Starovic: The participation of certain countries in the military exercise in Kosovo is a violation of Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council

State Secretary of the Ministry of Defense, Nemanja Starovic, stated for Kosovo Online that the deployment of the forces of certain countries as part of the "Defense Europe 2023" exercise in Kosovo represented a gross violation of Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council, according to which KFOR was the only military force that could be legally deployed in the territory of Kosovo. 

Responding to a question about the international military exercise "Defender Europe 23", which is also being held in Kosovo, Starovic said that the consent of the participating countries had not been requested from Serbia and that Serbia had no information on whether the participating countries had received the consent of the KFOR commander to enter Kosovo.

"According to the provisions of Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council, the only military forces that can be legally deployed in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija are units of the KFOR mission. With this in mind, the deployment of the forces of certain countries within the exercise 'Defender Europe 23' is a gross violation of Resolution 1244 of the Security Council of the UN, which determines the security and political order in the territory of our southern province. Not only did the countries participating in the part of the exercise that takes place in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija not seek approval from the competent authorities of Serbia, but we also have no information that the necessary consent of the commander of the KFOR mission was obtained for their entry into the territory of the southern Serbian province," Starovic said.

He pointed out that Serbia had warned its international partners about all this in a timely manner, through diplomatic communication channels.

Starovic also pointed out that during the organization of this year's, as well as previous activities that were carried out within the "Defender Europe 23" exercise complex, the US had sent an invitation to the Ministry of Defense of Serbia for the participation of members of the Serbian Armed Forces in the exercises.

He reminded that the conclusion of the Government of Serbia regarding the situation in Ukraine from February 27, 2022, which suspended participation in all planning and exercise activities of international cooperation, was still in force, and accordingly, he noted that participation in one of the exercises from the "Defender Europe 23" complex had not even been considered at the level of the Ministry of Defense.

"In addition, bearing in mind that the organizer of the exercise is planning the participation of the KSF, the existence of which, first of all, represents a gross violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, and then bearing in mind that the main goal of the exercise is to strengthen the cooperation of NATO partner countries in the collective security system, the Ministry of Defense, respecting and appreciating the applicable international legal norms, the UN Charter and the Security Council Resolution 1244, and in accordance with the declared military neutrality, does not agree with the participation of the Serbian Armed Forces in any segment of the 'Defender Europe' exercise complex," Starovic concluded.