Montenegro Urged to Respect Kosovo's Yugoslav-Era Border

Haradinaj, a Kosovo MP who is on the parliamentary commission for foreign affairs, said on Wednesday that the border with Montenegro set by the 1974 Yugoslav constitution should be officially agreed between the two countries.

"In order to be able to continue our good relations with Montenegro, it's important to solve the issue of the border on the basis of the truth, and the truth is the border from 1974," Haradinaj said at a meeting with representatives of border municipalities organised to discuss the demarcation problem.

Montenegro wants the current borders but no final agreement has been reached on demarcation since Kosovo declared independence, and locals have accused Podgorica of shifting the 1974 border to its own advantage.

Ali Lajci, who was representing citizens of the Rugova region at the meeting, said that "there have been deviations from the border line of 1974".

Around 2.4 hectares of land in a mountainous area remains disputed.

Haradinaj stressed however that it was important to maintain good relations with Montenegro, a country that has historically been aligned with Serbia but "recognised Kosovo's independence at a key moment".

Earlier this month, Kosovo parliamentarians expressed their dissatisfaction with the government and the lack of transparency in the process of negotiations with Montenegro.