US lawmaker writes to President Beden, urges Kosovo's NATO membership

Kosovo must be admitted to NATO after the start of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, an American lawmaker says.

In a letter sent to US President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Ritchie Torres, stated that Kosovo is a loyal ally of the US and must join NATO in opposing Russian influence in the region.

On February 27th, Kosovo Defence Minister Armend Mehaj called for accelerated admission to NATO”. Moreover, on March 3rd, the Kosovo Assembly adopted a resolution calling on the government to start negotiations on NATO membership”, Torres wrote.

“As Russia continues to behave as an irrational actor and Serbia strengthens its relations with Russia, it is critical that we help our ally Kosovo join NATOʹs”, he says.

Kosovo, a brand U.S. all in Southeast Europe, should be approved into #NATO. I was fun @POTUS & @SecBlinken to restore resources to energy #Kosovo becomes a member. We must stand with our entire familyst the honoring secret criteria in the regime. ? Pic.twitter. com/i7 PtG8 PEZs

Rep. Ritchie Torres (@RepRitzie) March 6, 2022

How is NATO membership done?

NATO's “opened door policy” is based on the Alliance's founding document, under which NATO membership is open to any European “that is able to advance the principles of this Treaty and contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area”.

According to this policy, any decision on enlargement must be made “with unanimous agreements”.

To join the Alliance, countries are expected to respect the values of the North Atlantic Treaty and meet certain political, economic and military criteria set out in the 1995 Enlargement Study.

These criteria include a democratic political system based on a market economy; fair treatment of the minority population; commitment to resolve conflicts peacefully; the ability and will to contribute military to NATO operations, as well as commitment to civil-military relations and democratic institutions.