Throughout the months of August and September, the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) will conduct an Operational Rehearsal Training Exercise. This will result in a temporary increase of troops on the ground.
A small military contingent from the United Kingdom will arrive in Kosovo on 13 August, with the task to set up the infrastructure necessary to house a larger NATO contingent that will take part in the mentioned exercise. Additional troops from other NATO Allies, including Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Romania, Turkey, and the United Kingdom will arrive by the end of August.
The exercise will be held from 30 August to 8 September. It will feature crowd and riot control scenarios, freedom of movement activities and security operations aimed at maintaining a high level of readiness. At the conclusion of the exercise, all additional forces will depart Kosovo and return to their respective home countries.
This represents a routine event, under the denomination “OPREH Level II.” Troops from Allied countries train together with KFOR units as part of the Operational Reserve Force.
Additional NATO reserve forces could be called upon in the unlikely event that KFOR needs assistance in the implementation of its UN mandate to maintain a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all communities in Kosovo.
Local communities may see an increased amount of vehicles’ movement, resulting from the transportation of armored vehicles as units arrive in preparation.
