Rutte: We will work so that KFOR has the necessary forces to maintain a safe environment in Kosovo

2024-10-18 17:15:22, Kosova & Bota CNA

Rutte: We will work so that KFOR has the necessary forces to maintain a safe

NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Friday that the Allies will continue to work together to ensure that the KFOR mission in Kosovo has the necessary forces and resources to maintain a calm and peaceful environment. safe for everyone.

He made these comments during a press conference at the end of the meeting of defense ministers of NATO member countries, during which the alliance's operation in Kosovo was also discussed.

"In Kosovo, allies continue to work together to ensure that our KFOR mission has the forces and resources it needs to maintain a peaceful and secure environment for all," he said.

Secretary Rutte a day ago raised concerns about the lack of progress in the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia facilitated by the European Union.

"It means that we must be aware of the tensions in the Western Balkans and the fact that the dialogue process between Pristina and Belgrade is not progressing as we would like..." he said.

Currently, over 4,400 troops led by NATO take care of security in Kosovo, and during the past year, the alliance increased its presence after the tensions in the north of Kosovo, inhabited by a majority of Serbs.

Kosovo has come under criticism from Western diplomacy for what have been described as unilateral and uncoordinated actions in the north, where the authorities closed Serbian parallel municipalities appointed by Belgrade, which Pristina considers illegal.

The European Union as well as the United States have called on the parties to choose the open issues within the talks in Brussels, the continuation of which is expected next week at the level of chief negotiators.

The German ambassador in Pristina, Jorn Rohde, said that he hopes that both sides will move faster in these talks.

"Our expectations are that the parties will progress, they must talk to each other and have the political will to achieve progress, because at the moment there is not much progress in the dialogue. I know there are elections, but we always have elections somewhere," he said.

Ambassador Rohde said that it is important for the entire region to normalize relations between Kosovo and Serbia.

"And I am sure that Mr. Lajçak and the new team in the Commission want progress. In the end, the ultimate goal is the membership of Kosovo and Serbia in the European Union and everyone knows that it can only be achieved if we have normalization. And without normalization, membership is not possible," said Ambassador Rohde.

The Ambassador of the United States to NATO, Julianne Smith, said that progress in the negotiation process is essential in the integration processes of Kosovo in the Euro-Atlantic structures. During a conversation with journalists, asked about the request of the Kosovo authorities for inclusion in the Partnership for Peace program with NATO, Ambassador Smith said that the United States is pleased to see Kosovo's willingness to join...

"But I think that our friends in Kosovo have heard us loud and clear. We want them to continue to engage in dialogue facilitated and led by the European Union. This is something that both NATO allies and EU member states strongly support. They have our full commitment to stay engaged in the region and do what we can to help them create greater sustainability in the neighborhood,” she said.

Kosovo and Serbia have been involved in 13-year talks for the normalization of relations that have seen little progress, while an agreement that the parties agreed on last year has not even begun to be implemented./ VOA