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JOINT BORDER CROSSING BETWEEN SERBIA AND NORTHERN MACEDONIA OPENED

27. August 2019.

Presevo  The Prime Ministers of Serbia and Northern Macedonia, Ana Brnabic and Zoran Zaev, officially marked the beginning of the operation of the integrated Presevo-Tabanovce border crossing between the two countries. 

This means that Serbian and Macedonian customs and police officers will, for the first time, work together in the same "office" at the first category border crossing Presevo - Tabanovce on Corridor 10.

The Integrated Border Crossing is the result of the Agreement on the Establishment of Joint Controls at the Presevo - Tabanovce International Border Crossing through which the traffic of passengers and all kinds of goods is conducted.

The agreement was signed on July 12 in Belgrade on behalf of the two governments by the Interior Ministers of Serbia and Northern Macedonia.   

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said the opening of the integrated border crossing was special, not only in relations between the two countries, but also as the beginning of a possible new period for better regional co-operation in the Western Balkans. She underscored that Serbia would remain committed to further co-operation and promotion of the partnership, since the economic prosperity of the entire region depended on it.

The Prime Minister of Northern Macedonia, Zoran Zaev, said that the opening of the integrated Presevo-Tabanovce border crossing was a crown of friendship between Serbia and Northern Macedonia and a major achievement on the two countries' common path to the EU.

He stated that joint border controls would bring in savings of eight million euros annually, explaining that an integrated border crossing allowed one border control, which significantly contributed to the strengthening of economic co-operation in the Western Balkans.

One of the signed agreements is the Agreement on Mutual Recognition of the Authorized Economic Entity (AEO) status, which is a major step towards facilitating transportation and trade for those companies that have received confirmation from the state authorities of the country in which they operate that they are a secure and stable partner in foreign trade.

In Serbia, 22 companies have this status, and four in Northern Macedonia, so mutual recognition of the status will imply that these companies have the same treatment as in the country in which they acquired the status.

The integrated crossing project was implemented in accordance with last year's agreement to enable the implementation of the One Stop Shop project for integrated border management as soon as possible, so that neither passengers nor businessmen would waste time waiting at the border. 

Source: “Politika” daily, Jugpress and Coordination Body