Former Kosovo Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj has called for stronger European Union engagement in the Western Balkans and reiterated the importance of Kosovo’s NATO membership during a high-level debate at the Berlin Security Conference.
Hoxhaj participated in a panel titled “Credible Engagement in the South,” where he discussed international developments, shifting global power dynamics and the role of Euro-Atlantic institutions in maintaining stability in the region.
In a Facebook post accompanying photographs from the event, Hoxhaj described the current international environment as a period of profound uncertainty and transformation.
“We are living between a world order that is disintegrating and a new order that has not yet taken shape,” he wrote.
He argued that the weakening of international institutions and Russia’s imperial ambitions make a stronger EU role in the Balkans increasingly necessary, including in the field of security.
Hoxhaj took part in the discussion alongside Romanian Lieutenant General Iulian Berdila, Deputy Chief of Defence for Operations and Training, and Portuguese Lieutenant General Nuno Lemos Pires, Director of National Defence Policy at Portugal’s Ministry of Defence.
The panel was moderated by Javier Colomina, NATO’s Special Representative for the Southern Neighbourhood.
Hoxhaj stressed that a sustained commitment from Euro-Atlantic partners remains essential for Kosovo and the wider region.
“For Kosovo and our region, the sustained engagement of the EU and NATO remains vital for peace and our Euro-Atlantic future,” he said.
His remarks highlighted Kosovo’s continued push for closer integration with Euro-Atlantic institutions, including its stated ambition to join NATO.
