Kosovan special forces were mobilized in predominantly Serb towns in Kosovo. In response, Serbia put its army on high alert.
By Le Figaro with AFP
Published 2023-05-27 at 2:46 PM, updated on 2023-05-27 at 2:57 PM
The Serbian army will remain on “high alert” near the border with Kosovo, the Serbian President’s cabinet announced on Saturday, a day after clashes broke out between Serbs and the Kosovar police in three predominantly Serbian towns. Kosovo police special units on Friday tear-gassed away Serbs trying to prevent Albanian mayors, elected in a contentious election in April, from taking office in three predominantly Serb communities in northern Kosovo.
Tensions have been rife in this part of the former Serbian province, whose proclaimed independence in 2008 was not recognized by Belgrade, encouraging Serbs living in Kosovo to challenge the local government. About 120,000 Serbs live in Kosovo with a population of 1.8 million, mostly Albanians.
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Following those incidents, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic on Friday ordered the army to be on high alert and “moving” towards the border with Kosovo. On Saturday morning, he chaired a meeting of the National Security Committee, which adopted a plan for “security activities (…) to strengthen Serbia’s defense capabilities,” the presidency said in a statement, adding: “The Armed Forces of Serbia remain until.” on high alert for the time being.” The Serbian army has been put on alert several times in similar situations in recent years.
However, Kosovo special forces, which allowed the new mayors access to offices on Friday, remained stationed near municipal buildings in Zvecan, Leposlavic and Zubin Potok on Saturday. These councilors were elected in elections organized by the Kosovan authorities on April 23 and boycotted by the Serbs.
The United States, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany issued a statement on Friday calling on the Kosovan authorities to immediately reverse “their decision” to deploy their special forces, adding that they also “are concerned about Serbia’s decision.” to use the special units “is the state of the readiness of his armed forces”. NATO on Saturday called on “Kosovo institutions to de-escalate immediately” and “all parties to resolve the situation through dialogue,” tweeted the alliance’s spokeswoman, Oana Lungescu.
In a statement that does not hint at a step backwards, Kosovan Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on Saturday that the authorities in Pristina “understood the concerns” of their “international partners” but that “any other option would amount to a breach of constitutional obligations”. “. “I invite everyone, especially the Serb citizens of Kosovo, to work with the new mayors and their cabinets, which will be multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-lingual,” Kurti wrote on Facebook.