Whereas most individuals in Europe and the Western Balkans can merely pack their suitcase, purchase a ticket and seize their passport to go to their summer time trip vacation spot of alternative, residents of Kosovo have by no means had that privilege.

Almost two million folks dwelling in Europe’s youngest state must endure the gruelling, time-consuming and costly technique of making use of for a visa to the EU and the Schengen space as a substitute.

Regardless of guarantees from Brussels, Kosovo stays the one nation in continental Europe in addition to Russia and Belarus exterior the EU’s visa-free regime, which permits these exterior the bloc to enter the Schengen space for 90 days over a six-month interval.

It’s not simply in regards to the holidays — Kosovars wishing to review or obtain medical care in western Europe can shortly discover out that the necessities for the precise visas they should have are nicely exterior of their attain.

On a hill above the capital Prishtina, a crowd gathered in entrance of an company tasked with accepting functions for the Swiss and UK embassies, braving the noon solar amidst a heatwave.

Leafing by means of their paperwork one final time to verify every thing was so as earlier than handing it over to workers in uniform, some had been clearly nervous in regards to the end result of their functions.

Others standing in line in sweltering warmth had been vocal of their exasperation.

“The truth that everybody else in Europe can simply get up and purchase a ticket to anyplace with out considering twice about visas is extraordinarily unfair,” Shkelzen Starabaja, 28, who’s organising a small enterprise in Kosovo after working for the US army in Iraq and on the US Military-led Camp Bondsteel close to Ferizaj/Uroševac advised Euronews.

“It’s unjust and it’s turn into a really politicised challenge, and there’s no hope of us making any progress in that respect.”

“There are every kind of prejudices at play right here, and whereas Kosovo has a whole lot of worldwide supporters there are lots of people who’ve the flawed thought about what Kosovo and its folks characterize,” Starabaja mentioned.

Visa-free journey remains to be a pipe dream

Kosovar visa woes are as outdated because the nation itself.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia practically a decade after the 1998-1999 battle that led to a NATO intervention in opposition to the Belgrade regime of Slobodan Milošević.

The ensuing Kumanovo Settlement ensured the withdrawal of Belgrade-controlled forces from the ethnic Albanian-majority province and allowed the UN to ascertain a civilian mission with NATO offering safety, making Kosovo the one UN protectorate in Europe.

Since then, the worldwide neighborhood led by the UN, the US and the European Union had invested an unprecedented quantity of funding and energy to make sure the nation shortly grew to become a full-fledged democracy.

In 2007, Brussels established its greatest civilian mission in a non-member state, the EU Rule of Legislation Mission or EULEX, to help the native judiciary and supply help for the police drive.

Nevertheless, because the 2008 declaration, Serbia — which sees its former province as part of its territory — has actively tried to forestall Kosovo from turning into a full-fledged member of worldwide organisations such because the UN and Interpol.

Moreover, Serbia has led a global de-recognition marketing campaign in an try and deny Kosovo its standing, with the visa liberalisation regime additionally affected by the dispute.

All different international locations within the area efficiently negotiated the visa liberalisation regime between 2009 and 2010.

For Kosovo, nevertheless, the best to free journey within the EU and the Schengen space remained a carrot that Brussels retains waving in entrance of the Prishtina authorities’s nostril, civil society analyst Donika Emini advised Euronews.

“The visa challenge is a supply of extraordinary frustration,” Emini mentioned.

“Take a look at the international locations within the area — all of them carry out equally to Kosovo when it comes to rule of regulation and different parameters. But their residents have forgotten what it’s prefer to even have to use for a visa.”

The nation was promised the coveted privilege a number of instances since 2008 — most notably in 2014, after resolving a border dispute with Montenegro.

Earlier in June, the Council of the EU was mentioned to be contemplating eradicating the impediment as western international locations scrambled to extend their affect within the area, fearing Russia may exploit the vacuum amid its struggle in Ukraine.

Nevertheless, visa liberalisation — granted to the most recent candidate international locations, Moldova and Ukraine, in 2014 and 2017, respectively — as soon as once more remained a pipe dream for the Kosovars.

“Even I’ve to use for visas usually, as somebody who has a residency within the UK, who has lived within the EU for over 5 years in each Germany and France — and each time I really feel the worry of being rejected,” she defined.

“It has turn into such an enormous challenge in Kosovo that folks actively have a worry that they won’t be granted the best to freedom of motion.”

Taking part in cat and mouse

There are many problems that come up from completely different international locations’ guidelines on issuing visas, usually incurring further prices and time misplaced on leaping by means of bureaucratic hoops. 

Usually, the obstacles are not possible to resolve, particularly if somebody needs to maneuver to one of many EU member states.

Residents of Kosovo who need to get an Austrian residency visa have to use for it in Skopje, in North Macedonia — a two-hour drive from the Kosovo capital — though there may be an Austrian embassy in Prishtina.

In the event that they want a Belgian “D” visa, the embassy will kindly ask them to get it in Sofia — regardless of them additionally needing a visa to enter Bulgaria.

Some embassies, just like the Italian or German ones, have tried their greatest to streamline the method, and the appliance may be handed in in Prishtina without having for intermediaries.

Others, together with the Swiss embassy, use an middleman company that takes within the software paperwork and delivers the visa if authorized — however this will generally additionally show to be sophisticated and dear.

Over time, quite a few non-public businesses popped up within the proximity of varied embassies, charging a sum to assist folks put together all the mandatory paperwork, which embrace every thing from financial institution statements, employment data or tax returns.

Some international locations is not going to even think about Kosovars for entry. Regardless of the precept being {that a} Schengen visa ought to grant entry to all 26 international locations within the space, Spain has stipulated that the visas don’t embrace entry into the nation.

As a non-recognising nation, Spain doesn’t see Kosovar paperwork as legitimate, with the one approach for its residents to go to the nation being by acquiring a residence card or one other doc in one other EU member state.

Spain stays one of many staunchest non-recognisers of Kosovo’s independence, which many consider stems from home fears that areas with sturdy pro-independentist actions similar to Catalonia may use the instance of Kosovo as a justification for their very own case.

On his most up-to-date go to to the area, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez advised the gathered journalists within the Albanian capital Tirana that Madrid “can’t be in favour of Kosovo’s recognition” because of his perception that it’s in violation of worldwide regulation.

The Worldwide Court docket of Justice dominated in 2010 that Kosovo, actually, didn’t violate any present legal guidelines in its unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in February 2018.

Of the six Western Balkan international locations, Kosovo — along with Bosnia and Herzegovina — stays a possible candidate for EU membership, a label that may be greatest described as a paper medal by Brussels in hopes of not additional alienating the 2.

The federal government in Prishtina has all the time had EU membership in its sights, whereas Kosovars are simply probably the most pro-bloc nations within the area, Emini mentioned.

The nation signed the Stabilisation and Affiliation Settlement with the bloc in 2015, however the membership negotiations – which turned out to be way more demanding in comparison with others – have stalled since.

“Kosovo faces important challenges to its EU integration as a result of challenge of non-recognisers. It acquired the roadmap later than different international locations within the Western Balkans and the roadmap for Kosovo differs considerably from these the remainder of the area acquired,” Emini emphasised.

“There weren’t extra benchmarks however there have been extra detailed benchmarks, as a result of by the point Kosovo formally began its roadmap the EU realized from the errors it had made with different international locations within the area.”

“Usually, there’s a lack of willingness on the facet of the EU to do one thing in relation to Kosovo. There’s nothing the EU can provide Kosovo proper now, since there isn’t any energetic EU course of occurring past the SAA, so it doesn’t need to surrender the one factor it may grant — visa liberalisation — that simply,” she said.

Kosovo’s passport worse than Belarusian, Russian

In response to the non-public journey freedom rating device, Henley Passport Index, Kosovo shares a lowly ninetieth place on the listing of the world’s strongest passports, along with the likes of Chad, Bhutan and Cambodia.

Kosovo residents can freely journey to some 53 international locations out of a complete of 193. Even some international locations which can be identified for being among the many least restrictive on the earth, similar to Mauritius or Georgia, require Kosovars to carry a visa or bar them from entry altogether.

In truth, it’s theoretically simpler for Kosovo nationals to journey to far-flung, unique locations. Visiting the man Balkan nation of Bosnia — the place some Kosovars have household or enterprise connections — can show to be practically not possible, because the nation is among the many non-recognisers and requires a visa that’s notoriously troublesome to acquire.

In flip, this, coupled with a low lifestyle, has restricted Kosovars to journey to international locations like neighbouring Albania or Turkey.

The closest European nation on the Henley Index is Belarus within the sixty fifth place, regardless of the previous Soviet Union state and its strongman chief Alexander Lukashenko being hit by a number of units of EU sanctions and different restrictions because of home turmoil and Minsk’s involvement within the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February.

And but, Belarus residents can freely enter 79 international locations, together with Ukraine — one thing that’s not possible for Kosovars since Kyiv doesn’t recognise Kosovo’s independence.

These with Russian passports can get pleasure from free journey to a complete of 117 international locations and territories as of 1 July 2022, regardless of ever-increasing limitations positioned in opposition to the nation for its ongoing aggression in opposition to its western neighbour.

Moreover, residents of states with questionable rule of regulation and human rights data, similar to Venezuela or Saudi Arabia, all fare higher than folks from Kosovo.

Being handled the identical or worse as originating from considered one of these international locations every time they need to journey overseas makes folks really feel stripped of their fundamental dignity, Emini identified.

“Even simply getting an appointment on the embassy to submit a visa request can final for months, not to mention the precise technique of convincing the embassy to grant you a visa,” she defined.

“It’s so irritating. It stops residents of probably the most pro-EU international locations from seeing the EU in individual.”

Serbia has second-class residents, too

The difficulty doesn’t have an effect on solely those that carry the Kosovo paperwork, nevertheless. There are some 90,000 ethnic Serbs who’re Kosovo residents. They’re, for all intents and functions, handled the identical, even supposing they’ve Serbian citizenship and the accompanying passports.

Not like all different Serbian residents — together with those that stay overseas — who benefit from the privileges of unfettered journey to the EU since December 2010, the ethnic Serbs residing in Kosovo are issued passports by a particular state-run division.

The passports all look the identical. However for these from Kosovo, a comment stating the doc was issued by the division of the Serbian Ministry of Inner Affairs known as the “Coordination Directorate” instantly flags the service as an individual not eligible for visa-free entry at border crossings all through the bloc.

The situation made by Brussels as Serbia was negotiating its visa liberalisation regime in 2009 has created a rift, with Serbian nationals dwelling in Kosovo made to really feel like second-class residents, Milica Andrić Rakić, Challenge Supervisor within the North Mitrovica-based NGO, New Social Initiative, advised Euronews.

It has additionally created a myriad of different issues, similar to forcing these dwelling in North Mitrovica — some 42 kilometres from Prishtina — to journey to Belgrade as a substitute, as embassies usually deal with these carrying the Coordination Directorate passports as some other Serbian citizen regardless of the clear authorized distinction.

Staff at different embassies will merely be left confused as to why a Serbian passport holder would desire a visa to start with.

“The actual fact is that if you happen to name the embassy of a rustic that isn’t acquainted with this process and ask them if you happen to ought to apply for a visa in Prishtina or in Belgrade, the received’t have the faintest thought what you’re speaking about,” Andrić-Rakić mentioned.

“Greece, that hasn’t recognised Kosovo, will challenge a visa in that subgroup of Serbian passports whereas Germany received’t.”

In the meantime, the Serbian authorities have made any doable change of residence for these with the Coordination Directorate paperwork nearly not possible in fears that Brussels may revoke the visa-free association, she defined.

“If somebody from Kragujevac (in central Serbia) had been to vary their place of residence to say Belgrade, that process solely lasts in the future,” Andrić-Rakić mentioned.

“For those who’re altering your residency from some place in Kosovo to Belgrade, you must have a reliable motive to take action and the process can final for months and police investigate cross-check them usually.”

All of that is grounds for a lawsuit, because it violates the constitutional rights of a bunch of Serbian residents, Andrić-Rakić said. However after representatives of the civil society reached out to the Serbian Constitutional Court docket in hopes of submitting a criticism, they realised that the process to get the case in entrance of the courtroom’s decide may take years, if not many years.

“They made it clear to us that the case first must be heard in a fundamental courtroom, and undergo all the degrees of the judiciary till it will get heard within the Constitutional Court docket. No common citizen has the money and time to cope with that for years and take it to the Constitutional Court docket,” she mentioned.

“If it ever did get to the Constitutional Court docket, Serbia would have severe issues. However nobody has finished it but.”

Kosovo-Prishtina dialogue a ‘handy excuse’

Whereas many anticipated that the Brussels-facilitated Belgrade-Prishtina dialogue that started in 2011 — designed to lower tensions and resolve bilateral points — would additionally assist Kosovo attain visa-free journey as soon as and for all, the method was mired in technical discussions leading to almost-constant disagreements between the 2 sides.

Lately, the conferences meant to wrap up the ultimate disputed challenge that got here out of the Yugoslav disintegration wars have been more and more few and much between, and no progress has been made, Igor Bandović, Director of the Belgrade Heart for Safety Coverage, advised Euronews.

“Ten years later, it generally appears as if issues are simply as unhealthy as they had been when the dialogue began. There are tensions, there’s a lack of know-how between Belgrade and Prishtina,” he mentioned.

Private animosities and vastly completely different approaches to doing politics have led to a scenario the place they’ve barely had any conferences in individual ever since Albin Kurti was elected Prime Minister of Kosovo in 2020.

His counterpart within the negotiations, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has additionally maintained a hardline stance.

After the newest rise in tensions over a proper choice made in Prishtina that might make ethnic Serbs within the north of Kosovo having to register their automobiles within the nation, Vučić said in late July that Serbia “will combat and can win” in its continued bid to carry its former province again into the fold.

In a follow-up interview for the state public broadcaster RTS on 2 August, Vučić mentioned that he was able to go to Brussels for one more spherical of talks however that “he doesn’t anticipate something”.

“Anybody who thinks it is doable to keep up peace with Albin Kurti is flawed,” Vučić mentioned.

“The one assembly that they had was wasted on arguing,” Bandović defined. “Primarily, Kurti doesn’t settle for the agreements signed by earlier governments of their entirety.”

“Kurti’s place is that Kosovo is an impartial nation that’s merely making an attempt to resolve excellent technical points that exist with Serbia, whereas Serbia doesn’t solely not see Kosovo as an impartial nation — it is going to permit Kosovo to have every thing other than precise sovereignty,” he defined.

However the Belgrade-Prishtina dialogue has been nothing greater than a helpful excuse for EU leaders to do nothing about visa-free journey for Kosovo, Bandović emphasised.

“Visa liberalisation has nothing to do with the dialogue between Prishtina and Belgrade,” he mentioned. “The shortage of visa liberalisation for Kosovo is a consequence of the EU virtually giving up on its enlargement plans within the Balkans.”

“So we don’t even know if we now have a European integration course of anymore, or whether or not it’s propelled by some inertia however with out something tangible being finished on the bottom.”

In the meantime, the high-level bickering serves as little greater than background noise for these hopeful to journey to Europe.

Within the crowd in entrance of the Prishtina company, the 19-year-old scholar Leonit Muja – who was barely sufficiently old to recollect his nation’s declaration of independence – was amongst these clutching the stacks of paperwork.

He had travelled to the Schengen space each couple of months in current instances, however he by no means stayed longer than one week, Muja mentioned.

“I can’t perceive why it’s so unhealthy to permit folks to journey for every week or two,” he advised Euronews.

“It’s unfair that we’re the one ones in all of Europe who can’t journey freely.”