Advancing Kosovo status on NATO Parliamentary Assembly agenda

In this case, Kosovo's Assembly aims to advance its status from observer to associate member of this organisation.

In the NATO Parliamentary Assembly communiqué, its deputies, among other things, “will decide on the demands of Malta and the Kosovo Assembly to become delegations of associate members”.

The ongoing challenges in the Western Balkans will be addressed, as will strategies for supporting partners in danger and for increasing engagement with the South Global”, the communiqué says.

Kosovo authorities have announced since March that the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Permanent Commission has advanced Kosovo's status in the body.

In Serbia, the International Institute for Security committed itself to prevent Kosovo's advancement in this organisation.

In a call to it, he said he considers granting the status of associate Kosovo Assembly member “would be harmful both to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and to the Stabilisation and Euro-Atlantic integration processes of the Western Balkans”.

“Democracy in Kosovo is not functional. Its institutions are burdened with an extremely high level of corruption and other undemocratic practices, while minority communities' rights -- particularly Serb -- are not protected”, the Belgrade-based organisation claimed.

Serbia, which does not recognise Kosovo's independence, is constantly engaged in lobbying campaigns against Kosovo late even against its membership in the Council of Europe.

The Serbian organisation also said that the nine current members associated with NATO's Parliamentary Assembly are from the internationally recognised and independent “countries and that “linking the same status status of Kosovo would be a dangerous precedent”.

How does the NATO Parliamentary Assembly function?

NATO's Parliamentary Assembly is institutionally separate from NATO, but serves as an important link between NATO and the parliaments of member states.

It consists of 281 delegates from all 32 NATO member states.

In addition, delegates from 9 associate countries, four associate Mediterranean countries, and eight parliamentary monitoring delegations are participating in its activities.

Association members What is intended to do even Kosovo can present resolutions and resolution changes. Also, they can serve as special rapporteurs associated with the committees to present their prospects in NATO-The Parliamentary Assembly reports.

Currently, associate members are nine between them and Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Kosovo Assembly, for years, is a two-seat monitoring delegation. With the level of representation established, the Kosovo participating delegation would also expand.

At meeting in Sofia, participants will be expected by Secretary General NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, and other senior NATO and Bulgarian state officials.

They will discuss topics related to Euro-Atlantic defence and security, with a focus on supporting Ukraine and the priorities of this year's NATO summit, which will be held in Washington in July.

“During the session, the Assembly is expected to reinforce its steadfast stand for the untested, unpronounced and brutal fight of Russia against Ukraine to discuss providing immediate and long-term aid to Ukraine, as well as adopt a declaration on Ukraine's support until its” victory, NATO Parliamentary Assembly announced.

Kosovo, NATO

After Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kosovo authorities have called for accelerated NATO membership.

Kosovo's accelerated membership in NATO and the establishment of the permanent base of American forces are the responsibility for ensuring peace, security and stability in the Western Balkans and, more broadly,”, said then Minister of Defence in Kosovo Armend Mehaj.

NATO has not commented on this request of Kosovo, but has assured that its peacekeeping mission in the country, KFOR, “can immediately address any development that could affect the security situation”.

NATO forces have been present in Kosovo since June 1999, after the end of the war and the withdrawal of Serbian forces.

Kosovo borders three NATO member states -- Albania, Montenegro and Northern Macedonia.

In NATO ranks there are four states that still do not recognise Kosovo's independence: Greece, Spain, Romania and Slovakia. REL