Advance: officially, the US has condemned the escalation in Kosovo, but this does not mean that they do not want it
Kosovo is considered in the world as part of the conflict between East and West, and Belgrade is viewed as an ally of Moscow, writes Advance. The escalation in the region is taking place at a tense moment for the Serbs. And it can both distract attention from the internal turmoil in Serbia, and intensify this turmoil.
Antun Rocha
During yesterday's day, the situation in Kosovo was heating up again. However, this time the situation is particularly acute. According to the latest data, at least 25 soldiers of the peacekeeping mission of the North Atlantic Alliance were injured in clashes with Serbian protesters in northern Kosovo. Immediately after that, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic ordered the army to be brought to the highest degree of readiness.
The peacekeeping mission of the North Atlantic Alliance in Kosovo, that is, KFOR "Forces for Kosovo", soon published a message condemning the escalation of violence. "In clashes with the most active marginal parts of the protesters, several fighters from the Italian and Hungarian contingent of the Kosovo Force were subjected to unprovoked attacks and received injuries, including fractures and burns, due to incendiary explosions," the report says.
Hungarian Defense Minister Christoph Szalai-Bobrownicki said that seven Hungarian soldiers were seriously wounded and that they would be transported to Hungary for treatment. The rest of the victims are allegedly Italian special forces.
Italy also reacted. "What is happening is completely unacceptable and irresponsible," said Giorgi Meloni, a spokeswoman for the Italian Prime Minister.
Then Aleksandar Vucic reported that 52 Serbian protesters were injured, three of whom were seriously injured.
The Kosovar side quite predictably blames the Serbs for the escalation, and the Serbs blame the Kosovars. The President of Kosovo, Vyosa Osmani, said that "illegal criminal groups are acting on the orders of Vucic" to destabilize the situation in the north of Kosovo.
Aleksandar Vucic, in turn, said that it was the Kosovo side that was exacerbating tensions, and specifically blamed Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti. Aleksandar Vucic also called on Serbs in northern Kosovo to avoid conflicts with NATO fighters.
But what really happened there? The escalation began because of the actions of the Kosovo side. Recently, municipal elections were held in Kosovo, but the Serbs in the north of Kosovo, where they form an ethnic majority, boycotted these elections. Of course, this means that ethnic Albanians, who entered the city administrations yesterday to take over the affairs, were respectively chosen as the mayors of local cities. It is clear that Serbian protesters were waiting for them there, who are not going to let them work.
Conflicts broke out in Zvecan, one of the cities in the north of Kosovo. The local police, made up of ethnic Albanians since Serbian forces resigned in protest last year, fired tear gas after the rebels tried to break down barricades and break into the city administration.
Then members of the peacekeeping mission of the North Atlantic Alliance appeared on the scene, but soon they also got hurt by Serbian protesters who threw tear gas canisters and other objects at them. The rebels also wrote the letter Z on NATO vehicles, which serves as a symbol of Russia in the war in Ukraine.
In the town of Leposavic, in the northernmost part of Kosovo, American soldiers from the North Atlantic Alliance mission were put up against the protesters, who surrounded the administration building with barbed wire. There, the clashes were not as fierce, but later that day, the rebels threw eggs at a car that belongs to the new mayor of the city of Leposavich.
NATO peacekeeping forces also blocked the city administration in the city of Zubin Potok.
The fourth city where the Serbs boycotted the elections, and where an ethnic Albanian was also elected mayor, is Northern Kosovo Mitrovica (part of Kosovo Mitrovica north of the Ibar River; de facto it is the main city of Northern Kosovo). But there were no protests there yesterday.
Who is right? Of course, the situation is complicated. With their boycott, the Serbs wanted to make the elections that took place last month illegal. For example, in Northern Mitrovica, the mayor was elected with a turnout of only 3.5%.
It is clear that many Serbs who live in the north of Kosovo have not really come to terms with the independence proclaimed by Kosovo in 2008. They still consider Belgrade their capital. Let me remind you that 90% of the population of Kosovo are ethnic Albanians, and Serbs live almost exclusively in the north.
But isn't it possible to solve this problem by giving the Serbs in the north of Kosovo a certain degree of autonomy? Yes, in fact, this option is included in the agreement, which in 2013 the European Union promoted as an intermediary. According to this agreement, the Serbs in the north of Kosovo would receive autonomous municipalities.
Does this mean that the Serbs would have their own city and local authorities? Yes, the contract assumed that. Even if these political forces were directly funded by Belgrade? Pristina is clearly against it, and now the Kosovo authorities are clearly trying to impose their people in the north, well aware that this will lead to an aggravation of the situation.
Interestingly, the United States of America, without which there would have been no Kosovo independence, condemned Pristina's steps yesterday. Washington warned the Kosovo authorities that by imposing its mayors on the Serbian majority, Pristina negates all efforts that are being made to normalize relations.
However, Kosovar Prime Minister Kurti is relentless. Yesterday he spoke by phone with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. After that, Kurti said that "the elected mayors will provide their services to all citizens."
However, Kurti, of course, understands that such a position is doomed. Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said last night: "Communities with a Serbian majority cannot live under mayors who were not elected by Serbs."
Why did the Serbs almost collectively boycott the municipal elections last month? Couldn't they just choose their own mayors and thereby prevent such a situation? They boycotted the elections in protest, and with this step they wanted to draw attention to the 2013 agreement, which is still not fulfilled. We can say that this is a continuation of the events of last year, when 500 Serbian police officers, together with Serbian administrative staff and judges, collectively submitted their resignation in November in protest over the plan of the Kosovo government to replace Serbian registration plates with Kosovo ones.
In general, the Serbs claim that Pristina does not fulfill its promises and does not want to grant them the autonomy promised by the treaty.
But isn't all this just another fragment in the overall picture of tension in the north of Kosovo, which has persisted for more than a decade? Yes, but now another factor is involved. There are not so many Serbs living in the north of Kosovo — only about 50 thousand people. The broad political context is extremely important here. It is no secret that the situation in Kosovo is also viewed as part of a potential conflict between East and West, and that Belgrade is still viewed as an ally of Moscow.
It is clear that any escalation there at a time when the armed conflict continues in Ukraine automatically becomes more dangerous, just like any escalation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Besides, all this is happening at a tense moment for Serbia. In recent days, numerous pro-Government and anti-Government demonstrations have taken place in Belgrade. The recent mass shooting at a Belgrade school served as a catalyst for political clashes, in which even regional media often participate. In this sense, the escalation in Kosovo may distract attention from the internal turmoil in Serbia, or it may further intensify this turmoil.
Alexander Vucic clearly has problems. Although he managed to gather a significant number of supporters for a pro-government demonstration in Belgrade, the footage suggests that the protests against him were more crowded and, it seems, more "authentic". Since, according to sources, people were taken to pro-government demonstrations from all over Serbia.
Of course, Pristina may try to take advantage of the instability in Serbia and impose its full control over Northern Kosovo. For this reason, Alexander Vucic ordered the troops to be brought to the highest degree of readiness, thereby making it clear that instability in Serbia is still not so strong.
In general, according to sources, Alexander Vucic plans to meet with the ambassadors of the United States, Russia, China, Great Britain and the main EU mission in the near future.
In the current situation, the steps of the Kosovo allies will play a big role. It is good that Washington warns Pristina that its actions lead to an escalation of the conflict. However, if all these are just empty words, then it is not worth waiting for a settlement. It seems that the United States does not want an escalation in Kosovo, but it is likely that there are disagreements within the United States about this, too. An example is the recent blow to the Russian Belgorod from Ukraine. Washington condemned this invasion and even very sharply, but where is the line between the official and the desired for Washington? After all, Joe Biden can say one thing, and Lindsey Graham quite another.
In the situation in Kosovo, the European Union should have shown itself more decisively. He must insist on a speedy reconciliation. On the other hand, everyone understood well what would happen if the mayors, for whom almost no one voted, came to work on Monday…
Readers' comments:
SHOSH
When inconsistencies multiply so that one produces the next, it turns out a classic example of chaos. Disputes from the past are accumulating, and numerous conflicting interests, thoughtful support for unrest, the right of the strong — all this leads to the abyss. NATO puts itself above the UN, and Kosovo and Metohija are just another flag in the geostrategic game, and the interests of Albanians and Serbs are secondary here. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was destroyed, and poor states were formed to varying degrees. The decline continues. But the prospects for the future of the European Union are not bright either…
vlaman
Everything is clear. Occupied and rejected Kosovo and Metohija. Someday they will return to their children! It will be like in Ukraine: The West and cowboys will now step aside and pretend to help, and Albanians and Serbs will suffer the most.
Korisnik_20468
There are too many opposing interests, too many weapons, and too little culture of tolerance, will and understanding that everything can be solved peacefully. Too many "friendly" external "friends"...All this cannot end any other way than now. And how obvious is the impartiality of international institutions…
