Balkans | Bloomberg: Türkiye will take command of the Kosovo Force in Kosovo

Turkey is expected to take command of the NATO-led KFOR peacekeeping force in Kosovo, in a planned rotation, this fall, after going through the toughest conflict in Kosovo in the past decade.

And Bloomberg TV showed the statements of the officials, who did not want to be named, that Turkey, which has the second largest army in NATO after the United States, will take command of the KFOR mission from Italy in October.

The handover of command was planned prior to the recent violence in northern Kosovo, Bloomberg writes, “At a critical moment when Turkey, the European Union and NATO allies are focused on Russia’s war in Ukraine, protests threaten the years-long process of normalizing relations between Serbia and Kosovo. After 30 were injured A peacekeeper, he deployed a commando battalion to Kosovo at NATO’s request.” Gave place for evaluations in the form.

The Turkish Ministry of Defense and a NATO spokesman did not comment on what was written.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, forcing Serbian forces to leave NATO in 1999. NATO has stationed peacekeepers in Kosovo since the war. The KFOR had 50,000 troops in 1999 and the following years.

Over the years, that number has dwindled, with around 3,800 NATO soldiers currently serving in the KFOR in Kosovo.

The mission demonstrates Turkey’s commitment to NATO’s efforts and highlights its historical and ethnic ties to the Balkans.

Kosovaport