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Turkish Foreign Minister: The presence of Gülenists in Kosovo, worrying for Turkey

2024-09-06 14:23:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Turkish Foreign Minister: The presence of Gülenists in Kosovo, worrying for

Hakan Fidan

The Foreign Minister of Turkey, Hakan Fidan, said that with his Kosovar counterpart, Donika Gërvalla, they talked about the steps that should be taken against the Hizmet movement of the cleric Fetullah Gulen, which Turkey refers to with the acronym FETO and has declared the same organization terrorist.

During a media conference on September 6, Fidan claimed that this organization poses a threat to Kosovo as well.

"We also talked about the fight against terrorism, about the steps that should be taken against the terrorist organization FETO [Fethullaist Terrorist Organization]. Unfortunately, FETO's presence in Kosovo continues to be of concern to us. I want to remind you that FETO is a threat to Kosovo as well. We must fight this organization together", said Fidan.

In March 2018, Kosovo arrested and deported six Turkish citizens who had worked at the private school "Mehmet Akif" in Pristina.

All those arrested, meanwhile, have faced court proceedings in Turkey and in the end have been sentenced to a total of 56 years and 7 and a half months of imprisonment.

Their arrest and deportation are also the subject of investigations in the Special Prosecutor's Office of Kosovo, as it is suspected that the process was accompanied by dozens of violations.

Ankara declared the Hizmet movement terrorist in May 2016, accusing its supporters of trying to overthrow the Turkish Government.

Gulen was an ally of Turkey's current president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, until 2013.

Turkey is constantly asking Kosovo to do more against the Hizmet movement.

At the press conference, Fidan also said that his country will continue to support Kosovo in all fields and said that Ankara is preparing to sign an agreement in the field of security with Pristina, but did not give more details about it.

Speaking about peace and stability in the region, the Turkish diplomat said that Turkey supports the dialogue for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, which is mediated by the European Union.

"We believe that the problems of Kosovo and Serbia can only be solved through dialogue. We support efforts to achieve normalization between the two countries. The dialogue process between Kosovo and Serbia is very important in this dispute. If any request comes, we as Turkey will not hesitate to take responsibility in this direction", he said.

The Turkish chief diplomat said that Turkey wants trade exchanges to increase to 1 billion euros, as he said that so far, Turkish companies have invested 500 million euros in Kosovo and created 10,000 jobs.

He also promised that his country will continue support in training, but also in the provision of military equipment for the Kosovo Security Force.

Meanwhile, the Kosovar chief diplomat, Donika Gërvalla, said that security and regional stability were among the key topics of her meeting with Minister Fidan.

She said that the role of Turkey, but also of NATO, is important in guaranteeing regional peace and stability, as she accused neighboring Serbia of destabilizing actions.

"Kosovo remains committed to the partnership with NATO and strengthening its presence in our country as a guarantee for the protection of peace in the region. In this context, we see Serbia as a real threat to regional stability. "The threats to block the border points today are just an added proof of the hegemonic intentions, but also of the concrete provocative and destabilizing actions of Serbia which go beyond verbal threats", said Gërvalla.

Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of Kosovo has called on citizens to avoid crossing points with Serbia, after saying that a "so-called 'Organizational Council for Blockades' in Serbia" announced that on September 6, among thought to block the roads leading to the border crossings with Kosovo.

This announcement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was made at a time when the Kosovo authorities have angered Serbia with a series of actions they have undertaken in the north of the country - a part inhabited by a majority of Serbs - inciting criticism from the international community./REL