Today the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Paolo Gentiloni, received at the Farnesina the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo, Enver Hoxhaj.
The meeting focused on fighting radicalization and violent extremism, combating human trafficking and making a common commitment to progressively stabilize the region of the Balkans.
Minister Gentiloni confirmed Italy’s support for Pristina’s EU accession process, putting special emphasis on strengthening the rule of law and combating corruption and organized crime, and expressed his appreciation for Kosovo’s efforts in the Dialogue with Belgrade. Mr Gentiloni said: “Italy wants to continue to be a key partner for Kosovo in tackling the common challenges of assuring the region’s security and development, also in the perspective of the Italian chairmanship of the Berlin Process in 2017 and of the OSCE in 2018”.
The meeting also focused on bilateral issues, especially on economic and trade cooperation and on enhancing the presence of Italian businesses in Kosovo, also by organizing an Investment Forum in 2017.
Minister Hoxhaj, on behalf of the Kosovar Government, renewed his condolences and closeness for the earthquake that hit Central Italy. The Minister then recalled the set of measures adopted by Kosovo to fight irregular immigration to the European Union, including border controls, faster processing of repatriation requests and a better information exchange with EUROPOL, FRONTEX and EASO.
