Cadez: Pristina has gone too far, it is important to stop the irrational import ban policy

President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, Marko Cadez, stated to Kosovo Online that all diplomatic efforts by the EU and the US toward Pristina regarding its decision to ban the import of Serbian goods have been exhausted and that the ban harms everyone. He added that he is glad there are political instruments in place to stop such an irrational policy.

"I believe that all possible diplomatic actions that the EU countries, as well as the US, have undertaken toward the institutions in Pristina to lift the blockade on goods from central Serbia have now been exhausted. It is likely that this has crossed every line, and people have lost their patience," Cadez said in New York, where he is part of a delegation led by Serbia's Foreign Minister, Marko Djuric.

Cadez pointed out that there is no rational reason for such a blockade, which harms not only Serbian companies but also international companies operating in Serbia, as well as Kosovo companies from Pristina, Pec, and elsewhere that used to import semi-finished products from central Serbia and profit from them. Now, they have to pay much higher prices in other markets.
"This measure has been harming everyone for a long time, and I am glad that there are now political instruments to stop this irrational policy and let politicians focus on what they should be doing, which is finding political solutions, while leaving the economy to function and allowing people to live normally," Cadez emphasized.

He noted that when you are part of a political process aimed at ensuring stability, but you behave as if you don't want it – that is a problem.

He added that he, as the president of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, along with his colleague from the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, has been appealing daily for things to return to normal.
"So far, we haven’t been successful in getting through to Kosovo’s institutions, especially its Prime Minister Albin Kurti, but I hope that someone else will be able to communicate this more effectively," Cadez added.

Recent criticism toward Pristina over the ban on Serbian goods, which blocks the CEFTA agreement, has come from Germany, where threats have been made to exclude Kosovo from the Berlin Process.

Serbia’s Minister of Domestic and Foreign Trade, Tomislav Momirovic, stated two days ago in Berlin that a special meeting of the CEFTA Joint Committee has been scheduled for October 9 in Belgrade, where the deblocking of the CEFTA agreement is expected, which would mean lifting the "illegal trade blockade" on goods coming from central Serbia to Kosovo.