FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The commander of KFOR, Major General Angelo Michele Ristuccia, said that thanks to the professionalism of the members of the NATO peacekeeping mission, "a massacre was avoided" in the north.
"We managed to save 15 policemen trapped in the crowd", said Ristuccia in an interview for the Italian news agency, AGI .
" The reason why the situation did not escalate (on May 29) was the fact that we were very well prepared. Our soldiers acted very, very professionally. And I would like to express my full support to our wounded and their families. They acted so professionally that they were able to manage the force so that the situation did not escalate, thus we saved 15 Kosovo policemen, we prevented the two sides from clashing, otherwise we would have had to deal with another completely different problem", said Ristuccia .
While KFOR is expected to be reinforced and increase its presence in Kosovo, Commander Ristuccia said that they are ready to face "any kind of circumstances".
" We intend to face any kind of circumstances and for this we have received additional forces. We don't react, we act, we are organized, trained and equipped to meet all the challenges associated with doing the job. For this, thanks to the preparation of our soldiers, we were able to prevent the situation from escalating further on May 29 and mourn the dead on the ground," he repeated.
"I emphasize that most people demonstrated peacefully. This cowardly act of violence against our military was carried out by a small number of violent miscreants who used every means to do harm, used means of offense up to the lethal limit," said Ristuccia .
Currently, " the situation is very complex, tense and unstable." These days it is seemingly calm, but remains very volatile. The last time such incidents occurred was in 2004. Therefore, many positive results have been achieved in the past, and the fact that the number of KFOR troops has decreased drastically from 1999 to 2023 clearly shows that many results have been achieved. Unfortunately, however, current dynamics make us very, very concerned about these results. We need both sides to calm the tensions immediately, to find a solution only with politics and diplomacy ", specified Ristuccia.
The decision to increase NATO troops in Kosovo, Ristuccia said, was based on "a military assessment", in addition to a political one.
In fact, the only way remains the political one, said Ristuccia.
" The only way to de-escalate depends on the political will of both parties. From a military point of view, our job is to create space for negotiators from both sides and for everyone involved in the peace process, for them to return to dialogue... To promote peaceful solutions. So there is no other solution at this moment. Because the only way to solve the situation is the political decision, which is based on the will of both sides for the normalization of the situation, but first of all for the mitigation of tensions ", he underlined.
" All people, regardless of their religion, ethnicity, background, culture, need the situation not to deteriorate further. I think that 99.9% of people here in Kosovo want to live in peace. And I think it is also in the interest of both parties to resolve the situation. That is why I again call on both sides to avoid any unnecessary rhetoric and address these challenges at the negotiating table, which is the only way to resolve the situation. This does not benefit anyone ," he added.
When there is tension, he said that "those interested in creating chaos take advantage of any kind of situation". But, he added that "we are here to avoid this and everyone is fully committed to not escalating the situation".
"The problems we face here are more related to internal dynamics than external dynamics. The entire international community must understand that everything that is happening here is related to the kind of relations between the two sides that need to be normalized. No one can choose their neighbors, but they have to find the best solution to live in peace with their neighbors, it's a political issue, a political problem", underlined the KFOR commander again.
In the end, he said that Europe does not need new crises, especially now.
" It is natural that in Europe we do not need other crises except the really difficult one that the world is facing and that has had its 360-degree effects in all areas, from the economy, security, to international relations. Therefore, regardless of what has happened in Ukraine, a stable Kosovo and a stable Balkan area are in the interest of everyone in Europe, especially at a time like this", concluded Ristuccia .
Lini një Përgjigje