US State Department: Pristina's request to join NATO is a complex process

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While the United States welcomes Pristina's aspirations for NATO membership, membership applications are complex and require a long-term, thought-out approach, a State Department spokesman has told Radio Free Europe (RFE).

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"Kosovo can best show it is ready for the obligations of NATO membership by continuing to actively implement the 10-year transition plan (of the Kosovo Security Force) and not to deviate from it," he added.

The State Department's response came after Pristina's Provisional Institutions President Vjosa Osmani wrote a letter asking US President Joseph Biden to use "leadership and influence to actively support and advance Kosovo's complex NATO membership process."

"Since we share the common goal of protecting and improving global security, Kosovo's membership in NATO has become imperative," Osmani said in a March 10 letter that the RFE has seen.

She also stated that, although the eyes of the world are now focused on the war in Ukraine, "we must not lose sight of the fragile situation we are facing in the Balkans."

"We are exposed to Russia's persistent efforts to undermine Kosovo and destabilize the entire Western Balkans," Osmani added.

The State Department spokesman, however, said the United States is committed to helping Pristina "take its rightful place next to its neighbors in European and Euro-Atlantic institutions."

"We continue to support the Kosovo Security Force as it makes significant progress in its 10-year transition plan, developed with US support, to build interoperable, multiethnic, territorial defense forces under civilian control that are not only capable of defending Kosovo's territorial integrity but also to contribute to global security efforts abroad," the spokesman added.

A NATO official told RFE/RL that the criteria for NATO membership were clearly set out in the Washington Agreement (the North Atlantic Treaty) and that "decisions on NATO membership are made unanimously by the North Atlantic Council."

Of NATO's 30 member states, four have not yet recognized Kosovo - Greece, Spain, Romania and Slovakia.

The NATO official said that the organization's engagement in Kosovo has not changed and that it remains strongly committed to the KFOR mission, "which contributes to a safe and secure environment in Kosovo and wider stability in the Western Balkans."

"Through the NATO Advisory and Liaison Team, we also continue to conduct our capacity building activities in support of Kosovo's security organizations within their original mandate. All changes in the position of our forces in KFOR remain based on conditions, not on the calendar," the official added.

(Telegraf.rs)