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NATO, US condemn army plans

Members of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) take part in a ceremony in Pristina on March 5, 2017, marking the 19th anniversary of the killing of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) founding member and commander Adem Jashari

Since Kosovo's 1998-1999 war with Serbia, NATO-led multinational troops have been deployed in the territory but it is not allowed its own army in accordance with a UN resolution.

The former Serbian province, which in 2008 declared independence despite opposition from Belgrade, does have a security force and an elite police wing.

But President Hashim Thaci proposed a draft bill on Tuesday to establish a regular army for Kosovo, by changing the current law on the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) and extending its powers and number of soldiers.

Such a move would not require a constitutional amendment and would therefore circumvent a likely veto from Kosovo's Serb minority, who are hostile to the move. Most of Kosovo's population is ethnic Albanian.

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"Unilateral steps such as these are unhelpful," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a press release, urging Kosovo's authorities to remain "in close contact with Belgrade".

"Should the mandate of the KSF now evolve in the way proposed, NATO will have to review its level of commitment, particularly in terms of capacity-building," Stoltenberg warned.

In a separate statement the US embassy in Pristina said that the security change should be made "in accordance with the Kosovo Constitution and through an inclusive and representative political process that reflects Kosovo's multi-ethnic democracy".

The KSF is currently a 2,500-member strong force, while the proposed new army would consist of 5,000 lightly-armed soldiers and 2,500 reservists.

However, despite NATO's warning Thaci remained defiant and said "the process is unstoppable."

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Speaking to reporters in Pristina later Wednesday, he urged Prime Minister Isa Mustafa to give "a high priority" to the initiative.

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said he spoke to Thaci about the plans on Tuesday and expected to receive help from the European Union, the Unites States and Russia over the issue.

Improved ties between Pristina and Belgrade are a crucial part of both sides' bids to join the EU, but relations remain tense.

In January, Belgrade sent a train towards Kosovo covered in the slogan "Kosovo is Serbia" in multiple languages, spurring Kosovo to send its elite police unit to the border, to the anger of Serbia.

The late 1990s war, between ethnic Albanian independence-seeking rebels and Serbian troops under Slobodan Milosevic, left around 13,000 people dead.

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