At the UEFA Congress held in Belgrade, Serbia, the local organizers removed the flag of Kosovo. This act comes despite the fact that Kosovo is a full member of UEFA and FIFA. However, the Football Federation of Serbia did not respect this status, sparking strong reactions from Kosovo’s authorities.
Regarding this, the Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports (MCYS), Hajrulla Çeku, condemned the action, calling it unacceptable and condemnable.
“Firstly, any removal of the Kosovo flag is a condemnable act. It is totally unacceptable for us as a state, as institutions. This action is also against UEFA’s own rules, as our Football Federation is a full member of UEFA. For this reason, we expect clarification from UEFA itself,” said Minister Çeku.
The minister emphasized that although the event took place in Serbia, the responsibility is shared between the Football Federation of Serbia and UEFA, adding that the incident had a direct impact on the image of Kosovo as a state.
He also noted that the language used by the Football Federation of Serbia confirms this state’s hostile approach toward Kosovo.
For this reason, Minister Çeku has called on UEFA to provide an official clarification regarding this incident and to make clear who will take responsibility for this unacceptable act that occurred at the UEFA Congress.
“Therefore, at this moment, it is very important for us to await the official clarification from UEFA because this was their event, and we need to understand exactly what happened. After that, we should know who should take responsibility for this totally unacceptable and condemnable action that took place at the UEFA Congress,” said Minister Çeku to KOHËA.
The Football Federation of Serbia has confirmed that it removed Kosovo’s symbols during the Congress, while the Football Federation of Kosovo stated that Kosovo participated in the event with its state symbols.
