The UK has confirmed it will maintain its contribution to NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo for at least another three years, reaffirming a 26-year commitment to regional stability and the alliance’s security priorities in the Western Balkans.
In a statement issued on 22 October, the Ministry of Defence said the UK will continue supporting the UN-mandated NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR) until at least December 2028. The mission, first deployed in 1999 following NATO’s intervention to halt violence in Kosovo, includes troops from over 30 nations.
The UK’s contribution centres on a reserve force of several hundred soldiers ready to deploy at short notice. The last major deployment occurred in 2023 after an armed attack on police in northern Kosovo.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the extension demonstrated the UK’s “unwavering commitment to peace and security in the Western Balkans”, describing it as part of Britain’s “NATO first” approach outlined in the Strategic Defence Review. He added that “working closely with our partners in the Western Balkans is vital, not only for regional stability, but to ensure security here at home.”
Armed Forces Minister Al Carns said the decision reflected the UK’s enduring role as one of KFOR’s most capable contributors, praising personnel for decades of operational service. “Our troops have carried out hundreds of missions over the decades in support of KFOR and this extension to our commitment will keep Kosovo and the Western Balkans safer,” he said.
Carns noted that British forces have strengthened KFOR’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, giving mission commanders enhanced situational awareness and improving the protection of civilians. The continued deployment is funded through the government’s Integrated Security Fund, which supports joint security initiatives across departments.
The announcement coincides with the Western Balkans Leaders’ Summit in London, where the UK pledged new defence and security cooperation, including a course launching next year for regional defence institutions on protecting civilians and promoting the role of women in defence. The initiative will invite participation from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
If conditions in Ukraine allow for deployment of the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ to provide post war security, I wonder if the KFOR remit could be taken up wholly by NATO nations who have ruled out sending troops to Ukraine and/or, perhaps, other non NATO countries who have a vested interest in European peace such as Austria and Rep Ireland. This might simplify the supply situation and allow armed forces to properly focus on their main task.
The “Reserve” force isn’t Reservists though, is it?
I thought it the SLE Infantry Battalion, whoever that is?