Kosovo removed trade restrictions with Serbia, paving the way for the restart of talks with its northern neighbor, just days after the government of Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti was sworn in. The decision, effective immediately, will only be temporary and depend on the results of the dialog. Kosovo also expects Serbia to stop campaigning against full international recognition of its independence.

Kosovo, one of Europe’s poorest nations, is still struggling to gain full international recognition after declaring independence from Serbia in 2008, almost a decade after a war that ended with a NATO bombing campaign against Belgrade-backed forces. It imposed a retaliatory 100% tax on imports from Serbia in 2018 in response to Belgrade lobbying against Kosovo’s membership in international bodies, stalling the European Union-mediated talks.

Kosovo’s President Hashim Thaci welcomed the decision, noting that Serbia has so far used the barriers “as a pretext to block the dialog for the normalization of interstate relations between the state of Kosovo and Serbia”: “Now international pressure must be directed at Serbia in order to resume dialog without wasting time, which must end with mutual recognition between the two countries”.

Serbia said the free flow of goods will bolster economic cooperation, “one of the key ingredients of a normalization of relations”. President Aleksandar Vucic said that efforts to restart talks, which Serbia sees as a chance to win some concessions from the West, will resume later this month when EU mediator Miroslav Lajcak visits Belgrade and Pristina, following 21 general elections in Serbia