Kosovo is making preparations for Interpol membership

Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Izmi Zeka has told the newspaper “The new age” that Kosovo is already part of the agenda at the next meeting of the General Assembly, held from November 18th to November 21st 2018 in Dubai.

The “objectives of Kosovo institutions are being co-ordinated by the inter-intual working group. The commitments and efforts of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo are comprehensive and co-ordinated at the national level and with strategic partners of the Republic of Kosovo. Kosovo's membership in international organisations has been and is an irreversible and irreversible process, as has been witnessed with our country's current membership in more than sixty regional, European and international organisations”, Zeka has said.

He has added that the process of Kosovo's membership in international security organisations is in the interest of international organisations and member states in general and the Republic of Kosovo in particular.

Kosovo's “Membership in international security organisations should be viewed by all as a natural and necessary process that will contribute to increased efficiency of regional and international co-operation for preventing and combating Transnational organised crime, terrorism and violent extremism”, the deputy minister has said.

Kosovo Police General Director Rashit Qalaj has voiced optimism that this year the application will be successful.

He has shown that this time there is a co-ordination of activities by all institutions on the issue.

All we need to know is that as soon as we're admitted to Interpol and later to Europe. I think we have a pretty good chance this time, though it won't be easy. This road has many challenges. You are probably aware of Serbia's campaign against Kosovo membership in international institutions. Personally, I think that Kosovo's membership in Interpol is more passed on to Interpol, since at the moment we are only security consumers. If we were members, we would also contribute with our information on fighting all negative phenomena: like those of illegal migration, documentation, fingerprints and people on red lists”, Qalaj has indicated, adding that Kosovo now has the necessary international support on this issue.

“Normically that we are optimistic, because it has worked very hard in this direction. We also have support from the international factor, our partners. We still need a lot of work, but I really think we're going to be able to succeed”, Qalaj said.

Last year, Kosovo applied for membership in Interpol. The issue of her accession had been put into the organisation's Executive Committee agenda so that she could be voted in for her admission to the annual General Assembly of this organization, held on September 17, 2017, in Beijing. But because of the uncertainty that he would secure enough votes for admission, he had withdrawn his candidacy.