Kosovo Prime Minister Submits Application for EU Membership, Reports Say

BELGRADE (Sputnik) - Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti on Thursday submitted Pristina's application for EU membership to the Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union, media reported.

Kurti arrived in Prague earlier in the day to submit Kosovo's membership application. Upon arrival, he was received by Czech Minister for European Affairs Mikulas Bek, Radio Television of Kosovo reported.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic is expected to announce Belgrade's response to Kosovo's application later in the day. In addition, Vucic will tell the details of Belgrade's request for sending troops and police forces into Kosovo and Metohija, a border region where tensions with Kosovo escalated earlier this week.

According to the Serbian president, some member states that support Kosovo's bid for EU membership violate Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union on entry conditions.

Serbian military and armored vehicles near the road between the village of Raska and the Yarine checkpoint on the administrative line between central Serbia and northern Kosovo

© Sputnik / Oleg Ivanov

In 2008, an Albanian-controlled force in Serbia's Kosovo and Metohija province unilaterally proclaimed independence from Belgrade and launched a campaign for international recognition. Kosovo's foreign ministry has declared it has secured recognition from 116 UN member states, as of Thursday. Of the 27 EU member states, five — Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia and Spain — have not recognized Kosovo's sovereignty.

In 2016, the European Union and Kosovo signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, which confirmed Pristina's intention to join the bloc and its readiness to carry out the required political, economic, trade and human rights reforms.

In March 2022, the Kosovar parliament adopted a resolution urging the government to take all necessary steps to join NATO, the European Union, the Council of Europe and other international organizations.