Kosovo declared its independence on 17 February 2008 and the Netherlands recognised it on 4 March 2008.

[3] Relations between the two countries are considered to be good and the Netherlands offers support to various projects in Kosovo with the goal of aiding the country in its transition to democracy.

[4] The Netherlands participated in the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, which resulted in a UN administration of Kosovo and then to eventual independence.

[4] Outside of the EU framework, the Netherlands uses the Matra Programme, of which Kosovo is a beneficiary, to organise projects in countries in Central and Eastern Europe to aide them in their transition to democracy and rule of law.

In the case of Kosovo, the Dutch Embassy uses this programme to encourage cooperation between the Serbian and Albanian communities in the north of Kosovo.