The Minister of Defense, Ejup Maqedonci, says that NATO membership is an urgent need for Kosovo’s security. According to him, Kosovo has made great strides in terms of its preparation to be part of the North-Atlantic alliance.
Maqedonci, in an interview for KosovaPress, emphasizes that the advancement of Kosovo’s status in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly will help to achieve this major goal for the country.
Through this, Minister Maqedonci declares that the Kosovar MPs who will be part of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly will have the opportunity to present various resolutions on security in the Balkans.
“The advancement of the status of Kosovo from an observer member to an associated country is of great importance for our country, especially for the Assembly of Kosovo. From now on, the legislature will have the opportunity to develop many more activities within the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, compared to what it had the opportunity to develop during the time it was only an observer”, he said.
Maqedonci declares that Kosovo, in terms of defense and security, has built capacities according to NATO standards.
“Kosovo has made great strides in terms of its preparation to be part of NATO. Our institutions have taken continuous actions. First of all, Kosovo is a democratic country, a country that represents all the values of NATO countries. In the political aspect, in terms of how the state of Kosovo looks like, we have all the parameters to be part of NATO. Especially in terms of defense and security, we have continuously built the defense capacities of our country, according to NATO standards. We train KSF members according to NATO standards and school”, said Maqedonci.
According to him, the Kosovo Security Force has sufficient combat capabilities to be part of the largest military alliance in the world.
“KSF has its entire organization and structure designed in such a way that interoperability with NATO countries is possible. We have the tactics that we develop at the tactical level, our military doctrine and all the documents synchronized with those of the NATO countries. We use ammunition calibers and weapon systems used in NATO countries. This gives the KSF the opportunity to interact with the armies of NATO countries during joint operations with NATO countries, to have the possibility of interaction with the armies of NATO countries”, said Maqedonci.
In addition to security for Kosovo, the Minister of Defense says that NATO membership would provide security for the entire Western Balkans.
“Kosovo’s membership in NATO does not only represent security for our country but for the entire Western Balkans. I believe that the entire Western Balkans should be included in NATO, even Serbia, although so far it has not shown the slightest desire to be part of NATO. However, integration into NATO will be an important step for guaranteeing security and stability in the Western Balkans and a strategic objective for Kosovo in order to protect its interests that are related to defense and security”, said Maqedonci.
