Army chief visits NATO

Serbian Army (VS) Chief of General Staff Lt. Gen. Zdravko Ponos was on a visit to NATO in Brussels on Wednesday. At a meeting of NATO military chiefs and the member states of the Partnership for Peace program Ponos spoke of cooperation between the Serbian Army and KFOR, especially in light of reducing those relations due to KFOR's participation in the training of Kosovo security forces, Beta news agency reported. Army chief visits NATO Prior to the meeting, Ponos told journalists that "there is an interest in hearing how Serbia sees those relations from its own perspective, particularly in light of the fact that the Serbian side severed contacts at the highest level, after NATO's decision to engage KFOR in the creation of the Kosovo security forces." "Of course, this is again an opportunity to express our dissatisfaction with that fact, but also to seek out new ways of cooperation. I will primarily do so at meetings with the head of the NATO military committee, Adm. Gianpaolo Di Paolo and NATO chief commander in Europe Gen. John Craddock," Ponos highlighted. "It is in our interest to maintain security in the region and, of course, the security of non-Albanians in Kosovo, which we can do only if we have open communication with NATO at the highest level," he added. Ponos emphasized that his stay in Brussels for the meeting of army chiefs of staff of 60 NATO and Partnership for Peace member countries would be an opportunity to discuss the above mentioned. He also stressed that "the Serbian Army is a partner to KFOR, not UNMIK, hence probably directly not to EULEX either, because such is the nature of the task, but in any case the whole matter should be viewed as a single issue, albeit everyone should view it from their own domain of jurisdiction." Ponos also talked with EU Military Committee President Gen. Henry Bentejot about the possibilities of cooperation in the field of EU security and defense policy. Zdravko Ponos (FoNet, archive)

Army chief visits NATO

Prior to the meeting, Ponoš told journalists that "there is an interest in hearing how Serbia sees those relations from its own perspective, particularly in light of the fact that the Serbian side severed contacts at the highest level, after NATO's decision to engage KFOR in the creation of the Kosovo security forces."

"Of course, this is again an opportunity to express our dissatisfaction with that fact, but also to seek out new ways of cooperation. I will primarily do so at meetings with the head of the NATO military committee, Adm. Gianpaolo Di Paolo and NATO chief commander in Europe Gen. John Craddock," Ponoš highlighted.

"It is in our interest to maintain security in the region and, of course, the security of non-Albanians in Kosovo, which we can do only if we have open communication with NATO at the highest level," he added.

Ponoš emphasized that his stay in Brussels for the meeting of army chiefs of staff of 60 NATO and Partnership for Peace member countries would be an opportunity to discuss the above mentioned.

He also stressed that "the Serbian Army is a partner to KFOR, not UNMIK, hence probably directly not to EULEX either, because such is the nature of the task, but in any case the whole matter should be viewed as a single issue, albeit everyone should view it from their own domain of jurisdiction."

Ponoš also talked with EU Military Committee President Gen. Henry Bentejot about the possibilities of cooperation in the field of EU security and defense policy.