60,000 Albanians apply for Serbian passports

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said on Friday that the authorities have received about 60,000 passport applications from Kosovo Albanians.

(Tanjug)

“We have more than 60,000 applications from Albanians from Kosovo and Metohija for passports of our country,” Stefanovic said after he and Swedish Ambassador Christer Asp signed a protocol on readmission of persons, based on an agreement between Serbia and the European Union.
Stefanovic told reporters that he interpreted the passport applications as the desire of Kosovo Albanians to recognize Serbia as their country. He also revealed that hundreds of Albanians from Kosovo have been prevented from illegally leaving Serbia for the EU during the past 48 hours.

The protocol signed today could serve to send some 1,500 immigrants back to Serbia.

"At this point that is the number (of people) that are applying for asylum in Sweden. Out of that number, between 95-96 percent return," Stefanovic said.

He explained that Serbia signed the readmission agreement in Brussels in 2007, and was signing agreements with most EU countries based on that document, with the goal of "enabling for better fight against these occurrences, that are increasingly becoming a problem."

Furthermore, according to Stefanovic, the signing of the protocol "testifies to Serbia's dedication to EU integrations and the desire to stop fake asylum seekers."

Ambassador Asp told reporters that Sweden, that has "a large Serb diaspora," has had "exceptionally good cooperation" with Serbia for many years when it comes to the immigration issue.

According to him, the number of persons seeking asylum has reduced significantly - and he credited "to a large extent" the willingness for cooperation exhibited by the Serbian Interior Ministry and the minister personally.

The diplomat said that Sweden considers Serbia "a safe country," supports its EU membership bid, and hopes for continued cooperation.