Joe Biden Calls Posthumous Kosovo Medal for Late Son Beau 'Incredible'

The late Beau Biden, son of President Joe Biden, was posthumously awarded a medal by Kosovo for his work in the Balkan country 20 years ago.

In a pre-recorded message on the Facebook page of President Vjosa Osmani, Biden called the distinction "incredible" and "a great honor to recognize the legacy of our son."

"The nation of Kosovo is in the hearts of the entire Biden family," the president said with Beau Biden's children just off-camera.

Beau Biden worked in Kosovo after the 1998-1999 war and also with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He died in 2015 of brain cancer at age 46.

"Beau's work in Kosovo was heartfelt. He fell in love with the country," Biden said.

"As a lawyer with the United States Justice Department, he volunteered to go to Kosovo and support your independence and your very new democracy, and above all, the rule of law," the president added.

For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below.

Osmani will host a ceremony Sunday to award a posthumous Presidential Medal on the Rule of Law to Beau Biden.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a decade after a brutal 1998-1999 war between separatist ethnic Albanian rebels and Serb forces. The war ended after a 78-day NATO air campaign drove Serb troops out and a peacekeeping force moved in.

Most Western nations have recognized Kosovo, but Serbia and its allies Russia and China do not. Tensions over Kosovo remain a source of volatility in the Balkans.