Dinar out of use in Kosovo

After the expiration of the three-month period set by the Government of Kosovo for the "transitional period", the euro is the only official means of cash payment in Kosovo as of yesterday, so those who do not respect this decision can expect fines, Beta reported.

As reported by the Radio Kim portal, merchants and restaurateurs in the municipality of Gračanica suspended payment transactions in dinars yesterday.

"As of today, we have stopped accepting dinars. We are aware of the situation that it is prohibited in Kosovo and we are guided by that. I don't think it is a problem, because citizens certainly collect their salaries and pensions in Serbia, convert it into euros and spend it here. It's also not a problem for us, we charge in euros," said Marko Rajković, a catering worker, yesterday.

Ljiljana Đorić, an educator from Gračanica, pointed out that citizens who are employed and receive a salary from the budget of the Republic of Serbia will manage and that the decree of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK) represents the biggest problem for the elderly and the sick.

"I am familiar, I heard yesterday and nothing surprises me, nor did I expect a different outcome. We will manage as we know how. Worse things didn't scare us, neither will this. Citizens of Kosovo who are employed will manage, the biggest problem is for pensioners. I don't know how they will do because they are old and not able to travel. We will try to help them as much as we can," she said.

Although they are dissatisfied with the CBK's decision, the pensioners with whom Kim Radio journalists spoke said that they go to central Serbia for the money they earn and that after its conversion they function normally in Kosovo.

"I am familiar with the cancellation of the dinar and it is a big problem. I will go to Serbia and collect my pension there. What should we do, they don't give, they will surely punish. The law is the law, it must be respected", said Ljubiša from Preoc.

On February 1, the Regulation of the Central Bank of Kosovo entered into force, according to which the euro is the only official currency.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Aljbin Kurti, said yesterday in Kamenica that the goal of the Rulebook of the Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK) on cash payments is not punishment, but legality and transparency in the use of funds. He added, as reported by Beta, that the CBK Regulation is not against dinars, but establishes the euro as the only means of cash payment in Kosovo, and that it excludes all other currencies from cash payments. Although the delegations of Pristina and Belgrade have met six times so far regarding the problem of the use of the dinar in Kosovo, no solution has been found.

The next meeting of the main negotiators, where the dinar will be discussed again, will be held tomorrow in Brussels, confirmed the spokesperson of the European Union (EU) Peter Stano. According to him, both parties are expected to behave in a European manner and find a compromise solution.

The international community asked Kosovo to postpone the implementation of the decree and to find a short-term transitional solution, since the decree has an impact on the local population in the north of Kosovo, who have been receiving payments in dinars from the Serbian budget for years.