NATO on withdrawal from Kosovo

17 September 2010 | 11:45 | Source: Tanjug

BRUSSELS -- NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has called on the member states of NATO not to withdraw their troops from Kosovo unilaterally. He spoke in favor of a joint decision on the troop reduction. Some NATO countries, primarily the Czech Republic and France are considering a complete or partial withdrawal of their troops from Kosovo due to the additional engagement in the international troops in Afghanistan and reduction of military budget due to the economic crisis. Rasmussen appealed in Brussels on Thursday not to make such moves unilaterally but to wait until an agreement is reached and a joint decision made, radio Deutsche Welle reported. Rasmussen underscored that there will be no withdrawal from Kosovo that would jeopardize the security situation. The number of KFOR troops in Kosovo and Metohija was reduced from 15,000 to 10,000 this year. According to some plans, their number should be reduced down to 5,700 troops in the next phase.