The President of the Republic of Kosovo, Dr. Vjosa Osmani, today welcomed the Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Molly Montgomery, to her office to discuss Kosovo-U.S. relations and the issue of Afghan citizens temporarily residing in Kosovo.
During the meeting, the President thanked the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the continued and invaluable contribution of the United States government in Kosovo and the region, and also expressed the strong desire to step up engagement on a range of issues from security to diplomacy. President Osmani once again reiterated that Kosovo will continue to stand by our strongest and most reliable ally, and the decision on Afghans was just one testament to our commitment to this relationship. She informed the Deputy Assistant Secretary that this decision was not just political, but it was also moral and people across Kosovo were proud to be able to contribute to this humanitarian effort.
President Osmani said this administration, led by President Biden, is one that truly understands Kosovo and is confident that this will only bring the two countries closer together in their cooperation in all fields, but especially in our Euro-Atlantic path. In particular, President Osmani expressed the country’s firm aspiration to ensure Kosovo cooperates more closely with NATO to ensure we maintain peace and stability in the face of increasing threats from malign influences in the region, as a step towards also joining the Alliance.
Ms. Montgomery thanked the President for her personal engagement in enabling the arrival of Afghans and expressed the United States’ gratitude to Kosovo’s institutions and its people for making them feel welcome. Both the United States government and the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo see the agreement on temporarily sheltering Afghans as a joint success.