NATO’s mission in Kosovo has denied Serbia’s request to send up to 1,000 police and army personnel amid a series of incidents. Kosovo proclaimed independence in 2008 after NATO attacked Yugoslavia to safeguard Albanian-majority Kosovo in 1998-1999. “They [KFOR, NATO’s mission in Kosovo] reacted stating there is no need for the return of the Serbian army to Kosovo… citing the UN resolution recognizing their mandate in Kosovo,” Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic stated Sunday.
Last month, Serbia sought to deploy soldiers in Kosovo for the first time since the conclusion of the war after skirmishes between Kosovo authorities and Serbs in the north. If KFOR approves, a UN Security Council resolution allows Serbia to post troops at border crossings, Orthodox Christian landmarks, and Serb-majority neighborhoods. Vucic criticized KFOR for alerting Serbia of its decision on Christmas Eve after Kosovo police apprehended an off-duty soldier accused of shooting and wounded two young Serbs near Shterpce. Both victims, 11 and 21, were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. Another young man was reportedly accosted and battered by Albanians as he returned from church early Saturday. Serbian officials called the attacks “terrorist crimes” and scheduled Sunday rallies in Shterpce. International organizations denounced the attacks, which are anticipated to exacerbate hostility between Kosovo’s majority Albanians and 100,000 Serbs. Most ethnic Serbs in the north don’t recognize Kosovo’s independence. Most others, notably Shterpce, recognize the Pristina administration and are politically active. Separatist ethnic Albanians rebelled against Serbia’s government, prompting Belgrade’s savage repression and NATO’s intervention. Most ethnic Albanians were among the 13,000 killed.
Serbia argues that hundreds of its security soldiers have the right to redeploy under the UN resolution that followed the conflict and that their return to Kosovo would help decrease tensions. Kosovo and Western authorities angrily dispute this assertion. Vucic said KFOR’s response was inevitable given Western support for Kosovo’s independence. Serbia has relied on Russia and China to preserve its claim to what many Serbs consider their homeland. Vucic claimed on pro-government Pink TV that the West “wasn’t bothered about the Serb boys.” “KFOR’s response didn’t surprise me.” Serbia and Kosovo must normalize ties to join the EU. A top US team will come next week to further EU-mediated discussions.
