Troop numbers in Kosovo to be reduced "soon," NATO chief says

Jun 10, 2010, 15:14 GMT

Brussels - NATO's military mission in Kosovo will be reduced 'soon,' the alliance's secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Thursday, after discussing the issue with NATO defence ministers in Brussels.

NATO's KFOR mission was cut from 15,000 to around 10,000 troops last year, after the former Serbian province's secession from Belgrade in February 2008 failed to provoke major unrest.

'We have not yet decided to take the next step in that transition process but I'm confident it will happen soon, when our military assesses that the conditions are right,' Rasmussen told journalists.

Several NATO countries, faced with ever more severe budget constraints, would like to reduce military presence even further, but the situation in Kosovo remains tense, especially in the northern town of Mitrovica where the Serb minority is concentrated.

The next reduction in troops would see KFOR's numbers fall by around 40 per cent to 5,700.

Rasmussen stressed the cuts would take place only after a positive recommendation from NATO's top commander, James Stavridis.

Observers fear tensions in Kosovo may flare up again over the summer, when the United Nations' International Court of Justice is expected to give its opinion on the legality of Pristina's independence.

As the ruling is expected to be ambiguous, Serbia is set to use it as a lever to reopen negotiations on Kosovo's status, something likely to lead to a confrontation with Pristina's rulers.

NATO's chief said 'no timetable has been decided' for KFOR's troop withdrawal, and pledged that the alliance would 'not take any step that will have a negative impact on the security situation in Kosovo.'