Zemaj: Interpretations of Kosovo’s Absence from the NATO Summit Are Distorting Reality

Kosovo’s Ambassador for Relations with NATO, Astrit Zemaj, has reacted to what he called inaccurate and politically driven interpretations of the Republic of Kosovo’s non-participation in the NATO Summit.

In a Facebook post, he wrote that some posts on social media, as well as reports in several media outlets, made, according to him, by incompetent individuals with political motives, are deliberately attempting to distort reality and build false narratives about Kosovo’s participation in the NATO Summit.

“Based on several posts on social media, as well as in some media outlets, by incompetent individuals and with political motives, there appears to be a deliberate attempt to distort reality and construct inaccurate narratives regarding the participation of the Republic of Kosovo in the NATO Summit. It must be clear: NATO Summits are not events open to political interpretations or media misreadings according to internal political narratives and calculations, but strictly institutional NATO processes, based on the status of member states and partners of the Alliance. Therefore, any attempt to present Kosovo’s non-participation as a ‘political message’ is unfounded, distorted, and essentially harmful to understanding the institutional reality,” he wrote on Facebook.

According to Zemaj, Kosovo remains deeply grateful to NATO for the decisive humanitarian and military intervention of 1999, which was undertaken to stop the systematic violence, terror, and grave crimes of the then Serbian regime against the people of Kosovo, up to the level of genocide and a humanitarian catastrophe that risked spreading throughout the region.

He stressed that this historic military intervention, the only one of its kind in NATO’s entire history, paved the way for Kosovo’s peace, freedom, and state-building.

Zemaj also said that for more than two decades, KFOR, as a NATO-led mission, has been the main guarantee of security and stability in Kosovo, while the NATO Advisory and Liaison Team (NALT) has been and continues to be an essential part of the country’s strategic cooperation and institutional development.

“Likewise, for more than two decades, KFOR, as a NATO-led mission, has been the main guarantee of security and stability in Kosovo, while the NATO Advisory and Liaison Team (NALT) has been and remains an essential part of the strategic cooperation and institutional development of our country. We are eternally grateful to every NATO military and civilian member for their contribution and sacrifice over nearly three decades. Likewise, the Republic of Kosovo remains fully committed to its Euro-Atlantic path and to its strategic goal of full membership in NATO. Any narrative aimed at undermining this orientation, distorting the relationship with the Alliance, or weakening institutional trust between Kosovo and NATO is politically harmful and factually inaccurate. The institutions of the Republic of Kosovo should not be attacked on the basis of fabricated narratives, nor should interpretations be supported that serve agendas which have historically been against Kosovo’s statehood. Therefore, Kosovo will not be diverted by any fabricated narrative. Our path and goal are clear and unchanging: a deep partnership with NATO and continued integration until full membership in the Alliance and other Euro-Atlantic structures in the future,” he said.