From . – 01/12/2023 10:28 am (act. 01/12/2023 10:28 am)
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti comes to visit Vienna. ©APA/AFP/MICHAL CIZEK (icon image)
On Thursday, the head of the Kosovo government, Albin Kurti, will pay an official visit to Vienna.
After a reception with military honors, Kurti will meet Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) for a working meeting in Vienna. The two heads of government then want to face the press. In the evening, Kurti participates in an Austrian Institute for European Security and Policy (AIES) discussion on the Western Balkans at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna.
Conversation with Nehammer: Albin Kurti visiting Vienna
Kosovo officially submitted its application for EU membership in December. The main obstacle is that five EU member states – Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Greece and Cyprus – do not recognize Kosovo. Even Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s independence to this day. In 2008, with Western support, Kosovo declared its independence from Belgrade. After the violent tensions between Serbia and Kosovo, Kurti called for a stronger presence of NATO protection troops in his country. The NATO-led KFOR protection force currently has around 3,800 members, including more than 400 soldiers from the Austrian army.