Turkish Foreign Minister mevlüt Çavuşoğlu stressed on Sunday that his country will not allow the Balkans to return to the dark days of the 1990s.
This came in a press conference with Donica Gervala Schwartz, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kosovo, the last leg of his tour of the Balkan countries.
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Çavuşoğlu pointed to the escalation of tensions in the Balkans, referring to the developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the repercussions of the war in Ukraine on the region.
He affirmed his country’s support for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, and its belief in the necessity of reaching an agreement between the two countries through diplomacy.
“We have repeatedly said that we will not allow this region to return to the dark days of the 1990s, and we are doing everything we can to do so,” Çavuşoğlu said.
He added, “We will continue our efforts in this regard as a country that has good relations with all countries in the region and can talk to everyone.”
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He stressed that dialogue is very important for lasting stability and peace in the region.
With regard to relations with Kosovo, he pointed out that the activity of the terrorist organization “Gülen” in this country represents the only challenge that casts a shadow on relations.
He stated that the Gülen organization (which carried out a failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016) continues to poison relations between the two countries in various ways.
He pointed out that the organization continues to brainwash young people in Kosovo and invest in the media, and continues to infiltrate state institutions, as it did in Turkey previously.
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He stressed that the presence of this terrorist organization in Kosovo causes deep resentment to the Turkish government and people.
