President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga, met today in Brdo near Kranj, Slovenia, with the President of the Republic of France, Mr. Francois Hollande. President Jahjaga was accompanied at the meeting by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kosovo, Mr. Enver Hoxhaj.
Madam President thanked President Hollande for the support which the Republic of France has provided to Kosovo, before, during and after the war, during the rebuilding and state building process, as well as to the statehood consolidation process of Kosovo. President Jahjaga stated that Kosovo is a success story of its citizens and institutions and the international community; she also added that the international consolidation of Kosovo is being carried out with the help of its friends, including France.
President Jahjaga on this occasion also stated that the position of the EU member countries, in particular of the member states which have not as yet recognised the independence of Kosovo is important, and that a move towards the recognition of the state of Kosovo would help advance the integrational processes of the country.
Speaking about relations in the western Balkans region, President Jahjaga said that Kosovo has demonstrated that it is a factor of peace and stability and a promoter of good neighbourliness. Madam President mentioned that with the Republic of Serbia, agreement has already been reached on normalisation of relations between the two states, agreement this reached through the dialogue process held in Brussels. President Jahjaga added that normalisation of relations between the two sovereign and independent states will bring peace and stability in Balkans and will help improve the lives of the citizens on both sides of the border. She also stated that the agreement must be implemented in its fullness, as this opens the European perspective of both countries and helps the integration of the Serbian community into the society and the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo.
President of the Republic of Kosovo said that Kosovo and the whole of the western Balkans have a European perspective and emphasized that by initiation of negotiations on Stabilisation-Association Agreement, Kosovo and EU have opened e new type of contractual relationship. She added that the necessary reforms, necessary for the country itself, and the process of the democratisation of the country will be expedited during the EU membership journey. Madam President also emphasized the fact that Kosovo is the only remaining country of the Balkans which has not yet benefited from the visa liberalisation for free movement of its citizens to EU countries and assessed that the help of the Republic of France upon this issue is indispensable.
President Jahjaga praised the relations between the Republic of Kosovo and Republic of France and said that cooperation must be directed particularly towards the fields of economy and investments. She conveyed and invitation to the French President to visit Kosovo at a convenient and suitable time for him.
President of the Republic of France, Mr. Francois Hollande, expressed his interest upon developments in Kosovo, the process of building of the legal state, as well as its EU integration processes. He expressed particular interest in economic development of Kosovo and its capacities, and the help which France and EU might be able to provide on this issue. He expressed his concern about the increasing number of asylum seekers from Kosovo in France and said that this issue is causing problems and is creating a bad image for the state.
President Jahjaga expressed her personal engagement and that of the institutions of Republic of Kosovo to discontinue the wave of the illegal migration, and emphasized that motives for migration on this occasion are of economic and not of political nature.