NATO tells of clear orders brought by their official to Kosovo, Serbia, including for Ibër Bridge

Assistant Secretary - General NATO for Political Affairs and Security Policy, Boris Ruge, has recapsed the visit to Balkan countries.

He has stayed in Kosovo, where he has also met President Vjosa Osmani. In Published Notification NATO, as usual, does not mention the post of Kosovo state chief, but refers only to “Lady Vjosa Osmani” due to the North Atlantic Alliance's neutral stance on Kosovo's status as a result of non-recognitional countries.

Citing the meeting with the President on the opening of the Ibër Bridge, NATO quoted Ruge as saying that <x0 decisions should be made through dialogue and co-ordinated”.

In turn, NATO's full support for the EU-brokered dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina is cited as the framework for resolving unresolved political issues”.

While, from meeting with Serbian President Vuciq, Ambassador Ruge has declared he hopes “Serbia will help ensure full responsibility for the violent acts committed in Kosovo in May and September 2023 and play a positive role, given good neighbourly relations, with all states in the region”.

Full announcement:

Assistant Secretary - General NATO for Political Affairs and Security Policy, Ambassador Boris Ruge, held high-level consultations in Sarajevo, Pristina and Belgrade from August 16th to August 22nd 2024. Ambassador Ruge stressed that the Western Balkans is a region of strategic importance to the Alliance and reiterated NATO allies' firm commitment to lasting security. He noted continued and long-term co-operation between NATO, the European Union and other international organisations to consolidate regional stability.

During meetings at the presidency and other senior officials in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including Foreign Affairs Minister Elmedin Konakovic and High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina Christian Schmidt, Ruge confirmed that: “NATO has been engaged in Bosnia and Herzegovina for 3 decades; we remain strongly committed to the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity and will not allow any kind of security vacuum to appear. ”

In Pristina, Ruge met with Mrs. Vjosa Osmani and senior EU officials, the OSCE, the QUINT group (represented by France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States) and the NATO-led KFOR mission. Regarding the reopening of the bridge over the Iber River in Mitrovica, the Assistant Secretary-General underlined NATO's stance that <x0 decisions should be made through dialogue and co-ordinated”. He also stressed NATO's full support for the EU-mediated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina as the framework for resolving unresolved political issues.

In Belgrade, Ruge met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Foreign Minister Marko Djuric and representatives of the international community. “We have had good exchanges for various aspects of the NATO-Serbia partnership, which we hope to deepen, and for the Alliance's efforts throughout the region,” he said. “We hope Serbia will help ensure full responsibility for the violent acts committed in Kosovo in May and September 2023 and play a positive role, given good neighbourly relations, with all states in the region”, he said.