Kosovo grants permission to Serbian Patriarch for Orthodox Christmas celebrations

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - The Kosovo government granted permission Thursday to Serbian Patriarch Porfirije to enter the country ahead of Orthodox Christmas celebrations.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti's Cabinet said Minister of Return Nenad Rasic requested permission for the visit and Kurti accepted.

According to the Serbian patriarch, he wants to enter Kosovo without a bodyguard.

The Serbian Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on Jan. 7 for three days under the Gregorian calendar.

On Dec. 26, authorities in Kosovo decided to ban Porfirije from entering the country.

- Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo

Kosovo, predominantly inhabited by Albanians, broke away from Serbia in 1999 and declared independence in 2008. But Serbia has not recognized the move and sees its former province as part of its territory.

Recent tensions have appeared to ease following a decision to remove barricades blocking the main border crossing.

Ethnic Serbs in Kosovo began erecting the blocks Dec. 10 in protest of former police officer Dejan Pantic's arrest.

Earlier, there was a row about license plates. The government in Pristina demanded ethnic Serbs surrender the Serbian-issued vehicle license plates, and replace them with plates issued by Kosovo.

The European Union, NATO, and the US have called for de-escalation and the removal of barricades in northern Kosovo, while Serbia has requested to deploy its army and police based on a UN resolution.