Kosovo To Get International Phone Code After Deal With Serbia

The International Telecommunication Union is expected to give Kosovo the country code +383 next month.

Kosovo says it has reached a deal with Serbia that will allow it to have its own international telephone dialing code, eight years after declaring independence.

The International Telecommunication Union is expected to give Kosovo the country code +383 starting on December 15, the government said on November 13.

In return, Serbia will be able to register a mobile phone company that will operate within Serb-populated areas of Kosovo.

"It's an important agreement which will certainly have positive consequences for our relations with Pristina and with the EU," Serbian negotiator Marko Djuric said.

Kosovo, which is currently using the dialing codes of Monaco, Serbia, and Slovenia, says it has paid about 200 million euros ($217 million) to use other country codes.

Kosovo's ethnic-Albanian majority declared independence from Serbia in 2008.

While Belgrade does not formally recognize the move, Serbia and Kosovo have held talks to normalize relations.

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters