Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama told the British daily Financial Times that NATO needs to re-establish control of northern Kosovo, and called on Western leaders to solve the \u201cnever-ending madness\u201d among Balkan countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cNATO should reestablish control of northern Kosovo or face continuing violence between ethnic Serbs and Albanians in the region,\u201d the Albanian Prime Minister told the Financial Times.<\/p>\n
Rama, whose country is a member of the NATO alliance, spoke to the Financial Times following clashes in the village of Banjska in northern Kosovo in which at least four people were killed, including a Kosovo Police officer.<\/p>\n
\u201cKosovo is a hotspot. It has become over the years a no-man\u2019s-land where all kinds of crime combine with rising nationalism. The border between crime and politics has been blurred,\u201d said Rama.<\/p>\n
NATO said it would deploy as many peacekeeping troops as were needed to stabilize the situation, with Germany and the UK already pledging hundreds of soldiers on top of the existing 4,500-strong force to keep the region under control, noted the British daily, adding that both Kosovo and Serbian leaders have also called on NATO to step up its presence and quell tensions.<\/p>\n
Rama advocated for a \u201chigh-level conference\u201d involving the leaders of France and Germany and re-engaging the US.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is the best [way] to get out of this never-ending madness,\u201d said the Albanian leader who had already drawn attention to the deteriorating security situation in Kosovo during a NATO summit in July.<\/p>\n
The goal, he said, was \u201cfull recognition of Kosovo in the EU and in the United Nations\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not easy to change the course of history, that requires leadership. But if France and Germany could do it [after the Second World War], if Saudi Arabia and Israel can do it, then we know it can happen,\u201d said the Albanian Prime Minister.<\/p>\n
Rama for a long time refrained from getting involved in the Kosovo conflict, instead building cordial ties with Belgrade as he sought to make progress on the EU membership path for the Western Balkans. But given the rising security threat not just to Albanians in Kosovo but also to the region as a whole, Rama said he had to call a spade a spade, the FT reported.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstability in the Western Balkans serves Moscow\u2019s interests,\u201d Rama said.<\/p>\n
Russia has long backed Serbia and has not recognized Kosovo\u2019s independence. After Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, Belgrade resisted Western calls to impose sanctions on Russia.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Kremlin would also crave to see a little Donbas in Kosovo and set up a fire of separatism in the middle of Europe,\u201d Rama said.<\/p>\n
While he offered no evidence of Russian involvement in the recent flare-up in tensions, he said the Kremlin\u2019s meddling was \u201cthe simplest deduction you can make\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey do this all over the world, from Africa to the Middle East, so of course they will try in Europe\u2026 Kosovo has also been a [tool] for Russians,\u201d said the Albanian Prime Minister.<\/p>\n
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