President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga, received today at a farewell meeting the Commander of the NATO Allied Joint Force Command in Naples, Admiral Bruce W. Clingan, accompanied by his successor, Admiral Mark E Ferguson and KFOR Commander, General Salvatore Farina.
President Jahjaga highly praised the work of Admiral Clingan and his engagement for Kosovo and its stability within NATO and added that she expects the continuation of the dedication towards Kosovo and the Balkan region from his successor at the post of the Commander at the Naples Command, Admiral Ferguson.
President Jahjaga discussed with Admirals Clingan and Ferguson about the actual political developments in Kosovo as well as the security situation in Kosovo, with particular emphasis on the situation in the north of the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. She said that Kosovo has demonstrated its dedication to the building of a new relationship of good neighbourliness with all countries of the region, inclusive of Republic of Serbia, with which an agreement on normalisation of relations, as part of the dialogue process, has been achieved.
President Jahjaga said that agreements achieved must be implemented in practice and underlined the importance of creation of conditions for free movement of citizens on the whole territory of the country. She said that barricades erected on the Iber river bridge are restricting the lives of the citizens of the country and that this marks the violation of the laws and of the Constitution of the country., which guarantee the freedom of movement and equal rights for everyone, regardless.
Madam President added that NATO is playing an important role on the stability and peace, not only in Kosovo but in the whole Balkan region, and highly appreciated the help of the North Atlantic Alliance in capacity and standards raising of the KSF.
Admiral Bruce W. Clingan while thanking President Jahjaga for a very close cooperation, praised her for her leadership and her role. He said that NATO with its presence in Kosovo will continue to implement its mission of peacekeeping and stability and creation of a safe environment for all the citizens of Kosovo.