NATO's annual report: The presence of the alliance in Kosovo, key for the Balkans

2024-03-14 13:02:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

NATO's annual report: The presence of the alliance in Kosovo, key for the

The military presence of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Kosovo is necessary for maintaining peace and stability in the entire Western Balkans region, it is stated in the annual report of NATO, which will be presented on Thursday in Brussels by the secretary of general of the alliance, Jens Stoltenberg.

The report emphasizes that for years the NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR, has maintained a safe environment and free movement for all communities in Kosovo, in cooperation with other international organizations such as the European Union, the United Nations United and others.

"In 2023, KFOR played a key role in ensuring stability in Kosovo after the increase in tensions in the north of Kosovo. After violence flared in May and September, allies deployed about 1,000 reserve forces to the mission, the largest increase in a decade. This has enabled KFOR to triple the number of patrols and quadruple its presence in the north of Kosovo," the report states.

Tensions in the north of Kosovo began to rise at the end of May 2023, after the new mayors of the municipalities of Zveçan, Zubin Potok and Leposaviq, accompanied by the Kosovo Police, entered the municipal buildings.

Serbian residents opposed this and organized protests that culminated in violence on May 29 in Zveçan, where dozens of demonstrators and KFOR soldiers were injured.

They escalated a few months later, on September 24, when the Kosovo Police was attacked by a group of armed Serbs in Banjska in Zveçan in the north of the country, where one policeman and three attackers were killed.

As a result, NATO increased the number of its soldiers in the peacekeeping mission, KFOR, in Kosovo.

According to Thursday's report, the KFOR mission now has 4,700 members in Kosovo, including the reserve force.

In his annual report, Stoltenberg also mentions the assistance that NATO has provided to security organizations in Kosovo for building their capacities, especially in the field of logistics, for medical support, procurement and management of human resources.

This report also expresses NATO's support for the dialogue mediated by the European Union for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia.

"NATO remains committed to supporting the dialogue facilitated by the European Union between Belgrade and Pristina. The dialogue is the main platform for reaching a solution that respects the rights of all communities and the construction of sustainable peace, which benefits the security of Kosovo and the stability of the entire Western Balkans region," the report states.

In this detailed report, the main activities of NATO in the last year are mentioned, from the commitment to help Ukraine to face the aggression of Russia, the increase of the presence in the eastern flank to ensure the protection of the territory of all member countries, increasing investments for strengthening the alliance's military capacities, up to engagement in missions, such as that of KFOR in Kosovo.

NATO regularly presents an annual report on its activities.

The report presented on Thursday in Brussels is considered the last presented by the current secretary Stoltenberg, as it is expected that soon, possibly before the summit in Washington in July, the allies will agree on the appointment of Stoltenberg's successor./ REL