Austrian libertarians: Visa liberalization for Kosovo is a huge mistake

The decision on visa liberalization for the citizens of Kosovo was a huge mistake, said Harald Vilimsky, a representative of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) in the European Parliament today, asking to stop all further activities regarding Kosovo's request for membership in the European Union.

"Kosovo is a model of corruption, crime, and, above all, the transfer of illegal migrants to Austria," Vilimsky underlined.

He fears that visa liberalization will only further encourage illegal economic migration and the mass exodus of Kosovo Albanians to Austria.

"In 2015, during the refugee crisis, we already had an influx of Kosovar citizens in Austria. Now with this decision, they are getting a free ticket to Europe," he said.

Vilimsky also criticized the Austrian People's Party, which voted for visa liberalization for Kosovo in the European Parliament.

"The Austrian People’s Party continues to play a double game. In Austria, they talk about a stricter immigration policy, and in Brussels, they openly advocate raising the bar for Kosovar economic migrants and citizens from a highly corrupt country," he emphasized.

The head of the FPO parliamentary group in the Vienna Assembly, Maximilian Krauss, underlined that Kosovo was a failed state, which had nothing to ask for in the EU.

At the same time, Krauss pointed out the fragile and questionable security political situation in which Kosovo was.

"The situation, both in the border region towards North Macedonia, and the situation of the Serbian minority in the north are more than uncertain and could cause the Balkan powder keg to explode again," he warned.

Vilimsky and Krauss requested the suspension of all further intentions regarding Kosovo, especially within the framework of possible accession to the EU.

"A country which, due to corruption, crime, and unresolved minority issues, as well as which is not recognized by certain EU members as a sovereign state, cannot become part of the Union, and due to the interests of Austria," they underlined.

Mandl: Visa liberalization is important for the whole of Europe, not only for Kosovo

Visa liberalization for Kosovo was important, not only for Pristina but for the whole of Europe, said European People's Party (EPP) rapporteur for Kosovo Lukas Mandl, who believes that visa liberalization has shown that the EU needs reforms so that it can make decisions more quickly.

"The EU set almost 100 conditions for Kosovo, some of which have nothing to do with travel. However, the conditions have been met. Since then, the European Parliament has voted several times on visa liberalization, but EU members in the Union Council could not reach an agreement on fulfilling their promise to the citizens of Kosovo, at least until a few months ago. At the same time, visa liberalization is not only important for Kosovo, but for the whole of Europe," Mandl underlined in the statement.

He pointed out that, only if Europe was united, it could defend the values it represented and the European civilization.

Mandl, Austrian People’s Party representative in the European Parliament, said that it could be suspected that only the aggression of Russia and Vladimir Putin had been the trigger for "small Kosovo, long after the other countries of the Western Balkans and long after Ukraine, to be given visa liberalization".

"Visa liberalization should have been adopted much earlier. The EU needs reform for better decision-making," he said.