Kosovo PM’s visit to Mitrovica sparks tensions amid closure of two border crossings with Serbia
Northern Kosovo, with a predominantly ethnic Serb population, has long been a flashpoint of tensions between Pristina and Belgrade. The latest, over the option of opening the bridge on the Ibar River that divides the city into Serbian and Albanian parts, have been ongoing for weeks.
Police authorities in Kosovska Mitrovica, northern Kosovo, say at least four people were arrested in a part of the divided city dominated by Serbs following the visit of Prime Minister Albin Kurti on Monday.
Serbian activist and Democracy leader Aleksandar Arsenijević was arrested and detained according to Deputy Police Commander Petrit Fejza.
The latest comes amid the closure of two of the four border crossings with Serbia after protesters on the Serbian side blocked the road and prevented motorists with Kosovo documents from passing through.
The Kosovo Prime Minister took advantage of his walk in North Mitrovica to talk to Serbian journalists.
“We now have an agreement and the agreement must be respected, implemented. But Belgrade does not recognize the agreement it agreed to,” Kurti said.
“But the Serbs have realized that this agreement is not compatible with the Great Serbian ideology,” he added.
Northern Kosovo, with a predominantly ethnic Serb population, has long been a flashpoint of tensions between Pristina and Belgrade.
The now-closed Brnjak and Merdare crossings are in Kosovo’s north, which has a majority ethnic Serb population.
Serbian activists say they want Kosovo police officers withdrawn from the region. Some have also demanded that KFOR, the NATO-led peacekeeping force in Kosovo, assume control over Kosovo’s northern region.
KFOR spokesperson Colonel Salvatore Mascoli has said any decision in this respect must be taken through dialogue and “effective coordination with the international community.”
The latest tensions, over the option of opening the bridge on the Ibar River that divides the city into Serbian and Albanian parts, have been ongoing for weeks.
Colonel Salvatore Mascoli says that KFOR will maintain its “fixed presence on the bridge.”
Serbian authorities have said they will respond to PM Kurti’s visit by Friday. But they have also said that they are ready to continue the dialogue in Brussels in the hope of joining the EU bloc.
Despite a 13-year-long dialogue, Kosovo-Serbia relations remain tense.
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