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Serbia-Kosovo: A local conflict that risks becoming international

2023-09-28 21:53:00, Blog Pierre Haski

Serbia-Kosovo: A local conflict that risks becoming international

An unresolved conflict is always like a time mine. That's what happened last week in the Caucasus, with Azerbaijan retaking the Nagorno-Karabakh region, forcing thousands of Armenians into exile. And it is also the conflict that is threatening Southern Europe, with the new outbreak of violence between Serbia and Kosovo.

Kosovo, a state with a predominantly Albanian population, was born 25 years ago, during the war that followed the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. The region has recently experienced a series of violent incidents, which may appear to be local in nature but may not remain so.

The new clashes started with the killing of a Kosovar policeman, followed by a battle of Kosovo's special forces with a group of armed Serbian commandos, who had taken refuge in an Orthodox monastery on the border with Serbia.

Three of the attackers were killed, 6 others were arrested while the Kosovar authorities reported the discovery of a war arsenal. For Kosovo officials, it was a commando group "supported and organized by Serbia". This event has raised tensions with neighboring Serbia, which still does not recognize Kosovo's sovereignty. Belgrade supports the Serbian minority living in the north of the country, exactly where the incidents took place.

Rising tensions

Tensions have been high for weeks, and have their source in the direction of the 4 municipalities with a Serbian majority in Northern Kosovo. Serbian voters boycotted the April local elections, where the Albanian candidates won. This act escalated the riots that continue to this day.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, is a nationalist leader who wants to put an end to Serbian nationalist claims once and for all. But he is not only facing the fierce resistance of around 40,000 Serbian residents, but also criticism from those who are the European and American "sponsors" of the new state of Kosovo, who are seeing him as a provocateur.

Russia was ready and very enthusiastic to add fuel to the fire involving NATO countries. It is about a local micro-conflict that should remain so, but which is in fact rapidly turning into an international crisis. First, because Serbia and Kosovo do not yet have diplomatic relations and any dispute carries the potential to degenerate into a violent confrontation.

Russia gives its support

A day after the serious event, Russia gave its support to Serbia in this nascent crisis, being ready to add fuel to a fire that could also include NATO member countries. A quarter of a century after its independence, Kosovo is still under the protection of NATO, which has a military presence there.

117 of the 190 member states of the UN currently recognize the independence of Kosovo, while the rest refuse to recognize the separation of the Albanians from Serbia. The European Union is trying hard to mediate between Belgrade and Pristina, using the "carrot" in the form of membership in the union until 2030.

But it is still very uncertain whether this prospect will temper nationalist impulses on both sides. However, only a solution offered by Europe can finally resolve a hitherto intractable conflict, as has happened elsewhere. There is an urgent need to put out the fire that is rekindling in the heart of the Balkans./ " WorldCrunch " - Adapted and translated by CNA





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