DASH, Serbia's ultimatum/ Unconditionally release the 3 members of the Kosovo police

2023-06-15 20:46:01, Kosova & Bota CNA

DASH, Serbia's ultimatum/ Unconditionally release the 3 members of the

The United States on Thursday demanded the unconditional release of three members of the Kosovo police detained by Serbian forces. This position was expressed by State Department spokesman Matthew Miller at the daily press conference.

"We believe that both Kosovo and Serbia should take measures to de-escalate the situation, and this includes the unconditional release of the three Kosovo police officers who were recently detained," he said.

Mr. Miller also said that "both sides must follow the three-point plan that the EU has presented".

"As part of this Prime Minister Kurti must guarantee that the elected mayors perform their duties from an alternative location and withdraw the police force," said Mr. Miller.

Spokesman Miller said the US condemns "the unacceptable violence against KFOR forces, members of law enforcement and journalists, and as we move forward we continue to engage both directly with both sides, and with partners in the region."

He said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Councilor Derek Chollet and other DASH officials are engaged with partners in the region on this issue.

A State Department spokesman declined to say whether the U.S. is preparing retaliatory measures or sanctions.

"I don't want to talk about possible measures at this moment. Our focus is to make our expectations clear to the parties, that both sides take measures to ease tensions and follow the three-point plan presented by the EU".

Meanwhile, earlier the head of foreign policy of the European Union, Josep Borrell, said that he will call Kosovo and Serbia to a meeting next week in Brussels, for the management of the crisis.

Borrell, crisis meeting between Kosovo and Serbia next week
June 15, 18:20

Mr. Borrell did not say whether the meeting will be at the highest political level. However, sources in Brussels said that the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, will be invited to the meeting.

The head of European diplomacy made the warning at the beginning of a meeting with NATO ministers, emphasizing that the cooperation between the bloc and the military alliance goes beyond Ukraine.

"For example, in Kosovo in recent days it was seen how important this cooperation is and I would like to thank KFOR and the KFOR commander for the work they are doing in the north of Kosovo", said Mr. Borrell.

He said that the European Union is trying to understand what exactly happened regarding the arrest of three Kosovo policemen by Serbian forces the day before while he reiterated calls for calm on the ground.

The night before, he said in a letter sent to the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, that a new round of talks cannot be organized before Kosovo takes steps to de-escalate the situation./ VOA