US Backs Kosovo’s Plan to Create a New Army

NATO, Serbia both opposed plan

Jason Ditz 

Posted onDecember 7, 2018CategoriesNewsTagsKosovo, NATO, Trump

Just days after NATO issued a statement expressing opposition to Kosovo’s plan to create a national army, warning of the threat that could pose to regional stability, the United States has issued its own statement endorsing the idea.

US officials say they view the creation of a Kosovar military as a “positive step,” and proof of Kosovo’s status as an independent country. They also emphasized how much aid the US has invested in Kosovo.

Kosovo is not universally recognized as independent, however, and for decades NATO has provided for its security as a de facto state. Serbia has warned they may intervene if a Kosovo Army is created, as they would view it as a challenge to their own claims to the region.

NATO’s concerns center on regional stability, and they also warn that if such an army was created, they may no longer elect to keep NATO troops in Kosovo to provide direct security. US officials are downplaying the matter, saying it would take “many years” to create an army at any rate.

https://news.antiwar.com/2018/12/07/us-backs-kosovos-plan-to-create-a-new-army/