Kosovo Bans Macedonian Imports as Balkan Trade Row Deepens
Kosovo has banned all imports from Macedonia, an official said Tuesday, in a deeping Balkans trade row after its neighbour limited entry of food products and slapped on border crossing fees.
"We are implementing a government decision which forbids any import of goods from Macedonia," a Kosovo customs spokesman Adriatik Stavileci told Agence France Presse.
On Monday, a meeting between Kosovo Commerce Minister Mimoza Kusari-Lila and Macedonian Economy Minister Valon Saracini failed to resolve the dispute.
The row broke out in July, following a decision by Macedonian authorities to limit the import of wheat and flour from neighbouring countries to protecting local producers.
Kosovo reacted last week by banning imports from Macedonia of certain food products, notably fruits and vegetables, as well as alcohol and cigarettes.
The row escalated further with Macedonia introducing a tax for all vehicles and passengers entering its territory from Kosovo -- 10 euros ($13) for a truck, five euros for a car and two euros per passenger.
On Tuesday morning, around a dozen trucks and buses blocked the Blace border crossing between the two countries on the Macedonian side to protest the import ban introduced by Kosovo.
"Our intention is to completely block the traffic between Kosovo and Macedonia, so the problem is resolved," Biljana Muratovska of the Macedonian transporters association told reporters.
She said that so far "only us, the transporters, pay the costs" of the dispute.
At Blace, only foot passengers were allowed to cross the border, according to an AFP photographer on the spot.
The Macedonian Chamber of Commerce warned that if the dispute continues it could have serious consequences for the national economy.
In 2012, Macedonia exported to Kosovo agricultural products worth some 300 million euros. Its imports of agricultural products from Kosovo amounted to some 23 million euros.
Source: Agence France Presse
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