The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has announced that he has started the process towards opening a factory for the production of ammunition and for laboratories for the design of unmanned aerial vehicles, known as drones.

At the beginning of Wednesday’s meeting of the Government of Kosovo, Kurti announced that the decision to establish an interministerial commission aimed at evaluating and starting this process had been signed.

He said that this is “a necessary step to guarantee the sustainable development of the army”.

“An army that for such a short time has been armed so much as ours needs to ensure and guarantee full operationality and overall sustainability. Today we take the first steps for the establishment of the military industry”, said Kurti.

The Minister of Defense, Ejup Macedonci, said that for this project they have coordinated with international partners, including the USA, and that the Ministry of Defense of Turkey has assisted with a “feasibility report”.

“For the opening of the state ammunition factory, we have received a feasibility report from the Ministry of Defense of Turkey. We are in the finalization phase of this project”, said Maqedonci.

He added that the ammunition produced will be according to NATO standards.

Last summer, Kosovo bought Bayraktar TB-2 drones from Turkey. Kurti said at the time that with their purchase, Kosovo “is even safer”, and added that the officers of the Kosovo Security Force have already been trained in the use of drones.

It was not clear at the time how many drones had been purchased.

The budget for the Ministry of Defense for 2025 is expected to be 207.8 million euros, or 54 million euros more than this year.

Today in Kosovo is marked the Day of the Force, which symbolizes the establishment of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF). This force was founded on January 1, 2009, after the dissolution of the Kosovo Defense Forces (KDF).

The KSF is currently in the process of being transformed into a regular army. By the end of this process, in 2028, the KSF is expected to have over 7,500 active and reserve members from over 4,000 that it currently has.

In the conference after the meeting of the Government of Kosovo, Macedonci said that the latest initiative is part of the second phase of the process of transforming the KSF into a regular army.

“We, together with the commander of the KSF, are committed to achieving the plan for the transformation of the KSF within the time limits”, said Maqedonci./REL