NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said after his meetings with Kosovo leaders in Pristina that the Alliance is aware of Kosovo's aspirations for membership, but stressed that the path to accession is long and full of challenges, the Koha Ditore newspaper reports, BTA reports.
„We know that Kosovo wants to move towards NATO membership. We have good cooperation with the institutions in the country, and NATO peacekeeping forces (KFOR) continue to be on the ground. However, the accession process will be long. "It is necessary to reduce tensions and use the opportunities that the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, mediated by the European Union, offers," Rutte told journalists in the Kosovo capital.
He stressed that Kosovo's commitment not to deploy the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) in the north of the country without specific approval from KFOR remains in force. The agreement, signed in 2013, requires the Kosovo Security Force to obtain prior approval from NATO to operate in this sensitive area.
Rutte also specified that in cases where the Kosovo police operate near the border with Serbia, KFOR must be informed in a timely manner.
Regarding the bridge over the Ibar River in the city of Mitrovica, which has been closed to traffic for over 25 years, Rutte said that conditions have not yet been created for its opening. The bridge connects the northern part of the city, populated mainly by ethnic Serbs, and the southern part, populated by ethnic Albanians, and has often been the scene of inter-ethnic tensions.
“We have tripled the number of KFOR soldiers in northern Kosovo and are carrying out more frequent patrols to ensure stability. We also expect Kosovo institutions to coordinate and be informed in a timely manner about any actions related to this part of the country“, Rutte stressed.
In response to a question about the possibility of withdrawing US troops from the region, Rutte assured that “the United States is strongly committed to NATO“ and added that there are no immediate plans to reduce the contingent.
“President Trump reaffirmed the US commitment to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which guarantees that an attack on one ally is an attack on all. There is no room for concern about the presence of KFOR in the region,“ Rutte said.
He also noted that the Trump administration had made progress in talks to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and expressed hope that the United States could play a role in stabilizing the Western Balkans.
“Let's see what role the United States can play in the region to achieve long-term solutions and normalize relations,“ the NATO Secretary General said.
Rutte added that he had spoken to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and urged Serbia to commit to preserving stability in the region.
Mark Rutte's visit to Kosovo came a day after his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he also discussed issues related to security and stability in the Western Balkans.