Tahiri on Liberation Day: Serbia knows it has lost Kosovo but it does not stop fighting, we need an alliance with the US and the EU

Tahiri on Liberation Day: Serbia knows it has lost Kosovo but it does not stop fighting, we need an alliance with the US and the EU

Senior AAK official, Besnik Tahiri, on the occasion of June 12, Liberation Day, said that the biggest risk for Kosovo is stagnation in a state of ‘status quo’, writes Gazeta Express.

Tahiri, in a post on his profile, writes that it is in the hands of Kosovars whether Kosovo will become a functional state, economically powerful, militarily secure, and a member of the EU and NATO.

“If we understand that national unification can happen through Brussels, then we can be a nation with two votes at the European tables, we just need to know what we want and how to get there,” he said, Express reports.

Politician Tahiri, who has been active for more than two decades, says that Serbia knows it has lost Kosovo, but has not given up on its efforts to sabotage, undermine, and weaken it from within.

 “Therefore, alliances with the US remain vital, but also with European countries that are taking on an increasingly greater role,” Tahiri wrote further.

He considers the status quo as a national danger and any move that preserves and strengthens the state of Kosovo can be part of a strategy for the integration of Kosovo Albanians and Albania into the EU.

According to Tahiri, the four pillars of the next decade are: energy, economy, education and Europe, and he says that more vision, knowledge and dedication should be invested in these areas.

“Today, more than ever, we must not forget the legacy of our martyrs, who gave their lives not for personal interests or wealth, but so that Kosovo would become free, so that the word “Freedom” would be understood as right and not as control,” Tahiri wrote.

Full post:

The status quo in Kosovo is our national danger.

Today, 26 years later, together with Colonel Chris Warren, the senior British officer who once led the elite units of the United Kingdom army, we visited the points where on June 12, 1999, we first entered the free territory of Kosovo with the British army.

We were at the Hani i Elezit tunnel, at the bridge where the helicopters landed, we went to Suhadoll and Magura i Lipjan. In these places, on the first day, we demined the mined areas, disarmed Milosevic’s police and started contact with the first free citizens after decades of oppression. We met former KLA soldiers, excited citizens, proud of the freedom they had gained. It was the day when we saw with our own eyes the historical change that was taking place.

There is much to be said about June 12, 1999, about the glory of that day, about its historical effects, but above all about the significance it carries.

In my opinion, on June 12, 1999, Kosovo truly gained independence. That day, the centuries-old occupation of our country ended and a new horizon opened for the Albanian dream. It was the day when the greatest unity of Albanians with the democratic world took place, to stop the genocide and to give hope to our people.

For me, June 12 and February 17 are the most important dates in the modern history of Albanians, perhaps even greater than November 28, 1912 itself, because they brought not only symbolic proclamations, but real change in the life and destiny of a people.

But today, 26 years later, the question that arises is: to what extent have we fulfilled the promise of that day?

Because the way we materialize and deepen the victory of June 12 now depends only on us.

If Kosovo is to become a functional state, economically powerful, militarily secure, and a member of NATO and the EU, that is in our hands. If we understand that national unification can happen through Brussels, then we can be a nation with two votes at the European tables, we just need to know what we want and how to get there.

On this day we must state three clear truths:

 1. Serbia knows it has lost Kosovo, but it has not given up on its efforts to sabotage, undermine, and weaken it from within. Therefore, alliances with the US remain vital, but also with European countries that are taking on an increasingly larger role.

 2. The status quo of Kosovo is a national danger. Any compromise that preserves and strengthens our statehood can be part of a larger strategy for the European integration of Albanians in Kosovo and Albania.

 3. The four pillars of the next decade are: energy, economy, education and Europe. We need to invest more vision, knowledge and commitment there.

Today, more than ever, we must not forget the legacy of our martyrs, who gave their lives not for personal interests or wealth, but so that Kosovo would become free, so that the word “Freedom” would be understood as right and not as control.

Glory to those who fell for freedom!

Congratulations on the 26th anniversary of the Liberation of Kosovo!