KFOR Commander: Having an army is a long story. KSF still has work

Having an army is a long story. It's not something that can be realized in a day or just by passing a bill... in whatever case the decision is made, it will require at least 10 years to have an army. Having an army is not just a matter of transition or transformation. It's about equipment, training, it's about rebuilding these capabilities”, Cuoci said.

They're really capable and I've seen very few forces that are really capable of performing as they do. That means they really want to be professional, and that's very good”, he added further. The training to become an army is completely different. This means more difficulties, of course more money, the budget should be completely different, and this also means different skills in weapons and other things that are very expensive. So it's not so much about the decision as it's about a long-term process. Even the draft of the bill is ensuring that this process will take place in 10 years”.

KFOR backs KSF transformation into Army

KFOR Commander General Salvatore Cuoci indicated that KFOR supports changing the constitution for the KSF mandate.

We definitely support constitutional change, transformation or transition, whatever it is, whether it should be made as a decision, we support changing the constitution. This implies that whatever this process is, it is a process that is fully acceptable to all parties, including minorities. That is why NATO is supporting changing the Constitution. If this is not the case, the attitude of NATO will be revised to the alliance's highest levels, of course”, he said.