9 hours agoSet Bundestag: German soldiers continue mandate for one year in Kosovo
Periskopi(a year ago)
(a year ago)In a half-hour debate, German deputies from various parties brought arguments for and against the extension of Bundeswehr's mandate in Kosovo. Germany does not leave Kosovo at least this year. On Thursday, June 26th, Bundestag in Berlin decided that the Bundeswehr mission as part of the KFOR international force [...]
In a half-hour debate, German deputies from various parties brought arguments for and against the extension of Bundeswehr's mandate in Kosovo.
Germany does not leave Kosovo at least this year. On Thursday, June 26th, Bundestag in Berlin decided that the Bundeswehr mission as part of the KFOR international force will continue for another 12 months. With 391 votes pro, 189 against and only two abstentions, the extension of the mandate was approved.
What did the MEPs say in Bundestag?
„The future of the Western Balkans should not be reduced only to security issues“, said conservative deputate Johannes Volkmann (CDU/CSU), who took the first word in parliament. Volkmann, grandson of renowned German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, who in 1990 led Germany's historic reunification, requested a more bold approach to Kosovo: „How can new generations in Kosovo feel when the promise of EU integration given in Thessaloniki in 2003 has not yet been realised?“He called on the EU to finally recognise Kosovo fully and accept it to the Council of Europe.
Stefan Keuter, representative of the far-right AfD, the largest opposition party in Bundestag, dismissed the entire logic of the mission in Kosovo. This is not our conflict. This mission has brought nothing concrete (.) With that money we could feed hungry children in Yemen or Sudan. “
Another critical voice came from the E left, where MP Gökay Akbulut called the KFOR mission a „frozen military resolution without perspective“. Kosovo is still one of the poorest countries in Europe. We don't need more troops, but for schools, hospitals, and jobs. “
From the center of the political spectrum, the SPD and the Greens defended the decision to extend the mandate:
Our „Uses help build a democratic and multiethnic society“, said Minister Nancy Fyser (SPD), while Niklas Wagner (Gelbrit) called KFOR „spirerence stability“, and warned: „if the US pulls back, Europe should be willing to take responsibility otherwise the vacuum will fill authoritarian actors. “
What role German soldiers have under KFOR
As many as 400 German soldiers and soldiers will be able to engage again in Kosovo. Their task? They contribute to security preservation, public order, and efforts to build a stable, democratic and multiethnic state. Germany also clearly expresses support for transforming Kosovo's Security Force into a modern and democratic-controlled structure as preparation for NATO and EU integration.
After the end of the war in 1999, Germany was one of the largest contributors to the KFOR mission, with up to 60,000 deployed soldiers in Kosovo. The presence was maintained at high levels until 2004, when, after interethnic unrest, it was renewed by 600 additional troops.
From 2011, a gradual decline began, dropping to fewer than 10,000 soldiers and closing the military base in Prizren in 2018.
By the end of 2022, Germany had only about 80 soldiers on the ground. But with the rise in tensions in northern Kosovo and the removal of the Austrian contingent, Berlin reacted: in April 2024 an additional company was sent, and today Bundestag has mandated up to 400 troops a symbolic return to security attention in the region.
The military mission in Kosovo costs Germany 38.9m euros. /DW/ /Periscopi/
