(CNN) Opposition lawmakers set off tear gas canisters in Kosovo's Parliament chamber on Wednesday in an attempt to prevent the ratification of a border agreement with neighboring Montenegro.

Video posted to social media showed lawmakers wiping their eyes and noses as they left the chamber in Kosovo's capital, Pristina.

The tear gas was released by opposition party Levizja Vetvendosje, according to Avni Bytyçi, deputy chief of staff to Speaker Kadri Veseli. It was a tactic the party had used previously to prevent voting, Bytyçi said.

MORE: Tear gas attack inside the Kosovar Parliament by opposition MPs. #Kosovo pic.twitter.com/Xwa8Ot5Mih — Vincent Triest (@VincentTriest) March 21, 2018

"The Border Demarcation Agreement will be approved by the parliament today, in spite of the attempts of a small opposition party to prevent the vote with violent means," Veseli told CNN.

"We will not give up to violence and populism. This approval will serve to reinforce the sovereignty of our country and will unblock our path towards European Integration."

Read More</s>Kosovo opposition releases tear gas in parliament over border deal with Montenegro

Kosovo's opposition is against the border agreement with Montenegro. — AFP picPRISTINA, March 21 — Opposition lawmakers threw tear gas canisters in the parliament chamber today in a bid to prevent other deputies ratifying a border agreement with Montenegro, a key condition for Kosovo to gain visa-free travel to the European Union.

The opposition party Vetevendosje is adamantly against the agreement with Montenegro, signed in 2015, claiming it will wrongly surrender some 8,000 hectares (30 square miles) of Kosovo’s territory to its neighbour.

Previous attempts to ratify the agreement have led to similar protests involving tear gas in the 120-seat parliament and street clashes with police.

The parliament speaker adjourned the session until the room had been ventilated.

Ratification of the border deal with Montenegro is one of the main conditions for Kosovo citizens to get visa free regime within the EU.

Kosovo’s Balkan neighbours - Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia - all obtained visa-free access to Europe’s border-free Schengen zone in 2010. — Reuters</s>PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Lawmakers in Kosovo approve border demarcation deal with Montenegro despite opposition’s use of tear gas to stop vote.</s>(CNN) — Opposition lawmakers set off tear gas canisters in Kosovo’s Parliament chamber on Wednesday in an attempt to prevent the ratification of a border agreement with neighboring Montenegro.

Video shows lawmakers wiping their eyes and noses as they left the chamber in Kosovo’s capital, Pristina.

The tear gas was released by opposition party Levizja Vetvendosje, according to Avni Bytyçi, deputy chief of staff to Speaker Kadri Veseli. It was a tactic the party had used previously to prevent voting, Bytyçi said.

“The Border Demarcation Agreement will be approved by the parliament today, in spite of the attempts of a small opposition party to prevent the vote with violent means,” Veseli told CNN.

“We will not give up to violence and populism. This approval will serve to reinforce the sovereignty of our country and will unblock our path towards European Integration.”

Ratification of the border deal is a key condition for Kosovo citizens to gain visa-free travel to the European Union, Bytyçi said.

Levizja Vetevendosje, or Movement for Self-Determination, posted a clip of the tear gas being let off in the chamber on its official Facebook page.

The party opposes the border deal, signed with Montenegro in 2015, because it claims it will wrongly hand over some 30 square miles of Kosovo’s territory, Reuters news agency said.

US Ambassador to Kosovo Greg Delawie condemned the use of tear gas and called on lawmakers to return to the chamber and ratify the agreement.

“People with bankrupt ideas resort to political violence to try to achieve their goals,” he said in a statement. “This should not be happening in Kosovo. Kosovo is better than this. This should not be happening in a European country. Teargas is not a European thing.”

Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008, is one of six Western Balkans nations working toward eventual EU membership.</s>Kosovo's opposition on March 21 blocked the ratification of a border agreement with Montenegro, releasing tear gas during a parliamentary session called to press ahead with the deal.

The approval of the 2015 border agreement is a key condition for Kosovo to gain visa-free travel to the European Union, but the opposition party Vetevendosje is against it, arguing it will wrongly surrender some 8,000 hectares of Kosovo territory to its neighbor.

Opposition lawmakers threw tear gas canisters into the chamber to block discussion and a vote, causing deputies to withdraw choking and spluttering.

The session was adjourned to allow the ventilation of the hall, but as lawmakers began to return, more tear gas was released.

It was not clear when proceedings would restart.

The EU commissioner for enlargement, Johannes Hahn, condemned the action in a tweet, saying, "Such behavior has no place in a democracy."

With reporting by Reuters and dpa</s>Pristina, Kosovo: Lawmakers in Kosovo approved a contentious and long-pending border demarcation deal with Montenegro on Wednesday despite the opposition's use of tear gas to prevent a vote.

The 120-seat parliament voted 80-11 to endorse the deal, ensuring its passage with the minimum two-thirds support required.

Opposition Leader Albin Kurti complained that most of the party's lawmakers were barred from the vote or taken away by police for questioning after the tear gas was set off in the Kosovo Assembly.

"Today, 80 lawmakers joined the treason of President (Hashim) Thaci, joined the violation of Kosovo's Constitution and its territorial integrity," Kurti said.</s>PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Lawmakers in Kosovo approved a contentious and long-pending border demarcation deal with Montenegro Wednesday despite the opposition's use of tear gas to prevent a vote.

The 120-seat parliament voted 80-11 to endorse the deal, ensuring its passage with the minimum two-thirds support required.

The European Union has set the border agreement as a precondition for Kosovo's citizens to travel without visas in Europe's the Schengen travel zone

Kosovo Assembly Speaker Kadri Veseli said he was hopeful the EU would follow through and let Kosovars enjoy visa-free, as citizens of other Balkan region countries already do.

The opposition Self-Determination party says Kosovo loses 8,200 hectares (20,000 acres) of its territory under the agreement, which was reached in August 2015. The previous government and international experts deny that.

Opposition leader Albin Kurti complained that most of the party's lawmakers were barred from the vote or taken away by police for questioning after the tear gas was set off in the Kosovo Assembly.

"Today, 80 lawmakers joined the treason of President (Hashim) Thaci, joined the violation of Kosovo's Constitution and its territorial integrity," Kurti said.

At least two lawmakers were injured. Amid the chaos, the session failed four consecutive times to call the vote, but Speaker Kadri Veseli insisted it would take place.

"Today, the trauma of the Montenegro border demarcation will end. The vote will be held today," he said.

Police entered parliament and forced out a small group of opposition lawmakers, who had refused to leave since the morning. Eight of them were barred from taking part in the session and seven were taken to a police station for questioning.

It wasn't clear if they were the same lawmakers who were barred from parliament.

Police also searched every person entering the chamber.

The opposition party, now divided into two groups because of internal frictions, has used tear gas and similar tactics to disrupt parliament over the past three years.

The collapse of votes for the border demarcation agreement and another proposal seeking to give more rights to the ethnic Serb minority toppled the previous government and took the country to an early election last year.

Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj said there were enough votes to pass the deal. But the two-thirds threshold required defections from the opposition ranks. One opposition lawmaker joined a governing majority party.

President Hashim Thaci, who signed the deal in 2015 when he was foreign minister, will decree the border agreement as the final step.

Representatives of western powers denounced the use of tear gas and urged the lawmakers to hold the vote in favor of the deal.

"This is really great news. Congratulations Kosovo. Kosovo did the right thing," U.S. Ambassador Greg Delawie said after the vote.

Montenegro, which has approved the deal, recognizes Kosovo's 2008 independence from Serbia, which Belgrade still rejects.

Llazar Semini contributed to this report from Tirana, Albania.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>PRISTINA, March 21 (Reuters) - Opposition lawmakers threw tear gas canisters in the parliament chamber on Wednesday in a bid to prevent other deputies ratifying a border agreement with Montenegro, a key condition for Kosovo to gain visa-free travel to the European Union.

The opposition party Vetevendosje is adamantly against the agreement with Montenegro, signed in 2015, claiming it will wrongly surrender some 8,000 hectares (30 square miles) of Kosovo's territory to its neighbour.

Previous attempts to ratify the agreement have led to similar protests involving tear gas in the 120-seat parliament and street clashes with police.

The parliament speaker adjourned the session until the room had been ventilated.

Ratification of the border deal with Montenegro is one of the main conditions for Kosovo citizens to get visa free regime within the EU.

Kosovo's Balkan neighbours - Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia - all obtained visa-free access to Europe´s border-free Schengen zone in 2010. (Reporting by Fatos Bytyci Editing by Richard Balmforth)</s>Five lawmakers from Kosovo's nationalist opposition party twice set off tear gas inside parliament's main chamber on Wednesday, halting a vote on the country's border demarcation deal with Montenegro.

Lawmakers were forced to evacuate the hall just as the vote was due to begin Wednesday morning. After they returned in the early afternoon, tear gas was set off once again, delaying the vote for a second time. Two government ministers were injured in the attack.

Read more: Opinion: Western Balkans have a place in the European Union

Police wearing gas masks entered the hall to search the benches occupied by MPs from the opposition Vetevendosje (Self-Determination) party.

Despite the two incidents, Parliamentary Speaker Kadri Veseli insisted that "today the trauma of the Montenegro border demarcation will end. The vote will be held today." The border deal was later passed 80 to 11, reaching the required two-thirds vote for approval.

The Self-Determination party has used tear gas and similar tactics to disrupt votes in the past.

A ratification of the border deal would see Kosovo added to the list of the European Union's visa-free travel list.

The nationalist opposition, however, claims that the border deal would cede some 8,200 hectares (20,000 acres) of territory to Montenegro.

The EU's ambassador to Pristina, Nataliya Apostolova, tweeted that she was "appalled by tear gas release in assembly" and "shocked that members of a parliament in Europe are resorting to dangerous tactics pulling Kosovo backwards."

The EU's commissioner for enlargement, Johannes Hahn, also took to Twitter to condemn the opposition's actions. "Such behavior has no place in a democracy," Hahn tweeted. "On this important day, Kosovo leaders must assume their responsibilities and vote for the demarcation agreement."

US Ambassador to Kosovo Greg Delawie tweeted on Wednesday: "Violence as a political tool has no place in Kosovo. I urge MPs to reconvene and finish the vote today."

The EU and US remain the country's biggest financial and political supporters, despite challenges to its integration into the European bloc.

The 120-seat parliament in Pristina is expected to ratify a 2015 border deal with Montenegro once proceedings are eventually completed.

The EU made a settlement of the border a precondition for Kosovo to receive visa-free travel rights within the Schengen zone.

The Kosovo government also hopes recognizing the border deal will ultimately set the country on its way to eventually becoming an EU member. On Wednesday, Kosovo's Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj called the vote "the most important matter for the country." The government and international experts have disputed the claim.

Kosovo, which split from Serbia in 2008 after a bitter war at the end of the 1990s, is still the only western Balkan country not included on the EU's visa-free list. Its regional neighbors — Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia — all gained visa-free access to the bloc's Schengen area in 2010.

DW editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.</s>Kosovo’s opposition used tear gas to disrupt a parliament vote on a border demarcation deal with Montenegro on Wednesday. Lawmakers had to be evacuated from the Assembly building after the Self-Determination Movement party used tear gas in the hall where the vote was due to start, AP reports. The 120-seat parliament was expected to vote, with two-thirds required to ratify the 2015 deal, set as a precondition by the EU for Kosovo’s citizens to freely travel within its Schengen visa-free travel area. The opposition says the border deal would mean Kosovo loses 8,200 hectares of its territory. The previous government and international experts deny that claim.
In Kosovo, opposition lawmakers set off tear gas to prevent the ratification of a border treaty with neighboring Montenegro.