The alliance said the force supporting the Kosovo Force (KFOR) mission would be adjusted as local security institutions have become more capable and conditions on the ground have stabilised.

“NATO and KFOR remain committed to security in Kosovo,” NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, U.S. Air Force General Alexus G. Grynkewich, said in a statement. “Current conditions provide an opportunity to optimise KFOR’s size and posture.”

KFOR was deployed in Kosovo in 1999 following NATO’s air campaign against Serbian forces. The mission currently comprises around 4,600 troops, down from roughly 50,000 at the end of the war.

NATO said security conditions in Kosovo had generally improved in recent years and noted that it halted the deployment of reserve forces to KFOR in January after nearly two years of continuous rotations.

The alliance said any reductions would be implemented gradually and could be reversed if conditions on the ground deteriorate.

NATO also reiterated its support for the European Union-facilitated dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, urging both sides to resolve disputes and reach a solution that respects the rights of all communities.

“The Western Balkans remains a region of strategic importance for NATO,” Grynkewich said, adding that the alliance would not allow a security vacuum to emerge in the region.

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In his remarks at a joint press conference with the five leaders of South-Eastern European countries and the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Skopje, North Macedonia, PM Rama considered the attack carried out against Kosovo police in Banjska two months ago by Serbian assailants as a warning about the threat of the escalation of tensions in the region.

“I think it is a regrettable fact that despite the repeated appeals to significantly increase, not only the focus, but also the number of troops that should secure not only the stability and the absolute territorial integrity of Kosovo, a tragic event has taken place there, which should serve as a warning signal rather than a sporadic event that should not be repeated,” the government head said.

To this end – the Premier went on saying – “at today’s meeting I reiterated the indispensability of an increased number of NATO troops in Kosovo and the necessity of guaranteeing the Kosovo- Serbia border that is beyond any control indeed and that serves the illegal activities, including arms trafficking, drug trafficking, and other activities that may then interfere, as we all already know, with the political activity with ultra-nationalist background which cause major disturbances, as it was the case in Banjske, where a police officer of the Republic of Kosovo lost his life in the line of duty and where this event clearly showed the high destabilization potential and escalation of a conflict that, as the Secretary General put it, should be treated in one way only, namely the European Union-facilitated open dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.”

The PM also expressed his readiness to co-finance with NATO the new naval base of Porto Romano.

He said that the Skopje meeting was of a very special importance at a time when tensions in the region are growing.

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