Kosovo postpones controversial measures after border unrest | Abroad

As of today, the Kosovo authorities would no longer recognize Serbian identity documents at the border crossings. According to the new rules, Serbs visiting Kosovo must exchange their identity documents and number plate for a Kosovar one. Some 50,000 Serbs living in northern Kosovo still use Serbian license plates 14 years after Kosovo’s independence. They now have until 1 September to exchange their number plates. Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, welcomed the postponement but added that he hoped the roadblocks “will be lifted soon”.

Last year, Prime Minister Albin Kurti wanted to end the sticking to Serbian license plates, but he canceled it due to protests. At the time, demonstrations were held at the same border crossings as now. Kosovo then deployed special police forces and Serbia flew warplanes along the border.

So now Kurti tries again. He has also ordered that from today all Serbian citizens visiting Kosovo must request an extra document at the border to be able to enter the country. Serbia is already asking the same from Kosovars.

On Sunday it was restless all day in the north of Kosovo, where mainly Serbs live. Police eventually closed two border crossings after militant Serbs blocked the road to the border posts. Police also said she was shot at by unknown persons, but no one was injured.

It concerns the border crossings at Jarinje and Bernjak. The crossings were blocked with gravel-filled trucks and heavy machinery. Angry protesters also attacked Albanian passers-by, police said. An air-raid siren sounded for three hours in the town of North Mitrovica. Shots were also fired at the Kosovar police, but no injuries were reported.

According to the Kosovar government, the purpose of the blockades and the shooting is “to destabilize Kosovo and threaten the peace and security of our citizens and our country. Several aggressive acts took place this afternoon and evening, encouraged and planned by the authorities in Belgrade,” Kurti said in a statement.

Kosovo Prime Minister, President Vjosa Osmani and several deputy prime ministers met with US and European representatives in the country on Sunday. “As a result, the government of Kosovo pledges to postpone the implementation of two decisions (…) until September 1, 2022, from Monday, August 1, all barricades will be removed and freedom of movement will be fully restored on all roads in northern Kosovo.”

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic had stated in a speech earlier in the evening that the situation in Kosovo had “never been so difficult” for Serbia and the Serbs living in Kosovo. “The atmosphere has been brought to a boil,” says Vucic. He added that “Serbia would win” if the Serbs are attacked.

The NATO-led UN peacekeeping force Kosovo Force (KFOR) calls the situation in northern Kosovo tense and says it is “ready to intervene if stability is threatened”, in line with “our UN mandate”. Currently, 28 states contribute to the peacekeeping force established by the UN in 1999, with a combined strength of approximately 4,000 military and civilian personnel.

In Moscow, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry blamed the heightened tensions on what she called “unfounded discriminatory rules” imposed by the Kosovar authorities. Kosovo has been recognized as an independent state by more than a hundred countries, but not by Serbia or Russia.