“With all measures” – Kremlin supports Serbia in the conflict with Kosovo

Russia is closely monitoring what is happening in Kosovo and how the rights of Serbs are being protected there, Peskov added. It is “natural for Serbia to defend the rights of Serbs living nearby in such difficult circumstances and to react ruthlessly when their rights are violated,” he said. Serbia is a “sovereign country” and it is “fundamentally wrong to look for any destructive influence from Russia here”.

Border crossings blocked
Disputes between Serbia and Kosovo have escalated in recent weeks. After Serbia put the army on alert due to rising tensions with the government in Pristina, Kosovo closed the largest border crossing into the neighboring country on Wednesday. Earlier, demonstrators on the Serbian side had blocked access to the Merdare intersection. This means that only three border crossings between Kosovo and Serbia are currently open. The recent tensions originally arose when the government in Pristina invalidated the old Serbian number plates.

For weeks, militant Serbs have been erecting barricades in the predominantly Serb-inhabited north of Kosovo, mainly blocking the roads to the border crossings to Serbia (see video above). In doing so, they are protesting the arrest of a former Kosovan police officer of Serbian origin who, according to Kosovo authorities, had led attacks on officials of the election commission.

The militants are supported and co-led by Belgrade. Germany is demanding that the barricades be dismantled as soon as possible as the blockade further exacerbates the situation. At the same time, Kosovo must accept the implementation of the agreed Serbian community association, a foreign ministry spokesman said. A few years ago, both parties agreed on such an association of predominantly Serb communities. However, Belgrade and Pristina have not yet agreed on the implementation.

Visit demonstrative barracks
Amid renewed tensions, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic visited an army barracks in the border town of Raska. On Wednesday evening, he posted a photo on his Instagram page showing him with Serbian Chief of Staff Milan Mojsilovic. He thanks all members of the security forces who would do anything to protect the Serbs in Kosovo, Vucic wrote.

Vucic had put the army on edge. Mojsilovic said he was sent to the Kosovo border because of the “complicated situation”. The barracks visited by Vucic are not far from a buffer zone along the border with Kosovo, where Serbian security forces are only allowed to enter with permission from the NATO-led security force KFOR stationed in Kosovo. KFOR called on the parties to the conflict to show restraint and openness to dialogue.

“Nationalist rhetoric totally unacceptable”
The German government was “deeply concerned” on Wednesday about the new tensions in northern Kosovo. A constructive attitude is expected from Serbia and this has also been communicated, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Berlin. “Especially nationalistic rhetoric, as we have heard from Serbia in recent weeks, is completely unacceptable,” he stressed. The increased military presence near the Serbian border with Kosovo also sends the wrong signal.

The US and the EU are also concerned about the tense situation. “We call on all concerned to exercise the utmost restraint,” said the EU Foreign Service (EEAS) and the US State Department. Immediate action should be taken to de-escalate the situation, it said in a joint statement. It was pleased that Kosovo’s leaders had given assurances that there were no lists of Kosovo Serb citizens arrested for peaceful protests or barricades. Investigations and procedures will be closely monitored, it said.