The oath-taking and graduation ceremony for new recruits of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) has begun at the “Adem Jashari” barracks in Pristina.
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Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Defense Minister Ejup Maqedonci and Assembly Speaker Albulena Haxhiu attended the event, along with officers and non-commissioned officers from the Ministry of Defense and the KSF.
The ceremony marked the completion of training for 515 new soldiers, who joined the ranks of the KSF and began their service defending the country. According to Kurti, this is the largest generation the Kosovo army has ever had.
“515 citizens of the Republic who have chosen to serve their homeland. 515 more rifles for the security of the country. 515 new guarantors of freedom and peace,” the prime minister declared at the start of his speech.
Kurti called on the new soldiers to carry out their noble duty with honor, responsibility and a high level of awareness. He said that behind their uniforms stand the citizens of Kosovo, their families, the children who aspire to grow up in peace, and a people that won its freedom through great efforts and suffering.
“You begin your journey today knowing deep within your being that our freedom is the result of the efforts of many generations, of those who gave everything of themselves for our country,” Kurti said.
He said that the Kosovo Liberation Army was and remains a sign of the people’s determination not to submit to captivity. According to him, the sacrifice of the nation’s martyrs and fallen heroes obliges society to preserve historical truth, honor the just liberation war and take pride in it everywhere.
“From the mountains of Drenica to the Towers of Dukagjin, from the White Drin to the Ibër and Sitnica, from Llapi and Gollak to Anamorava and Karadak—every region and area, city and village, hill and valley preserves memories of resistance and uprising, of efforts for freedom and love for the homeland,” the prime minister said.
Kurti stressed that in this land, freedom represents the history of families, the sacrifice of generations and a responsibility passed from one generation to the next.
He underlined that the army is one of the fundamental pillars of the state and that strengthening it is an obligation in building institutions capable of guaranteeing the security of citizens, as well as protecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic, in accordance with its constitutional and legal mandate.
The prime minister announced that the government’s commitment is to invest more than 1 billion euros in the army.
During the ceremony, he also recalled the figure of Commander-in-Chief Adem Jashari, saying that his name and legacy should remain a permanent guide to self-sacrifice and dedication to the homeland.
“Let the name of legendary Commander-in-Chief Adem Jashari be a permanent reminder of what it means to stand up for the homeland. This is our homeland. This is our state. Freedom is a legacy entrusted to us. Protecting it is a set of functions we share together, a common official and civic responsibility,” Kurti concluded.
He congratulated the soldiers on their graduation, ending his speech with the calls: “Long live the Kosovo Security Force. Long live the Republic and our people.”
