Kosovo’s Kurti Says Euro ‘Non Negotiable’ as Sole Currency! Kosovo and the euro! скачать в хорошем качестве

Kosovo’s Kurti Says Euro ‘Non Negotiable’ as Sole Currency! Kosovo and the euro!

Subscribe here: https://bit.ly/eudebates Kosovo is under mounting international pressure to scrap a decision to make the euro the only legal currency for daily transactions in the country that is due to come into force on February 1. The rule is expected to cause problems in majority-Serb areas of northern Kosovo, where the Serbian dinar is widely used, leading to a further deterioration of relations between Pristina and Belgrade. Kosovo adopted the euro as its domestic currency, despite neither being a member of the EU nor having been endorsed by the European Central Bank (ECB). Long tolerated by EU officials, the Balkan country’s use of the euro became controversial with the central bank in Pristina’s announcement that from February 1 the European single currency will be the only currency to be used in the country. The move was announced by the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo (BQK) as aimed at streamlining financial transactions and enhancing the stability of the currency market, and was accompanied by a set of measures intended to prevent counterfeiting. It sparked an immediate outcry by Serbian politicians and the Serb population of northern Kosovo, who have never accepted Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence from Belgrade. They argue that preventing the use of the Serbian dinar will lead to hardship for local Serbs. Special cases Both Kosovo and fellow former Yugoslav nation Montenegro have adopted the euro as their currency, despite not having a formal agreement to do so. This is in contrast to other locations such as the Principalities of Monaco and Andorra that have concluded monetary agreements with the EU on the use of the euro. “The states of Kosovo and Montenegro in the Balkans are not members of the EU. The two countries adopted the euro unilaterally in 2002 and have since used it as their de facto currency. This means that the euro is not legal tender there, but is treated as such by the population,” an ECB statement emailed to bne IntelliNews said. The unilateral adoption of the euro stems from the two countries’ relatively recent independence — declared by Montenegro in 2006 and Kosovo in 2008 — after the wars that fractured Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Economist Lara Merling, a senior research fellow at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, says that despite the lack of a formal agreement, the use of the euro is tolerated in the two countries. “[T]he decision to fully switch to the euro cannot be separated from the internal conflict and civil war that followed the collapse of Yugoslavia. Their decision to adopt the euro is linked to that context of political instability, not being recognised as a country (Kosovo is still not fully recognised to this day) made issuing a new domestic currency virtually impossible – so in that sense the euro definitely helped stabilise things at first,” Merling told bne IntelliNews. “Due to their unique context the EU has de facto allowed for these two places to unilaterally adopt the euro even if this practice is otherwise not permitted for new members,” she added. “The actual use of the currency is now tolerated, and frameworks are being discussed to overcome any potential hurdles from the EU in that respect. Euroisation in these places has only survived because it received financial support from the EU, as well as technical assistance." Kosovars initially used the German Deutschmark when the country de facto split from Serbia after the war of independence and Nato bombardment of Serbia and Montenegro in 1999. In September 1999 the UN peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) approved the use of Deutschmarks and other foreign currencies, and the people of Kosovo spontaneously adopted the Deutschmark as their currency. In 2002, when the euro was introduced, Kosovo replaced the Deutschmark with the new European single currency. According to the central bank in Pristina, while Kosovo was not formally a member of the eurozone, adoption of the euro involved collaboration with the ECB and Eurozone national central banks, and around 100mn euros were dispersed before January 1, 2002. Costs and benefits The Kosovo central bank says the adoption of the euro as a national currency brought monetary stability to the new country, as there was no risk of devaluation of a national currency. Stay connected with us! Facebook:   / eudebates.tv   Twitter:   / eudebates   Instagram:   / eudebates.tv   #eudebates the unique initiative aiming to promote debate, dialogue, knowledge, participation and communication among citizens. #eudebate #Kurti #EURO #EUmoney #Pristina #Brussels #Kosovo #Yugoslavia