"No possibility" of NATO troop drawdown in Kosovo, Germany says

Feb 3, 2012, 9:17 GMT

Brussels - German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere said Friday that he did not expect a drawdown of NATO peacekeepers in Kosovo any time soon, given the 'difficult' situation in the Balkan country.

De Maiziere was speaking to reporters ahead of a meeting with fellow NATO defence ministers at the military alliance's headquarters in Brussels. The meeting was also expected to tackle NATO's Afghanistan mission amid growing speculation about its withdrawal plans.

NATO had originally planned to halve the number of troops in Kosovo this year. Just under 5,800 soldiers from 29 countries are currently serving in the Kosovo Force (KFOR) mission, with Germany providing the largest contingent at 1,349 troops.

Kosovo last year experienced a wave of fresh tensions with ethnic Serbs in its north. NATO's top military advisor, General Knud Bartels, warned earlier this month that the situation is 'calm but tense and can change very rapidly.'

'At the present time, I see no possibility of pulling out further troops,' de Maiziere said, noting that 'only politicians can solve' the problems affecting the former Serbian province.

The European Union has been brokering talks between Belgrade and Pristina in a bid to normalize relations between the two sides. The bloc has set improved relations with Kosovo as a condition for recognizing Serbia as a candidate for EU membership.

'It is vital that the EU-sponsored dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina continues and that it produces sustainable results,' NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said. 'This dialogue represents an historic opportunity to build a better future.'

Speaking about Afghanistan on Thursday evening, Rasmussen insisted that NATO would be carrying out combat operations there through 2014.

Friday's Afghan talks, which have been extended to representatives of the 22 non-NATO nations that are also taking part in the NATO mission, were also expected to touch on the thorny issue of how many Afghan national security forces (ANSF) will be needed to fill the vacuum once NATO-led combat troops pull out.

'You've put your finger on two critical questions - what should be the long-term size of the ANSF and how are we going to share the cost of supporting that between the members of the international community,' British Defence Minister Philip Hammond told reporters.

Those issues are expected to feature prominently at the next NATO summit in May in Chicago, with questions being raised about whether all of the 352,000 Afghan soldiers and policemen that have already been trained will be needed.