Macedonia says NATO membership urgent need Kosovo security

Defence Minister Ejup Macedonia says NATO membership is an urgent need for Kosovo security.

According to him, Kosovo has made major steps in terms of its preparation to be part of the north-Atlantic alliance.

Macedonia stresses that advancing Kosovo's status at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly will help achieve this major goal for the country.

Through this, Minister Macedonia states that Kosovar deputies who will be part of NATO's Parliamentary Assembly will be able to present different security resolutions in the Balkans.

The advantage of Kosovo's status by observer members in the country associated has great significance for our country, especially for the Kosovo Assembly. The legislature from now on will be able to develop much more activities within the framework of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, compared to those that have been able to develop over time as only an observer country. The Kosovo Assembly, our parliamentarians who will be part of the NATO Assembly, will have the opportunity to participate in all committee meetings and under NATO committees, will have the opportunity to submit different resolutions, participate in the resolution amendment, to be a specialised rapporteur when committees make reports about the security situation in the Western Balkans”, Kosovapress told.

Macedonia claims that Kosovo, in terms of defence and security, has built capacities according to NATO standards.

Kosovo has made very big steps in terms of preparing it to be part of NATO. Our institutions have taken continuous action. For one thing, Kosovo is a democratic country -- a country that represents all the values of NATO countries. Politically, in terms of what the state of Kosovo looks like we have all parameters to be part of NATO. Especially in terms of defence and security we have consistently built our country's defence capacities, according to NATO standards. We train KSF members according to NATO standards and school”, Macedonia adds.

According to him, the Kosovo Security Force has sufficient combat capacities to be part of the world's largest military alliance.

“The KSF has all its organisation, structure designed in that form to enable interoperability with NATO countries. We tactics we develop at a tactical level, our military doctrine and all documents are synchronized with those of NATO countries. We use ammunition calibres and the weapons systems used in NATO countries. That makes it possible. The KSF, during its joint operation with NATO countries, will have access to interoperability with the armies of NATO countries. The KSF has sufficient military capacity, as well as military support capacity for civilian authorities that are those capacities that have been seen many times in the KSF, such as demining, rescue search that are available to be part of NATO”, says Macedonia.

In addition to security for Kosovo, the defence minister says NATO membership would present security for the entire Western Balkans.

Kosovo's “NATO membership presents not only security for our country but for the entire Western Balkans. I appreciate that the entire Western Balkans should be included in NATO, even Serbia so far has not shown even the slightest desire to be part of NATO. However, NATO integration will be an important step for ensuring security and stability in the Western Balkans and a strategic goal for Kosovo in order to protect its interests, which connect to defence and security”, has ended Macedonia.