VZCZCXRO8752
OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHPS #0399/01 2111640
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 291640Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY PRISTINA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8389
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 1053
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 1515
RHFMIUU/AFSOUTH NAPLES IT PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CDR TF FALCON PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEPGEA/CDR650THMIGP SHAPE BE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUZEJAA/USNIC PRISTINA SR PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRISTINA 000399 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR DRL, INL, EUR/SCE, CA 
NSC FOR HELGERSON 
USUN FOR MCBRIDE 
EUR/ACE FOR GUPMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CMGT CVIS PREL PGOV KV
SUBJECT: ROLLING OUT THE KOSOVO PASSPORT 
 
REF: PRISTINA 74 
 
¶1. (U) This is an Action Request.  Please see paragraphs 8 
and 9. 
 
¶2. (SBU)  Summary.  On July 29 the Ministry of Internal 
Affairs (MOIA) plans to issue the first Republic of Kosovo 
passport.  Contrary to UNMIK's stated plans in February about 
its readiness to assist Kosovo in this task (reftel), it has 
largely stepped back from the process, leading to concerns 
about the preparedness of European and other countries to 
accept Kosovo's passport as a legitimate travel document. 
Early feedback suggests several key destinations for 
Kosovars: Germany, Switzerland, and the UK are prepared to 
recognize and facilitate visas for holders of Kosovo 
passports. Other countries to which Kosovars travel 
visa-free, including Macedonia, Montenegro and Turkey, have 
also indicated they are ready to accept the document. Several 
members of the Schengen zone, however, including France and 
Italy, are predicting bureaucratic delays.  Embassy Pristina 
has had assurances from U.S. immigration authorities that the 
Kosovo passport will be accepted, but we need to confirm that 
all necessary steps have been taken for final approval and 
dissemination of information to ports of entry.  We have sent 
samples of the passport to EUR/SCE for further distribution 
within the USG. UNMIK has stated that current holders of 
UNMIK travel documents (TD) will be able to use them until 
they expire - generally two years from date of issue.  End 
Summary. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Kosovo's Ministry of Internal Affairs introduced the 
first Republic of Kosovo passports on July 29. Contrary to 
earlier expectations of assistance and guidance from UNMIK 
(reftel), the MOIA has largely had to manage the switchover 
on its own.  Because it chose the same company that produced 
the UNMIK TD to produce its passport, production of the UNMIK 
TD had to cease in order to produce the new document.  As of 
last week, the supply of UNMIK TDs was expected to be 
exhausted.  UNMIK does not plan to produce any more TDs for 
Kosovo. 
 
Quality Document 
---------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Over the past several months, the MOIA has engaged 
with a group of experts from the European Commission (EC), 
most recently on July 24, in preparation for this rollout.  A 
readout of the July 24 meeting indicated that by-and-large 
the EC believes Kosovo is ready to perform this function. The 
passport is up to European security standards, civil registry 
procedures are adequate, and they believe the MOIA has 
sufficient capacity to issue the passport. 
 
Lack of ISO Code for Kosovo 
--------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) One technical issue raised was the lack of an 
International Standards Organization (ISO) code for Kosovo 
and Kosovo's use of "RKS" - a designation which is not 
currently used by any other country, but which is also not 
recognized at ports of entry.  Because RKS is not a 
recognized ISO code, when passports are scanned at ports of 
entry, an error message will show.  However, we understand 
this is not an unusual occurrence and immigration authorities 
routinely add this piece of information manually. 
 
¶6. (SBU) The EC team advised the MOIA that the use of RKS was 
not desired by some EU representatives, but its use would not 
prohibit a Kosovo citizen from entering or exiting a country 
that issued a visa in the passport or otherwise would permit 
the entry of that Kosovo citizen.  It asked whether Kosovo 
would consider using XXX or XXK, codes that denote refugee 
 
PRISTINA 00000399  002 OF 002 
 
 
status. The MOIA rejected this, as it felt such a code was 
inappropriate for an independent country. 
 
Acceptance in Europe 
-------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) We have reached out to liaison offices and embassies 
in Pristina to gauge readiness to accept the new passport 
among countries which have recognized Kosovo.  Switzerland, 
Germany, and the UK, all with significant Kosovar 
populations, have stated they are ready to receive travelers 
using the Kosovo passport, and they will issue bilateral 
visas to permit travel.  Neighboring countries, including 
Macedonia, Albania, Greece and Turkey, are reportedly ready 
to accept the passport, but, it is not clear whether the 
necessary ground work has been laid with their immigration 
services.  We are following up.  We have also heard that 
several Schengen countries, including France and Italy, are 
predicting significant delays in recognition of this new 
document, including with the issuance of Schengen visas. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Action Request:  Post asks that the Department 
encourage EU member states, as well as relevant authorities 
in Brussels responsible for Schengen-related issues, to 
recognize the new Kosovo passport and to provide its bearers 
with the same privileges, including issuance of Schengen 
visas, that holders of the UNMIK TD have enjoyed to date. 
 
Acceptance at U.S. Ports of Entry 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Action Request:  Post has received assurances from 
the Bureau of Consular Affairs that visas may be issued in 
the new passport, and with confirmation that the passport 
meets U.S. security standards, there should be no obstacle to 
its use by bonafide travelers.  We have sent samples to the 
Kosovo Desk at the Department of State and ask that they be 
shared with relevant authorities within the USG in order to 
facilitate the introduction of this new passport into our 
immigration systems. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  In addition to the assistance we are providing 
the MOIA in the rollout of its new passport through our 
ICITAP program, we are working intensively to ensure that a 
secure and tightly controlled system for application and 
issuance of the passport is employed.  The MOIA is fully 
aware that the integrity of this system is a critical 
component of ensuring the Kosovo passport receives widespread 
acceptance internationally.  We will report the details of 
these efforts via septel. 
KAIDANOW