The NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, arrived in Kosovo following his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina. He first met with the country’s president, Vjosa Osmani, and then with Prime Minister Albin Kurti.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Kurti expressed his gratitude for NATO’s invaluable contribution to maintaining peace and security in Kosovo. He also thanked Rutte for the close cooperation between NATO’s KFOR mission and Kosovo’s security institutions, as well as for the continued support from NATO to Kosovo’s Ministry of Defense and the Kosovo Security Force through the advisory mission.
In their first discussion, the head of the government emphasized that Kosovo’s aspiration for NATO membership reflects the country’s commitment to shared values of democracy, the rule of law, security, and its willingness to further strengthen the Alliance.
One of the topics discussed was the February 9 parliamentary elections, which Kurti described as free and democratic, with participation from all minority communities.
However, the Prime Minister also raised concerns about Serbia’s attempts to interfere in the elections by pressuring and blackmailing the Serb community, with support from Russia. He highlighted that reports from EU observers noted the spread of disinformation from Russian-based media outlets such as “RT Balkans” and “Sputnik Srbija,” which published over 60 articles aimed at manipulating the Serb community in Kosovo.
Prime Minister Kurti thanked NATO Secretary General Rutte for his visit and continued support for Kosovo and its citizens, stressing Kosovo’s readiness to always be an ally in defending democratic values.
