On the border between Serbia and Kosovo, the moment of greatest tension seems to have passed, but the question is how long this apparent calm will last. The situation had already worsened in the summer, all because of Serb car registrations, which Pristina wanted to ban, and could become more complicated in local elections scheduled for April 23 in Serb-majority areas in northern Kosovo, which has a minority is in the country as a whole. For now, the roadblocks have been lifted and the border has reopened as normal, much to the relief of the international community, which has been trying for years to negotiate a solution to the problem.
What is the origin of the problem between Serbia and Kosovo?
After the breakup of the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, Kosovo strove for its own autonomy and independence from Serbia. However, Belgrade claims that the southern province has never had republic status – like Montenegro, which decided to secede from Serbia in a referendum in 2006 – and has reacted violently to attempts by the ethnic Albanian majority (92% to 6% of the Serbs) for independence.
The 1999 NATO bombings ended the war that claimed more than 13,000 lives – with the withdrawal of Serbian troops – and the area came under United Nations administration. Kosovo would eventually unilaterally declare independence on February 17, 2008, which is recognized by a hundred countries, including the US and 22 of the European Union’s 27. But Serbia refuses this independence.
Meanwhile, KFOR still has a Kosovo peacekeeping force, consisting of 3,802 military and civilian personnel, ready to intervene if its mandate is threatened. Similarly, since 2008 there is also a European mission (EULEX) with about 200 police officers in Kosovo.
What has changed now?
Belgrade accuses Pristina of wanting to destroy the rights of the Serbian minority (which is a majority in some restricted areas, especially near the border). This minority does not recognize the Kosovo government and state institutions and often expresses its displeasure by attacking the police.
The latest flashpoint of tension erupted on December 10, when Serbs set up roadblocks and exchanged fire with police following the arrest of a former Serb agent for allegedly attacking Kosovo security forces. Dejan Pantic was charged with terrorism. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, was quick to condemn the attacks and to call on the Serbs to lift the barricades, where episodes of violence were repeated.
But wasn’t the situation already tense a few months ago?
Pantic’s arrest reignited the violence and protests of last summer. The Kosovo government’s decision to require Serbs to replace their Belgrade license plates with those of Pristina (in an effort to assert their own authority) led to an escalation of tensions from July. It was announced at the time that fines would be imposed on those with Serbian registration in a few months, after two years of disagreement on the matter. The Serbian minority did not recognize Kosovo’s sovereignty and responded with protests and barricades in areas close to the border.
How was the situation resolved?
In the end, Pristina postponed the entry into force of the obligation to use Kosovo registration plates, with the European Union brokering an agreement between Serbia (which applied to join in 2009 and has had candidate status since 2012) and Kosovo ( formally declaring his candidacy on the 15th). In 2013, the two countries had already signed an agreement in principle for the normalization of relations, the Brussels Agreement, which, according to both sides, was as good as dead.
Returning to the tension of recent days, what did the Serbian authorities say?
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said he was going to ask NATO for permission to send 1,000 Serbian policemen and soldiers to Kosovo, which was promptly rejected by the Atlantic Alliance and the international community. However, it reinforced its troops along the border, declared a state of alert and sent the army’s chief of staff, Milan Mojsilovic, to the region.
Similarly, the Serbian government said it feared that the situation in Kosovo was “on the brink of armed conflict”, and said it wanted to do “everything to preserve peace and stability”.
Belgrade authorities claim that Kosovo systematically violates the human rights of the country’s Serb minority, with both the European Union and the US ignoring the situation. For its part, Russia reiterated its support for Serbia in its actions to end tensions in Kosovo, with the Kremlin reiterating “very close, historical and spiritual allied relations” with Belgrade.
And what has Kosovo done?
Despite the Serbian military reinforcements and the numerous barricades, Kosovo closed the main border post after asking NATO troops for help to remove the barricades. Likewise, it has postponed local elections to April next year that were scheduled for the areas in the north, which have a Serb majority. These elections were triggered by the resignation of mayors, as well as Serbian judges and police, in protest against the government’s decision to ban Serbian registration.
Is the situation calmer now?
Joint calls from the European Union and the United States for de-escalation and “maximum moderation”, as well as Kosovo’s decision to place ex-agent Pantic under house arrest, helped calm tempers. On Thursday, Kosovo Serbs began removing the barricades they had erected in recent weeks and the border reopened. However, the Serbian president lifted the state of alert in which the armed forces were.
Source: DN
