Counter-Terrorism: The Commission to sign an arrangement with Kosovo as part of Joint Action Plan for the Western Balkans

Today, Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos together with the Minister of Internal Affairs of Kosovo Ekrem Mustafa will sign an arrangement to implement the Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. The arrangement will identify priority actions for the authorities of Kosovo in the area of counter-terrorism cooperation in 2019 and 2020, and envisage support from the European Union in this regard. Kosovo has committed to reporting on the progress made to implement the arrangementon a regular basis. This is the third such arrangement to be signed between the European Commission and the Western Balkan partners, with the remaining 3 to be finalised soon. The wider Joint Action Plan for the Western Balkans, which was signed in October 2018, provides an overarching framework for action on counter-terrorism and the prevention and countering of violent extremism in the Western Balkans region. This strengthened engagement on security is one of the six flagship initiatives in the Commission’s Strategy for the Western Balkans and answers the call of the Sofia Declaration of May 2018 for increased cooperation on countering terrorism and extremism. More information on the arrangement will be available online.