Šarović: Customs duties on milk exports abolished

"The Government of Kosovo* has abolished the last safeguard measures for BiH on the export of milk and dairy products to Kosovo *, thus respecting our efforts to solve this problem in accordance with the principles of free trade," said today Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations BiH, Mirko Šarović.

The decision to abolish measures is of great importance for the dairy industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina, because the Kosovo market is one of the most important markets for milk and dairy products exports from BiH.

"Our exporters are no longer charged customs duties on export of milk," says Minister Šarović, explaining that the abolition of previously adopted, controversial measures by Priština was a result of the joint work of the CEFTA countries and a ministerial meeting that was previously held in Belgrade, attended by Minister of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications of the Republic of Serbia, Rasim Ljajić, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of Macedonia, Ljupče Nikolovski, and Head of the Regional Cooperation Directorate of the Ministry of Economy of Montenegro, Goran Šćepanović.

We recall that after this meeting the Government of Kosovo* first partially abolished the previously adopted protective measures on imports of certain types of fruit, vegetables and maize, after which the CEFTA countries requested the complete abolition of all measures, assessing them as detrimental to CEFTA as a zone of free trade but also to businessmen who could not freely export lately.

* This name does not prejudice Kosovo's status and is in line with UNSC Resolution 1244