US supports EU plan for de-escalation in northern Kosovo: Serbian president

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - The US is calling for an “immediate de-escalation” in northern Kosovo and fully backs the European Union’s plan for the region, Serbia’s president said on Monday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has “insisted on calming the situation in northern Kosovo...and fully supported the European plan for de-escalation," said a statement from Aleksandar Vucic's office, which came after Vucic spoke by phone with Blinken.

Vucic told Blinken that Serbia behaves seriously and responsibly “but that the special forces of the Kosovo police arrest members of the Serbian nation completely arbitrarily every day and (he) requested the release of all arrested Serbs...The resignations and immediate withdrawal of fake mayors from buildings in four municipalities in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, as well as the special forces of the Kosovo Police, are of key importance for calming tensions,” the statement said.

Police in Kosovo have detained 10 ethnic Serbs for various reasons and Serbia has demanded that they be released as soon as possible.

The EU has repeatedly urged Kosovo to suspend police operations in its northern Serb-dominated municipalities and announce snap local elections.

After April elections in northern Kosovo, the EU said the low turnout among local Serbs did not provide municipalities with long-term political solutions.

Ethnic Serbs have been protesting the election of the Albanian mayors since late May.

On May 30, NATO decided to deploy 700 more troops to the Kosovo Force (KFOR), the alliance-led peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, after 30 of its soldiers were injured amid unrest. A contingent of Turkish troops was among the reinforcements.

The EU requires Kosovo and Serbia to reach a final agreement and resolve their disputes to move forward with their integration into the bloc.

Most UN member states – including the US, the UK, France, Germany and Türkiye – recognized Kosovo as a country separate from its neighbor when Pristina declared its independence 15 years ago, but Belgrade continues to regard it as its territory.