SUMMARY/ Borell alarmed by the situation in the north of Kosovo, Kurti calls for restraint from spreading panic

2023-06-24 10:26:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

SUMMARY/ Borell alarmed by the situation in the north of Kosovo, Kurti calls for

The Head of Foreign Policy of the European Union, Josep Borell, expressed "alarm" on Friday with the tense situation in the north of Kosovo.

"Illegal arrests of Kosovo Serbs and Kosovo Security Forces parading south of Mitrovica, accompanied by heavy language from Serbia. Despite yesterday's crisis meeting, the escalation continues and is getting more dangerous. We will not tolerate this," Mr. Borrell wrote on Twitter.

His statement followed the announcement by the Kosovo police of the arrest of a Serbian citizen in the north of Mitrovica, on suspicion of involvement in the attacks on KFOR forces on May 29, in which at least 30 members of the peacekeeping forces were injured. .

On Friday, Serbia repeated its threat of armed intervention in Kosovo if NATO-led peacekeepers do not act to protect the Serbian minority from what it said were "persecutions" by authorities in Pristina.

The Chief of Staff of the Serbian army, Milan Mojsilovic, said that he informed the KFOR commander that "we are following the events with great anxiety and that urgent measures must be taken to protect the Serbian people".

"Today it is clear that the international community is not fulfilling its obligations," he said in a rare appearance before reporters, in which no questions were allowed.

"Serbian armed forces, in accordance with the constitution and the UN Charter, if they receive an order ... will fully perform all their duties in relation to the overall security crisis," the Serbian general said on Friday but without details given.

His statement was made shortly after members of the Kosovo Security Force paraded in the southern part of Mitrovica, a city divided into a Serb-majority north and an Albanian-majority south.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said that today's training of the Security Force "is a planned routine on an annual basis", for which KFOR is fully informed. "Disinformation is dangerous and unacceptable," he wrote in a post on social networks, in which he also mentioned Friday's arrest of a suspect for attacking KFOR forces.

"As the prime minister of a democratic state, I have zero involvement in crime investigations and arrests," Prime Minister Kurti wrote, calling for the news to be verified before reacting.

"Spreading panic and false claims only inflames tensions and helps others seek escalation. A call to everyone: Please confirm your sources and wait for official information from Kosovo's institutions before publicly engaging in news distribution or predicting events," Prime Minister Kurti wrote.

Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia rose late last month when authorities began implementing the results of the April 23 election, boycotted by Serbian political parties. In the northern municipalities, groups of Serbian citizens continue to oppose the placement of Albanian mayors in municipal offices.

The arrest of three members of the Kosovo police by the Serbian forces on June 14 increased the tensions between the parties even more.

The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, met separately yesterday with the prime minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, and the Serbian president, Aleksandar Vucic, in Brussels in an effort to find a way out of the crisis.

Mr. Borrell said after the meetings that an agreement was reached on the need to hold new elections in the north of Kosovo, while the parties were presented with the expectations of the European Union for the extension of the situation

"For Kosovo to immediately suspend police operations in the municipal buildings in the north and for the four mayors to temporarily perform their duties outside the municipal offices. "Serbia should ensure that the protesters leave the municipal buildings simultaneously with the departure of the Kosovo police," said Mr. Borrell.

Both parties, he said, should announce new elections in the four municipalities, with the unconditional participation of Serbs in them.

Mr. Borrell said that he has asked the Serbian president for the immediate and unconditional release of the three Kosovo policemen, a request that was also forcefully put forward by the United States.

A State Department spokesman told VOA that the expectations of the United States and the European Union are clear for both countries.

"We continue to call on Serbia and Kosovo to take concrete and immediate steps towards easing the situation. This includes the unconditional release of the Kosovo policemen who are still being held in Serbia", he said, adding that "the two sides must respect the three-point plan drawn up by the EU and return to talks without delay".

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has expressed his readiness to announce early elections in the north of the country, but he said that they must be preceded by the establishment of the rule of law.

"We understand that there is a need for early elections in the four municipalities in the north, naturally with a process that is preceded by the rule of law, by an open and fair campaign for free and democratic elections. I can't say that the situation is safe because of the bilateral meetings now and that we have a stable base, but from the mediator's optimism I can say that there are signs that the days ahead are better than the ones we left behind" , he said.

Serbian President Vucic said that "there is no guide" for the way out of the crisis in northern Kosovo.

"We will continue to talk on a daily basis, because peace and stability are essential, but I warned that the Serbs are in a very difficult position and that they do not want to endure the terror of (Albin) Kurti as they have been forced to endure until now ", he said.

For the third day in a row, groups of Serbian citizens briefly blocked the main road in Graçanica near Pristina on Friday, in protest against the arrest of a member of the Serbian community on June 21, on suspicion of war crimes, while in the north since May 26 protests are held in front of municipal buildings and there are no signs that the parties are taking concrete steps to reduce tensions.

The European Union's foreign ministers are expected to discuss the situation and the course of the talks on Monday, while the bloc has warned the parties that they will face consequences if they do not work to improve the situation on the ground./REL