Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has Americans thinking about foreign affairs in a way that they probably have not done in a long time.

Among other things, the war has made it clear once again that peaceful bonds of friendship need to be forged between countries, and the United States is no exception.

Iowa and Fort Dodge are already doing this, creating a steadily growing relationship with Kosovo and Gjakova, one of the cities in that relatively young Balkan nation. These relationships began in the early 2000s during the civil war in which Kosovo separated from Serbia. Iowa Army National Guard soldiers were sent there as peacekeepers. More than 800 Iowa troops went to Kosovo during deployments in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008. In 2011, the Iowa National Guard became a formal partner with the Kosovo Security Forces.

Maj. Gen. Timothy Orr, who was then the adjutant general of the Iowa National Guard, sought to expand the relationship beyond purely military matters. In 2013, Kosovo and Iowa became Sister States. Then in 2016, Fort Dodge and Gjakova became Sister Cities.

Since that time, high school students from Fort Dodge and Gjakova have visited each other’s countries on a regular basis, except during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have worked on service projects in each community.

A group from Fort Dodge visited Kosovo this summer as part of the ongoing exchange program. The delegation included Aidin Grady, Saiya Noborikawa and Brek Pingel from Fort Dodge Senior High School and Jonah Carlson from St. Edmond Catholic School. They were accompanied by Jolene and Josh Hays and Shelly Bottorff.

The group left on July 20.

The teens spent time at Camp TOKA, where the theme was peacekeeping and conflict resolution. They were joined by youths from Kosovo and other countries at the camp. Visits to Gjakova and other communities followed.

Jolene Hays, a counselor at Fort Dodge Senior High School, described the exchange as “the best and most active youth Sister City partnership in Iowa.”

Thanks to significant flight delays, the group did not return until Aug. 2.

The trip was sponsored by the Webster County 4-H Foundation, Noon Kiwanis, NEW Cooperative, the Fort Dodge Community Foundation, Study Club and the Ann Smeltzer Charitable Trust.

Giving teenagers exposure to another country and its culture is a positive step that will foster understanding far into the future. Thus, we believe the Kosovo trips and the Sister City agreement with Gjaokova are worthy of support.