The European Union has condemned the attack on police forces in Kosovo as “terrorist” and called on both Serbia and Kosovo for dialogue. US Secretary of State Blinken also warned the same thing.
After heavy fighting in northern Kosovo, which is predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs, left five people dead, the West has called on the government in Pristina and Serbia to resume mediating talks.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote on the X platform, previously Twitter: “We call on the governments of Kosovo and Serbia (…) to immediately return to the EU-mediated dialogue.”
“Back to problem solving through dialogue”
Under the mediation of EU Foreign Affairs Representative Josep Borrell and EU Special Representative Miroslav Lajcak, Kosovo and Serbia have been negotiating for months about normalizing their relationship. However, the talks have so far been unsuccessful.
Against the background of the significantly increased tensions, Borrell’s spokesman, Peter Stano, also said that both sides must make efforts “so that we can get out of the constant crisis mode and get back to solving problems through dialogue.”
Stano also condemned the attack on police forces in northern Kosovo as “terrorist.” However, the exact background still needs to be clarified. The Borrell spokesman did not rule out measures against Serbia. The EU recently restricted cooperation with Kosovo after Pristina failed to implement recommendations for de-escalation.
Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti had previously accused Serbia of supporting “terrorist attacks” in the north of Kosovo, which is predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic rejected this. According to diplomats, representatives from Germany, France, Italy and the USA wanted to discuss the situation in Brussels during the day.
Worst incident in years
The attack on a Kosovo police patrol on Sunday was the worst incident in the region for years. Heavily armed Serb militants attacked Kosovar police officers in the town of Banjska near Mitrovica.
Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti accused Serbia of supporting “terrorist attacks”. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic rejected this.
Always tensions
There are always tensions in Kosovo: Most recently, dozens of attackers and uniformed men were injured in attacks by Kosovo Serbs on Kosovar police officers and soldiers from the NATO-led protection force KFOR in northern Kosovo.
The country, now inhabited almost exclusively by Kosovar Albanians, seceded from Serbia in 1999 after Serb war crimes and declared independence in 2008. More than 100 countries, including Germany, recognize independence. Serbia, Russia, China and five EU member states do not do this.
Belgrade is demanding the return of its former province or at least the recognition of the northern part of the country, which is almost exclusively inhabited by Kosovo Serbs. Under the mediation of Borrell and the EU special representative Lajcak, Kosovo and Serbia have been negotiating for several months about normalizing their relationship. However, the talks have so far been unsuccessful.