“Do not forget that Kosovo is Turkey and Turkey is Kosovo,” said Erdoğan, as he made the “Rabia” hand sign that has become synonymous with the anti-coup protests in Egypt, during an address in Prizren, where there is a significant Turkish population, on Wednesday.
“Never forget that all of us are people of a shared history, culture and civilization; we are brothers and relatives to each other,” added the prime minister.
Erdoğan’s remarks were, however, received with skepticism by Serbia, which refuses to recognize Kosovo’s independence and considers Kosovo the cradle of Serbian culture.
“In the Republic of Serbia, such statements cannot be received as friendly. They depart from assurances that we get in contacts with Turkey’s top officials,” said the Serbian Foreign Ministry statement, reported TANJUG.
Turkey was one of the first countries to officially recognize Kosovo’s independence from Serbia in early 2008 and some 90 other countries, including the US and 23 EU member countries, now also recognize the country’s independence.
“The town of Emperor Dusan (the greatest ruler of medieval Serbia) is probably the least appropriate place for such statements. Everyone in the world knows that Kosovo is a Serbian word and Serbia’s territory, even those who have recognized that quasi-state,” the statement added.
Erdoğan added that he “feels at home” when he visits Kosovo. Recalling Turkey’s support of Kosovo during the process of achieving recognition from other states, Erdoğan said Turkey will continue to back Kosovo’s efforts for recognition from additional countries.
Nebojsa Stefanovic, the Serbian parliament speaker, was another Serbian figure who condemned Erdoğan’s comments, saying that his remarks do not contribute to the improvement of Serbian-Turkish ties.
“The statement [by Erdoğan] is scandalous, and [I] expect [not just] the state, but also the international community, to react,” TANJUG reported Stefanovic as saying in a televised interview.