa Welcomes Progress on Visa-Free Travel for the Republic of Kosovo

“The Republic of Kosovo is consistently following the European path of the rule of law and reforms,” comments Paneuropa Secretary General Rainhard Kloucek on the European Commission’s finding that Europe’s youngest state has now met all 95 formal criteria for visa-free travel. “It is now up to the parliaments and governments of Europe’s nation states to fulfil the promise made.”

For Paneuropa, the oldest European unification movement, freedom of movement and the associated abolition of visa requirements for European citizens is one of the most important principles. Visas for European citizens within Europe are among the last remnants of the Cold War’s “wall-building policy”.

“The misconception that visa requirements stop criminals or guarantee security must be resolutely countered,” Kloucek continues. “There is no justification for preventing the citizens of a sovereign state from travelling; it only harms the country and its people. Visa requirements cause internal pressure to rise. Freedom of movement, on the other hand, means seeing other countries and applying the knowledge gained at home to great effect. This is another reason why the overdue visa-free travel would be a contribution to greater stability – in South-East Europe and beyond.”

Featured image: The President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi (left), with EU Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos. © European Union 2018