LMTs – The Reliable Friends
Szöveg: WO Erika Szabóné Varga | 2015. november 26. 9:00The Liaison Monitoring Teams (LMTs) serving in Kosovo are considered the “eyes and ears” of the KFOR mission. They constitute the executive level of the KFOR Commander (COMKFOR)’s non-kinetic forces. They regularly meet the representatives of public administration, defence sector, security, non-governmental and governmental organizations, religious leaders and, of course, the population.
They pass on to KFOR’s highest level information as well as news about political, economic, security, religious and social changes concerning the population, so they form a kind of bridge between the local people and the decision-makers in KFOR.
During the execution of their tasks, it is essential for them to build and maintain trust and develop close cooperation with the local people, as the information gathered from them significantly influences the activity of KFOR troops.
Over the last three months, the LMTs covered a total of 32,000 kilometres and participated in 150 meetings. Most of these meetings took place in the offices of public administration managers, and on some occasions in the village leaders’ own houses, but in many cases, the men in the streets ask the teams to stop to talk with them.
The changes in the area of responsibility are more and more remarkable year after year. Life in the countryside is quite hard in the winter months, so many people move to towns in this period of the year, but they return again in the summer to work in farming.
The number of blacktop roads is increasing, which makes it easier for them to get to the towns from the villages. A lot of families seek their fortune abroad, but most of them visit home several times each year, since they have their roots in Kosovo.
Wherever the LMTs go in the municipality, they are accompanied by smiling faces and people waving. This is largely a result of the trust they have built up over the years. And they are obliged to maintain, preserve and further develop this trust.
