Kurti's full interview for BBC: Russia's war éproxyão in the Balkans and other issues

The prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has conducted an interview with BBC Wild News Service in which he has talked about the close political, economic and military ties between Serbia and Russia and the risk they pose for the Western Balkans, as well as for dezination as the form of hybrid war in the region. He denied allegations by top Russian officials that Kosovo has sent fighters to join Ukrainian troops, as well as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's claims that Russia's actions in Ukraine are the same as those of the US and NATO intervention in Kosovo in 1999.

“In the mid-1990s we had the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the late 1990s, 19 NATO countries joined to prevent genocide in Kosovo. It was the second genocide in continental Europe since World War II. 19 countries reached consensus to bomb Yugoslavia and Serbia. It must have been very bad because 19 states said it was bombing a country, and thanks to NATO's intervention of the Serbian genocide in Kosovo that stopped. Earlier than the spring of 1999, we had 20,000 women raped by Serbian police and soldiers. 860 thousand people were deported abroad, 80% of the population were expelled from their homes. We still have 1600 people down during the war. And over 12,000 unarmed civilians were killed and there is no justice for all these atrocities. And NATO intervened then”, Prime Minister Kurti said.

Among other things, he also talked about the importance of Kosovo's membership in NATO, which he said we want the assistance of Western Europe, the US and Great Britain to achieve Kosovo membership soon.

Prime Minister Kurti's full interview for BBC World News:

BBC : Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti directly joined us from the capital, Pristina. We welcome you and thank you so much for joining us. At first, we are very interested in taking your opinion on how much you are concerned about the conflict in Ukraine and can Kosovo be distributed to your country?

Prime Minister Kurti: There is certainly a hybrid war in the six countries of the Western Balkans because there are representatives. Various proxies in our region that are directly and possibly financed by the Kremlin, our northern neighbour Serbia does not recognise our Republic, but also Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina has very broad and strong ties with Moscow, respectively. We are concerned, but we are not afraid, we are very vigilant, because it is in the interest of the Kremlin to spread war, conflict elsewhere in order to cause the destabilisation of continental Europe towards what I believe is the purpose of despotic President Putin, another Yalta conference similar to that of World War II.

BBC : For some of our youngest viewers, the Yalta Conference is the conference in which the Soviet Empire was created by talks that took place between the USSR and the US for Europe. When you talk about hybrid warfare, what exactly are you talking about?

Prime Minister Kurti: The Sputnik regional centre in the Western Balkans is in Belgrade. There are so many online media that appreciate the Kremlin and military aggression of the Russian Federation in Ukraine and the Russian invasion in Ukraine, and that try to undermine the liberation fight of the Ukrainian people and its courage and stability. So the hybrid war is full of fake Narrativas and deninforms to keep up the morals of Russian soldiers and to have recruits to six Western Balkans for various extremist right-wing organisations. In particular, official Belgrade has close ties to Moscow. Gazprom owns 56% of the oil industry in Serbia and 51% of the largest gas base in Southeast Europe, which is in Banatski Dvor in Vojvodina in Serbia. Then, 10 years ago, Serbia and Russia had two joint military activities. In 2016 they had 50 joint military activities, and last year they had 100 joint military activities. Serbia spends nearly 3% of BPV on military equipment and its military personnel and has 14 MIGA-29, 8 of them donations from Belarus and 6 from Russia.

BBC : So with what you're saying, I'm thinking that your biggest fear focuses on Serbia and its ties to Russia and how this can affect your country. But you may have seen that Moscow repeatedly uses the argument that the United States and NATO, on the pretext of humanitarian intervention, are Russia's words, and without UN authorisation, bombed Serbia in 1999 followed by land invasion. And Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov often uses this, saying that the West and in particular the United States are the ones who have set the precedent and that it abolishs the value of criticalness of the Western alliance or NATO to Russia's actions in Ukraine. What is your reaction?

Prime Minister Kurti: In the mid-1990s we had the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the late 1990s, 19 NATO countries joined to prevent genocide in Kosovo. It was the second genocide in continental Europe since World War II. 19 countries reached consensus to bomb Yugoslavia and Serbia. It must have been very bad because 19 states said it was bombing a country, and thanks to NATO's intervention of the Serbian genocide in Kosovo that stopped. In the spring of 1999 we had 20,000 women raped by Serbian police and soldiers. 860 thousand people were deported abroad, 80% of the population were expelled from their homes. Today we still have 1600 people down during the war. And over 12,000 unarmed civilians were killed and there is no justice for all these atrocities. And NATO intervened at that time.

BBC : I understand what you're saying, you think it was an justified act in that particular respect. Of course, there has been a discussion in Ukraine about the no-fly zone, and Ukraine's President Zelensky, for example, wanted it, the NATO alliance was not reconciled. Mr. Zelensky seems to have implied, and words Let it mean. are strong enough, that it will not continue its NATO membership goal if it is one of Russia's demands. He says the door is not really open, I'm paraphrasing. Would you like Kosovo to be part of NATO, do you believe this is important to your security?

Prime Minister Kurti: Of course we want to join NATO and the Partnership for Peace programme is the first important goal towards that. Last year we had 330 soldiers of our army who participated in Defender Europe 21 who was NATO's largest military company in Europe. While Serbia has participated together with Russia and Belarus in what they have called “So we want to join NATO and we want the assistance of Western Europe, the US and Great Britain to achieve Kosovo membership as soon as possible.

BBC : And what do you think of President Zelensky, and as I mention it, that is not insisting on NATO membership, perhaps paving the way for dialogue with Russia, saying they may not be members. You think it's the right move?

Prime Minister Kurti: I think President Zelensky is showing his readiness for talks and agreements and peaceful solutions. But I'm afraid President Putin doesn't want to sit down with President Zelensky, he wants to sit down with President Beden. You know that President Putin thinks it's the 21st century Stalin and he sees the new Roosevelt of President Biden. So again, they want to break up Europe, they're an empire that wants to lie back in Eastern Europe. President Putin is angry and nostalgic, and that is why all Europe is in danger.

BBC : Yes, indeed. Let me return to an indictment from Russia that Kosovo has sent fighters to fight alongside Ukrainian troops. Is it true?

Prime Minister Kurti: That's not true. No citizen from Kosovo has gone to war in Ukraine, but since the beginning we as the Government of Kosovo expressed our admiration and solidarity with the liberation fight of the Ukrainian people, strongly condemned Russian invasion and joined US, EU and Great Britain sanctions against Russia.

BBC : We only have about 45 seconds left, Mr. Prime Minister, how do you think things will develop in the coming weeks?

Prime Minister KurtiI think the Ukrainian people need all the help we can give. As the Republic of Kosovo, we show willingness to accept 5,000 refugees and 20 journalists with working conditions for them in Kosovo, but now it is very important not to allow war to spread elsewhere and help Ukraine defeat the Russian Federation.

BBC : The pleasure we talked together, I think we're beginning to see more fully the geopolitical picture, which certainly includes the entire Western Balkans, and how the Russian-Ukrainian conflict affects it. Prime Minister, thank you so much for joining us at the Royal News.