Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga and Slovakia’s Deputy Prime Minister Miroslav Lajcak inaugurating the monument. Photo: Kosovo President’s Office

A monument with 42 names engraved on it was inaugurated in Prishtina on Wednesday in the memory of 42 Slovak soldiers who died in a plane crash near Hungarian- Slovakian border in January 2006. Only one member of the unit survived.

The plane crashed on its way home, after the Slovaks had completed their military duties in Kosovo within the NATO-led peacekeeping mission, KFOR.

Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak, who was present at the unveiling ceremony, said his memory of the tragedy remained fresh.

Ten years ago, when the crash happened, he was the Slovakian ambassador to Serbia, responsible for Kosovo; Slovakia does not recognise Kosovo’s independence.

“I witnessed their high spirit, resolve and passion when carrying out their duties. So I knew their routine, shared their grief and enjoyed their character. The tragedy profoundly hit my very soul and heart,” Lajcak said.

The monument was erected on the initiative of Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga who described the disaster as “the biggest loss by the NATO mission in Kosovo”.

“The 42 names will become an everlasting reminder of the values and ideals that bring us together as nations and as peoples,” she said during the ceremony.

Slovakia is one of the five European Union state members that have not recognized Kosovo’s independence together with Spain, Greece, Romania and Cyprus.

Lajcak, who has also visited Serbia during this tour, said that his state “does not take sides.

“Our position toward Kosovo is not hostile. We are a friendly state and open to Kosovo and we closely cooperate in many areas,” he told the Prishtina-based Klan Kosova TV in a statement.