Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-07-05-Speech-3-403"

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"en.20060705.20.3-403"2
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"Citizens of the countries of the Western Balkans experience significant problems in travelling around Europe. The most extreme example of all is Kosovo where they have passports which are not recognised by many European countries. Commissioner, Kosovo Albanians are exchanging their UNMIK passports for other passports and we, Member States of the European Union, are literally forcing them into crime and into a search for other, parallel passports. This serves, in effect, to illustrate the sheer misery of our current visa regime. Surely, Commissioner, as Members of the European Union, we can do more to place greater value on UNMIK passports. In order to speed up the process of Europeanisation in the Western Balkans, we need a vastly more flexible approach, except in the case of criminals, of course – they are very resourceful and will find their way everywhere. I am talking of ordinary people who would like to experience Europe and European values in practice, and preferably while they are still growing up, receiving an education and building a set of values. For this reason, Commissioner, it seems to me that we have to do more to find a solution for people in the various countries of the Western Balkans so they do not have to wait for hours on end for a visa only to be told eventually by an embassy clerk that they cannot get a visa and that they must go back. Visas are issued in capital cities. These are the least developed parts of Europe and these people have to invest a huge amount of time and a lot of money, not to mention pride, when applying for visas. It is, therefore, only fair that we should amend the current visa regime."@en1

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