Kosovo Force

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For other uses, see KFOR (disambiguation).

Pocket badge of the KFOR in both latin and cyrillic

The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a NATO-led international force responsible for establishing a safe and secure environment in Kosovo. KFOR entered Kosovo on June 12, 1999 under a United Nations mandate, two days after the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1244. At the time of UN Security Council Resolution 1244, Kosovo was facing a grave humanitarian crisis, with military and paramilitary forces from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in daily engagement. Ethnic tensions were at their highest recorded numbers and the death toll had reached a historic high and nearly one million people had fled Kosovo as refugees *[1].

As of 2006, KFOR consisted of approximately 17,000 troops.

1 Objectives
2 Structure
3 Contributing nations
4 Leadership
5 Magazine
6 See also
7 References and external links

[edit] Objectives

Map of the KFOR-Sectors, 2002.

Ukrainian soldier on foot patrolling in Serbian village near Brezovica

German Bundeswehr KFOR soldiers and a Marder armoured personnel carrier in southern Kosovo in 1999

German Bundeswehr KFOR soldiers patrol southern Kosovo in 1999

The objectives of KFOR are to establish and maintain a secure environment in Kosovo, including public safety and order; to monitor, verify and when necessary, enforce compliance with the agreements that ended the conflict; and to provide assistance to the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) *[2]. The Contact Group countries have said publicly that KFOR will remain in Kosovo even after Kosovo's future status is determined (i.e., whether it becomes independent or remains part of Serbia). http://www.nato.int/kfor/chronicle/2002/chronicle_10/08.htm http://www.nato.int/kfor/chronicle/2002/chronicle_10/08.htm

[edit] Structure

KFOR contingents were originally grouped into regionally-based multinational brigades. The brigades were responsible for a specific area of operations, but under a single chain of command under the authority of Commander KFOR. Beginning in 2005, KFOR transitioned to a more flexible Task Force structure, which allows the Commander of KFOR (COMKFOR) to more easily deploy units out of the regions where they are based *[3].

[edit] Contributing nations

At its height, KFOR troops numbered 50,000 and came from 39 different NATO / Non-NATO nations. The nations contributing the most personnel to KFOR at the time included:^[1]

United Kingdom (19,000 troops)
France (7,000)
United States (7,000)
Germany (6,000)
Italy (5,000)
Russia (3,000?)
Netherlands (2,000)
Ukraine (1,300)
Spain (1,200)

Other contributing NATO Nations include:

Other contributing non-NATO Nations have included:

The KFOR website states that soldiers from 35 countries make up the current KFOR *[4].

[edit] Leadership

German Army Lieutenant General Roland Kather took command of the Kosovo Force on 1 September 2006.

Italian Army Major General Roberto Bernardini assumed the duty of Deputy Commander of KFOR on 22 August 2006.

American Army Brigadier General Albert Bryant, Jr. has been the KFOR Chief of Staff since 27 June 2005.

Italian Army Brigadier General Attilio Claudio Borreca is the Commander of the Multinational Brigade Southwest, headquartered in Prizren, Kosovo.

Swedish Brigadier General Per Lodin is the Commander of the MNTF C, headquartered in Lipljan, Kosovo.

American Army Brigadier General Douglas B. Earhart serves as the Commanding General for Multi-National Task Force East in Kosovo. He assumed command on December 6, 2006.

German Army Brigadier General Hans-Joachim Fröhlich is the Commanding General for Multinational Task Force South headquartered in Prizren. He assumed command on November 14, 2006.

Italian Carabinieri Colonel Domenico Libertini is the Commander of the Multinational Specialized Unit, headquartered in Pristina, Kosovo.

Portuguese Army Lieutenant Colonel Álvaro Raposo Guerreiro Da Silva is the Commander of the KFOR Tactical Manoeuvre Battalion, headquartered at Jubilee Barracks camp "Slim Lines" in Pristina, Kosovo.

[edit] Magazine

The KFOR Chronicle is published monthly, and is cleared for public dissemination. It is published to the web, additionally, for an international audience at http://www.nato.int/kfor/chronicle/2007/2007.htm