Warsaw, Poland — Kosovo’s foreign minister said Wednesday that her country is convinced that Russia must lose the war in Ukraine so that the conflict does not spread further into Europe. She said her young nation’s support for Ukraine is unconditional even though kyiv has not recognized Kosovo’s independence.
Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz, foreign minister and deputy prime minister, said her small Balkan nation, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, is constantly reminded of the aggressive intentions of both Serbia and its ally Russia.
“Ukraine has not recognized the Republic of Kosovo as a state, but we really believe we know exactly what Ukraine is going through,” he told The Associated Press in an interview.
“And we know that there is only one solution, not only for Ukraine, but for Europe,” he said. “It can only be Russia that loses the war and Ukraine that wins this war. Otherwise, Europe should prepare for other conflicts on our continent.”
Like Ukrainians today, the people of Kosovo were targets of war crimes and other atrocities perpetrated by Serbian security forces in the 1990s, an experience that led Kosovo to seek independence.
“Although Kosovo is a small state with very modest possibilities to help, we have tried to be very helpful to Ukraine and have not hesitated to show our unconditional support and sympathy to the people and state of Ukraine,” Gërvalla-Schwarz told the conference. press. AP.
The latest reminder that Moscow threatens Kosovo came this week when a Russian Telegram channel called for a denial-of-service attack on Kosovo government websites after Kosovo’s Defense Minister announced new military aid for Ukraine in a conference held in Warsaw on Tuesday.
Gërvalla-Schwarz inaugurated Kosovo’s first consular mission in Poland on Wednesday, part of an effort to improve economic and cultural cooperation between the two countries. Poland recognized Kosovo’s statehood in 2008, but the two countries did not establish diplomatic relations at that time. For now the Kosovo mission has consulate general status, but he said he hopes it can be a step toward having an embassy in Poland.
His visit to Poland this week coincided with a visit to Serbia’s capital, Belgrade, by Chinese President Xi Jinping, which included promises to deepen ties.
Gërvalla-Schwarz said the Chinese leader’s visit has implications for Europe because it shows that while Serbia is a candidate state for the European Union, it is “increasingly identifying with the adversaries of Western European democracies.”
“You cannot at the same time be a candidate state for the European Union and be the representative of Russia in these times when Russia has declared war not only on Ukraine but on the West as such,” he said.
Serbian forces fought a war between 1998 and 1999 against ethnic Albanian separatists in what was then the province of Kosovo. Some 13,000 people, mostly ethnic Albanians, were killed until a 78-day NATO bombing campaign drove out Serbian forces.
Kosovo declared independence in 2008, but the government in Belgrade does not recognize its neighbor as a separate country.