Kosovo to apply for EU membership by end of year: Prime minister

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - Kosovo will apply for EU membership by the end of 2022, its prime minister said Wednesday.

Albin Kurti's remarks came after a government session in the national capital of Pristina where a proposal was adopted to form an Inter-institutional working group for Kosovo's membership.

Kurti told journalists that "in honor of Ukraine's Independence Day" on Aug. 24, Pristina decided to extend Ukrainian journalists’ stay in Kosovo.

"It is an act of solidarity. Ukrainian flags are flying in the courtyard of the government," he said.

Twenty journalists were granted residency on March 1 as part of a program launched by the European Center for Freedom of the Press and Media and the European Federation of Journalists.

Kosovo, predominantly inhabited by Albanians, broke from Serbia in 1999 and declared independence in 2008.

Serbia has not recognized Kosovo’s independence and continues to lay claim on the territory.

Kosovo wants to achieve full EU membership and gain a visa-free regime for the EU zone.

Serbia, Russia and China are among the countries which have not recognized Kosovo's independence.