Ambassador Rohde: Currently, the opening of Ibër Bridge needs dialogue between Government and West

German Ambassador to Kosovo Jorn Rohde has reiterated the German state's stance on opening the Bridge over the Iber River.

Rohde said the current security situation is not in favour of opening, even though there is an agreement reached long ago in Brussels on that. He also said there is danger of tension if the bridge opens.

“We have been very clear with the Government of Kosovo, of course, we have the same goals as those of the government, that all past agreements must be implemented. And there's also a decision by these agreements that needs to be implemented, there's an agreement reached on opening the bridge over the Iber River. But time is not now, you know, there's risk of tension there”, he said.

The German ambassador added that consultations between the Kosovo government and the West are needed and that the Ibër Bridge could be opened only when it is estimated there is security to happen.

There must be a process now, there must be consultations, but at the moment it's not about opening. We've communicated this to the government. For me it is clear that the bridge should be opened but we need dialogue between the government and the West, the assessment of the security situation actually made clear that it is not the time to open the bridge. As long as we think this is not the right time to open bridges, we need to stay in the current” situation, Rohde said.