The spokesperson of the European Union, Peter Stano, said on Thursday that the bloc may increase the punitive measures against Kosovo, if the administration in Pristina continues with unilateral and uncoordinated actions in the north inhabited by a majority of Serbs.
He made these comments at a press conference in Brussels, when asked about the closure of the branches of the Post of Serbia and Pristina's plans to open the main bridge over the Iber River that marks the dividing line between Mitrovica in the northern municipality inhabited by a majority of Serbs and the southern one with an Albanian majority.
Since June 2023, Kosovo has been under punitive measures due to the tensions that followed the forced entry of Albanian mayors into their offices at the end of May, which was strongly opposed by groups of Serbian citizens, who clashed with the police. of Kosovo and NATO peacekeeping forces, injuring over 90 members of KFOR.
The European Union had requested the extension of the situation in the north, the removal of special police units from the municipal buildings and the organization of new elections for mayors of the municipalities inhabited by Serb majority in the north of Kosovo.
“The measures were put in place years ago because a lot was happening leading to escalation, and instead of steps leading to escalation, more unilateral steps leading to escalation have been taken. We said then that these measures can be added or removed regardless of the developments in the situation… We have measures in place and they can be added if the European actors agree that they should be added“, said spokesman Stano.
He said that the European Union as well as other international partners have made their position clear that the administration in Pristina should not continue with “the series of counterproductive, negative, unilateral and uncoordinated steps. Hopefully they will finally get the message and stop us from considering what measures we will take if the situation does not change”.
On Wednesday, the spokesperson of the US Department of State, Matthew Miller, said that the United States of America is concerned with the uncoordinated decisions of the Kosovo government and called on it to return to cooperation with the main Western allies.
On Monday, the authorities closed nine branches of the Serbian Post in northern Kosovo, which they said were operating without a license.
Last week, the Kosovo government presented to Western diplomats in Pristina a plan to open the main bridge over the Iber River. The government said that “freedom of movement and the rule of law do not endanger peace and security, on the contrary. The bridge is a symbol of free movement, which is a fundamental value and freedom of the European Union”.
But the intention to open the bridge, which also led to protests by Serbian citizens in the north, was not supported by diplomats, while the peacekeeping forces led by NATO warned that “they will deal with any development that affects regional security and stability”.
The United States and the European Union demand that these issues be addressed and resolved within the framework of negotiations for the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia.
The EU said that “unilateral and uncoordinated steps divert attention from the main priority for both sides, which is the implementation of the agreement on the normalization of relations”, which the parties agreed on last year in Brussels and Ohrid.
However, efforts in June aimed at unblocking the implementation of the agreement ended without any results.
Last month, the parties sent to the mediators of the European Union their comments about the way to implement the agreement, on the basis of which the bloc is expected to draw up a new proposal on this process. Still no such proposal.
