NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that the Western military alliance is in contact with both Kosovo and Serbia to ensure that the upcoming parliamentary elections in Kosovo do not lead to destabilization.
Rutte referred to the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the relations between Kosovo and Serbia as key issues in the Western Balkans region.
He made these statements on January 13 during a debate in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee of the European Parliament in Brussels.
“Naturally, we have some concerns, especially regarding the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also the relations between Serbia and Kosovo,” said NATO’s chief.
He added that the alliance will not allow any security vacuum, neither in Bosnia and Herzegovina nor elsewhere in the Western Balkans region.
“Nonetheless, we are in contact with both Kosovo and Serbia to ensure that the elections, which will be held later in Kosovo in February, do not lead to destabilization. This is crucial. In the Western Balkans, we really need to stay closely engaged because it is a key neighborhood for us,” Rutte said.
Kosovo is set to hold regular parliamentary elections on February 9.
The elections are taking place at a time when tensions have been high in the northern part of the country, which has a Serbian majority population.
In September 2023, an armed group of Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in the north, killing one officer. During the ensuing gunfire exchange in Banjska, Zveçan, three Serb attackers were killed.
Kosovo holds Milan Radoičić, former deputy leader of the Serbian List (the main Serbian political party in Kosovo supported by Belgrade), responsible for the attack, which Kosovo considers a terrorist act.
Kosovo blamed Serbia for the attack, but Belgrade has denied involvement.
In November of last year, an explosion occurred at the Ibër-Lepenc Canal in Zubin Potok.
This canal provides water to several municipalities in Kosovo and its water is used for cooling power plants.
Kosovo again blamed Serbia for the attack, but Belgrade denied involvement and stated it would investigate the incident.
During the debate in the European Parliament, NATO’s chief said that, in these dangerous times, it is crucial for the European Union and NATO to strengthen cooperation.
He expressed concern that Russia is making efforts to destabilize the member countries of both the alliance and the European bloc.
“We are deeply concerned about security in Europe. We are not at war, but we are not at peace either,” he said, calling for increased investments in security and defense by member countries.
According to previous plans, all NATO member countries are required to invest at least 2% of their Gross Domestic Product in defense. Although this agreement was made more than ten years ago, not all member states have reached this target, despite the increase in defense spending since the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“Two-thirds of NATO member countries now spend at least 2% of GDP on defense. But this is still far from sufficient. For proper defense, much more is needed,” emphasized the NATO chief. /REL/
