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☆ Serbia's Vucic Nominates Ally Vucevic as Prime Minister Designate
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( March | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic on Saturday nominated his close ally Milos Vucevic to be prime minister and to lead a new government through a time of war in Europe and tensions with Kosovo. The nomination comes more than three months after their party, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), won the most votes in a national election on Dec. 17. Vucevic took over leadership of the party after Vucic stepped down last year. "I propose to parliament Milos Vucevic as candidate for prime minister of Serbia," Vucic wrote on Instagram. A lawyer by profession, Vucevic was deputy prime minister and defence minister in the government of his predecessor Ana Brnabic.

Persons: Aleksandar Vucic, Milos Vucevic, Vucevic, Vucic, Ana Brnabic, Ivana Sekularac, Giles Elgood Organizations: BELGRADE, Reuters, Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, Socialists, Hungarians, European Union, EU, United Nations, Moscow Locations: Serbian, Europe, Kosovo, Serbia, Russia, China, Ukraine

☆ Small Croatian Town Builds Stone Mercedes Monument for Migrant Workers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

IMOTSKI, Croatia (Reuters) - Local Croatian sculptor Roko Drzislav Rebic is carving a life-sized stone replica of a Mercedes Benz Minika car as a monument to the thousands of workers who left their homeland in search of a better fortune abroad. The monument will be revealed on June 8 in Imotski, a small town situated on the slopes of the Dinara mountain, 30 km (48 miles) from the famed Adriatic coast. Another was in 2018 after Croatia joined the European Union and thousands of young people left the country to work in Western Europe. Rebic told Reuters that the stone was brought from areas near Imotski and once the monument is finished it will weigh 50 tonnes. Topic said that according to his estimates there are up to 8,000 Mercedes cars in Imotski which has the population of 25,000.

Persons: Roko Drzislav, Mercedes, Ivan, Rebic, Antonio Bronic, Ivana Sekularac, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Mercedes Benz, Mercedes, Reuters, Croatia, European Union Locations: IMOTSKI, Croatia, Croatian, Imotski, Western Germany, Germany, Western Europe

☆ Former Albanian Navy Port to Take in Migrants Sent on From Italy
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Floirian GogaSHENGJIN, Albania (Reuters) - An Albanian port that was once home to the country's navy is set to receive African, Asian and Middle East migrants sent on from Italy as part of a deal that has drawn criticism from human rights groups. Migrants who arrive in Italy would be taken by boat to the ex-navy port of Shengjin, now a popular tourist destination on Albania's scenic northern Adriatic seacoast. I feel a spiritual obligation because my children were raised in Italy," said Mhill Marku, an Albanian ex-military officer whose four children live in Italy. The U.N. high commissioner for human rights chief said last week the plan raised concerns about arbitrary detention and living conditions for migrants. The Rwanda scheme was declared unlawful in November by non-EU Britain's Supreme Court and the government has introduced legislation it hopes, when passed, will override human rights concerns.

Persons: Goga, Mhill Marku, Marku, Florian Goga, Ivana Sekularac, Mark Heinrich Organizations: European Union, Migrants, Reuters, European, EU Locations: Goga SHENGJIN, Albania, Albanian, Italy, Balkan, European, EU, Shengjin, Gjader, Brussels, Albania's, British, Rwanda, East Africa, France

☆ Serbia's Vucic says electric Fiat Panda model to be produced in Serbia
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni receives an honour guard, while walking with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, in Belgrade, Serbia, December 3, 2023. REUTERS/Zorana Jevtic Acquire Licensing RightsBELGRADE, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Sunday he expects automaker Stellantis (STLAM.MI) to produce an electric Fiat Panda city car in the central town Kragujevac. Vucic said that the production of electric Panda would boost trade between Italy and Serbia above the current 4.6 billion euros a year. The current generation of the Fiat Panda is built near Naples in Italy, and the new model is expected around mid-2024. Stellantis, created in 2021 through the merger of France's PSA and Fiat Chrysler, and the Serbian government in 2022 signed a 190 million euro deal to produce electric vehicles in the Kragujevac plant which previously produced the Fiat 500L model.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Aleksandar Vucic, Zorana, Vucic, Stellantis, Ivana Sekularac, Alvise Armellini, Alison Williams Organizations: Serbian, REUTERS, Rights, Fiat Panda, Fiat, France's PSA, Fiat Chrysler, Thomson Locations: Belgrade, Serbia, Serbian, Kragujevac, Italy, Naples

☆ EU Envoy Tells Kosovo and Serbia to Return to Dialogue
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-21 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

PRISTINA (Reuters) - The European Union Special Envoy Miroslav Lajcak urged Serbia and Kosovo to return to dialogue on normalising ties to avoid a repeat of last month's violence in northern Kosovo. Police recaptured the monastery after a shootout in which three attackers and a Kosovo police officer were killed. They have often clashed with Kosovo police and international peacekeepers, but last month's violence was the worst in years. Lajcak urged Pristina to start working on establishing an association of Serb municipalities to allow greater autonomy for Serb majority areas. Lajcak urged Belgrade to investigate the events and punish any perpetrators in its territory.

Persons: Miroslav Lajcak, Lajcak, Albin Kurti, gunbattle, Gabriel Escobar, Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Fatos Bytyci, Ivana Sekularac, Ros Russell Organizations: Union, Serbs, Police, Kosovo, United States, Serbian, Kosovo police Locations: PRISTINA, Serbia, Kosovo, Belgrade, Pristina, Banjska, Kosovo's, Serbian, NATO, Balkans, France, Germany, Italy

☆ Slovenia deploys police on borders with Croatia, Hungary
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

OBREZJE, Slovenia, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Slovenia on Saturday deployed police on border crossings with Croatia and Hungary to prevent potential security threats, leading to queues as travellers waited to have their documents checked. The Slovenian government had on Friday decided to introduce temporary border controls until Oct. 30, following its neighbour Italy which introduced controls on its border crossing with Slovenia to improve home security. Police were deployed on 14 border crossings with Croatia and Hungary, Slovenian news agency STA reported. Travellers queued to have their papers checked at the Obrezje crossing on the border with Croatia, where checks had not taken place since Jan. 1 this year when Croatia joined the control-free Schengen Area. Reporting by Antonio Bronic; Writing by Ivana Sekularac; Editing by David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: queued, Fjacko, Antonio Bronic, Ivana Sekularac, David Holmes Organizations: Saturday, Slovenian, Police, Croatia, Croatian, Thomson Locations: OBREZJE, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Slovenian, Zagreb, Europe, Balkans

☆ Macron says 'Islamist terrorism' rising in Europe, all states at risk
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TIRANA, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Europe is seeing a rise of "Islamist terrorism" and all states are threatened, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday during a visit to Albania, after Islamist killings of a teacher in France and two Swedish football fans in Belgium. Macron spoke a day after a 45-year-old attacker, who identified himself as a member of Islamic State and claimed responsibility in a video posted online, killed the two Swedes fans in Brussels. All European states are vulnerable, and there is indeed a resurgence of Islamist terrorism," Macron said after talks with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Tirana. "Here, we reiterate our solidarity with our Belgian friends," Macron said. "Israel's security, the fight against all terrorist groups, as well as the peace process and the political solution, are all interconnected," he said.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Florian Goga, Fatos, Hedy Beloucif, Marine Strauss, Ivana Sekularac, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Islamic, Albanian, Edi Rama, Thomson Locations: TIRANA, Europe, Albania, France, Belgium, Islamic State, Brussels, Paris, French, Arras, Tirana, Israel, Pristina

☆ Serbia lowers number of troops near Kosovo, army chief of staff says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kosovo police officers patrol, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, in Banjska village, Kosovo September 27, 2023. "Serbia had deployed 8,350 troops near (the border) ... with Kosovo, ... and reduced them to 4,500 at the moment," Mojsilovic said. He said the army presence in the so-called Ground Safety Zone, a 5 kilometre-wide (3-mile) strip inside Serbia along the Kosovo border, had "reverted to normal." Serbia has not "formally raised the level of readiness" of its 22,500-strong army, Mojsilovic said. Some 50,000 Serbs who live in northern Kosovo do not recognise Pristina's institutions and see Belgrade as their capital.

Persons: Ognen, General Milan Mojsilovic, Mojsilovic, Milan Radoicic, Ivana Sekularac, Aleksandar Vasovic, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, NATO, Kosovo police, Belgrade, Thomson Locations: Banjska village, Kosovo, Serbia, Belgrade, Pristina, Kosovo's, Banjska, Serbian, Albanian Kosovo, United States, Kosovo Serb

☆ Serbia Lowers Number of Troops Near Kosovo, Army Chief of Staff Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

"Serbia had deployed 8,350 troops near (the border) ... with Kosovo, ... and reduced them to 4,500 at the moment," Mojsilovic said. He said the army presence in the so-called Ground Safety Zone, a 5 kilometre-wide (3-mile) strip inside Serbia along the Kosovo border, had "reverted to normal." Serbia has not "formally raised the level of readiness" of its 22,500-strong army, Mojsilovic said. Some 50,000 Serbs who live in northern Kosovo do not recognise Pristina's institutions and see Belgrade as their capital. NATO, which still has 4,500 troops in Kosovo, said on Friday it had "authorised additional forces to address the current situation".

Persons: General Milan Mojsilovic, Mojsilovic, Milan Radoicic, Ivana Sekularac, Aleksandar Vasovic, Alex Richardson Organizations: BELGRADE, Reuters, NATO, Kosovo police, Belgrade Locations: Serbia, Kosovo, Belgrade, Pristina, Kosovo's, Banjska, Serbian, Albanian Kosovo, United States, Kosovo Serb

Some 50,000 Serbs who live in north Kosovo, do not recognise Pristina institutions and see Belgrade as their capital. Vucic told Reuters that Belgrade condemned the killing of the policeman, adding Serbia "will launch proceedings before appropriate judicial bodies" and investigate suspects. Belgrade finances schools, public health system, and most of other institutions in parts of Kosovo where Serbs constitute a majority. Vucic accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of wanting to expel Serbs from Kosovo and of stalling a compromise solution needed for mending the ties between Belgrade and Pristina. "For us the position (in Kosovo) is clearly dreadful, but ... we have to be with our people, ... (and) try to preserve peace," Vucic said.

Persons: Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, Veton Elshani, ”, Vjosa Osmani, Milan Radoicic, Albin Kurti, Kurti, Ivana Sekularac, Aleksandar Vasovic, Fatos Bytyci, Alison Williams Organizations: Reuters, BELGRADE, Kosovo police, Kosovo Albanian, Kosovo, Pristina, EU, NATO, Serbian, United Nations Security, of, Serbia, Thomson Locations: Reuters Belgrade, Serb, Serbia, Kosovo, Pristina, Belgrade, Serbian, Banjska, Albanian, Vucic, Russia, China, of Serb Municipalities

☆ 'State of war': residents, police describe heavy battle in northern Kosovo
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"In the main road that you came through, it was the place where my officer was killed, shot and killed. Banjska resident Radoslav Markovic, a grey-haired Serb, told Reuters that while the fighting was under way, residents had taken it "seriously, as a state of war". Serbia, which has not recognised its former province's independence, blames Kosovo for precipitating violence by mistreating ethnic Serb residents. Serbia and the main Serb political group in Kosovo have proclaimed public mourning for the Serbs killed in the battle. Heavily armed Kosovo police carrying rifles manned positions alongside armoured vehicles.

Persons: Elshani, Banjska, Radoslav Markovic, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar, Vucic, Branko Filipovic, Fatos, Ivana Sekularac, Peter Graff Organizations: Reuters, NATO, Kosovo, Thomson Locations: BANJSKA, Kosovo, Banjska, Serbian, Serbia, Pristina, Belgrade, Raska

Kosovo authorities say around 30 heavily armed Serbs stormed the village of Banjska on Sunday, battling police and barricading themselves into the Serbian Orthodox monastery. Police recaptured the monastery late on Sunday after three attackers and one police officer were killed. Kosovo has accused Serbia of backing the armed militants; Serbia says Kosovo is to blame for mistreating residents in the Serb-majority area. It said one of them was Milan Radojcic, a Kosovo Serb politician and one of the leaders of the Serb List party. Serb List was the dominant Serb party in Kosovo's parliament before Serbs from the north and those loyal to Belgrade boycotted Kosovo's institutions nearly a year ago.

Persons: Milos Vucevic, Bjoern Arild Gram, Ognen, Aleksandar Vucic, Albin, Kurti's, Milan Radojcic, Dejan, Dusan Maksimovic, Fatos Bytyci, Aleksandar Vasovic, Ivana Sekularac, Christina Fincher, Alison Williams Organizations: Kovoso Police, Kosovo police, Police, ", Kosovo Serbs, REUTERS, KFOR, Kosovo, Reuters, Belgrade, Kosovo's, Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, BELGRADE, Kosovo, Banjska, Serbian, Serbia, NATO, Belgrade, Pristina, Serb, Zvecan, United States, EU, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Kosovo Serb, Kosovo's

☆ Kosovo police enter northern village after shootout with gunmen killed four
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A Kosovo police officer stands guard on a road to Banjska monastery, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, near Zvecan, Kosovo September 25, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski Acquire Licensing RightsJOSEVIK, Kosovo, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Kosovar police units in armoured vehicles moved in to secure and search a village in north Kosovo on Monday, a day after four people were killed in a shootout there between police and ethnic Serb gunmen in the restive region. The gunmen stormed the village of Banjska on Sunday, battling police and barricading themselves into a Serbian Orthodox monastery. Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has blamed Serbia for financing and sending armed men to Kosovo. Tensions have been running high since clashes in northern Kosovo in May when more than 90 NATO peacekeeping soldiers and some 50 Serb protesters were injured in northern Kosovo.

Persons: Ognen, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Kurti, Josep Borrell, Fatos Bytyvi, Ivana Sekularac, Edmund Blair Organizations: REUTERS, Kosovar, Police, Reuters, Serbian, Kosovo, European Union, NATO, Thomson Locations: Kosovo, Banjska, Zvecan, restive, Serbian, Belgrade, Kosovo Albanian, Serbia, EU

☆ Kosovo Police Enter Northern Village After Shootout With Gunmen Killed Four
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

JOSEVIK, Kosovo (Reuters) - Kosovar police units in armoured vehicles moved in to secure and search a village in north Kosovo on Monday, a day after four people were killed in a shootout there between police and ethnic Serb gunmen in the restive region. The gunmen stormed the village of Banjska on Sunday, battling police and barricading themselves into a Serbian Orthodox monastery. The armed police units searched houses in the village on Monday, looking for any gunmen who had not fled, a police source told Reuters. Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has blamed Serbia for financing and sending armed men to Kosovo. Tensions have been running high since clashes in northern Kosovo in May when more than 90 NATO peacekeeping soldiers and some 50 Serb protesters were injured in northern Kosovo.

Persons: Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Kurti, Josep Borrell, Fatos Bytyvi, Ivana Sekularac, Edmund Blair Organizations: Reuters, Kosovar, Police, Serbian, Kosovo, European Union, NATO Locations: JOSEVIK, Kosovo, restive, Banjska, Serbian, Belgrade, Kosovo Albanian, Serbia, EU

☆ Bulgaria sends team to inspect drone that landed in Black Sea resort
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SOFIA, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Bulgaria's defence ministry said on Monday it had sent a special unit to inspect and deactivate a drone carrying explosives which landed on Sunday evening in the Black Sea town of Tyulenovo. Following inspection the team from NATO-member Bulgaria will decide how to dispose of it, the ministry said in a statement, adding that the team had been sent on the request of the regional government. The tourist resort of Tyulenovo is situated 70 kilometres (43 miles) south of the Romanian border and across the Black Sea from Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula forcibly annexed by Russia in 2014 and now a regular target of Ukrainian drone attacks. He said the drone was found on rocks next to moored boats at Tyulenovo and was an "aircraft with standard ammunition". It was unclear whether the drone had fallen from the air or had been washed in by the sea currents.

Persons: Marian Zhechev, Stoyan Nenov, Ivana Sekularac, Toby Chopra, Gareth Jones Organizations: SOFIA, NATO, Nova TV, Thomson Locations: Black, Tyulenovo, Bulgaria, Romanian, Crimea, Ukrainian, Russia, Shabla, Sofia, Belgrade

☆ Serbian Police Step up Migration Patrols on Border With Hungary
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

SUBOTICA, Serbia (Reuters) - Serbia has sent special forces to the border with Hungary as hundreds of migrants a day try to reach the European Union. On Tuesday, police said they detained 371 migrants along the border. Migrants in the area typically try to use ladders to clear the border or cut the fence. According to numbers from Serbian NGO the Centre for Asylum Seekers, some 1,500 migrants attempt to cross into Hungary every day - many handing over cash to people smugglers. "What our field workers see is that they all cross the border eventually and move on (to the EU).

Persons: Dragan Vasiljevic, Vasiljevic, Djurovic, Branko Filipovic, Ivana Sekularac, Alison Williams Organizations: European Union, Serbian, Reuters, Migrants, Centre for Asylum Seekers Locations: SUBOTICA, Serbia, Hungary, Asia, Africa, Turkey, Belgrade, Subotica

☆ Serbian police step up migration patrols on border with Hungary
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Serbian gendarmerie officers stand by migrants who are to be searched, close to the Serbia-Hungary border, near the city of Subotica, Serbia September 12, 2023. REUTERS/Marko Djurica Acquire Licensing RightsSUBOTICA, Serbia, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Serbia has sent special forces to the border with Hungary as hundreds of migrants a day try to reach the European Union. On Tuesday, police said they detained 371 migrants along the border. Migrants in the area typically try to use ladders to clear the border or cut the fence. "What our field workers see is that they all cross the border eventually and move on (to the EU).

Persons: Marko Djurica, Dragan Vasiljevic, Vasiljevic, Djurovic, Branko Filipovic, Ivana Sekularac, Alison Williams Organizations: Serbian, REUTERS, Rights, European Union, Reuters, Migrants, Centre for Asylum Seekers, Thomson Locations: Serbia, Hungary, Subotica, Rights SUBOTICA, Asia, Africa, Turkey, Belgrade

[1/5] People attend a demonstration "Serbia against violence" organized by Serbia's opposition parties in reaction to the two mass shootings in the same week, in Belgrade, Serbia, June 17, 2023. chanted the crowd in Belgrade, referring to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, as his likeness was paraded alongside that of Prime Minister Ana Brnabic and other prominent figures in black-and-white jail garb. The protesters also demanded the resignation of Serbia's interior minister Bratislav Gasic and secret service chief Aleksandar Vulin whom they blame for failing to stop gangs. Brnabic said last week she was willing to resign and invited opposition parties, who have backed the protests, for dialogue. However, mass shootings were rare until last month.

Persons: Marko Djurica, jumpsuits, Aleksandar Vucic, Ana Brnabic, Bratislav Gasic, Aleksandar Vulin, Vladimir Savic, Vucic, Brnabic, Ivana Sekularac, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: REUTERS, Pink, Thomson Locations: Serbia, Belgrade, BELGRADE, Novi Sad, Nis, Kragujevac, Balkans, Yugoslavia

☆ Kosovo tightens controls on its border with Serbia, PM Kurti says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Trucks with goods queue at the Kosovo-Serbia border crossing in Merdare, Kosovo, June 15, 2023. REUTERS/Valdrin XhemajPRISTINA, June 15 (Reuters) - Kosovo has tightened controls on its border with Serbia following the arrest of three of its policemen by Serbian forces, Prime Minister Albin Kurti said on Thursday as he demanded the immediate release of the detainees. "Because of the security concerns as an immediate step border controls have been tightened with Serbia," Kurti told a press conference on Thursday. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, nearly a decade after an uprising by the 90% ethnic Albanian majority. Kosovo and Serbia share a 400-km (250-mile) border which has not been clearly marked or agreed.

Persons: Albin Kurti, Kurti, Serbia's, Aleksandar Vucic, Quint, Vucic, Fatos Bytyci, Ivana Sekularac, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Valdrin Xhemaj, Serbian, Belgrade, Reuters, EU, European Union, NATO, Thomson Locations: Kosovo, Serbia, Merdare, Valdrin, Valdrin Xhemaj PRISTINA, Pristina, Serbian, United States, Italy, France, Germany, Britain, Balkans, Belgrade

[1/5] Kosovo police officers guard near the village of Bare, Kosovo, June 14, 2023. Three Kosovo police officers were detained by Serbian forces on Wednesday but officials from Kosovo and Serbia gave different locations for the arrest, accusing each other of crossing the border illegally.... Read morePRISTINA/BELGRADE, June 14 (Reuters) - Three Kosovo police officers were detained by Serbian forces on Wednesday but officials from Kosovo and Serbia gave different locations for the arrest, accusing each other of crossing the border illegally. "The entry of Serbian forces into the territory of Kosovo is aggression and aimed at escalation and destabilization," Kurti wrote on his Facebook page. But Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic said the three were arrested "as far as 1.8 kilometers (1 mile)" inside Serbian territory near the village of Gnjilica. In 1999, a NATO bombing campaign drove Serbian security forces out of Kosovo but Belgrade continues to regard it as a southern province.

Persons: Read, Albin Kurti, Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, Fatos Bytyci, Ivana Sekularac, Aleksandar Vasovic, Frank Jack Daniel, Jonathan Oatis, Angus MacSwan, William Maclean Organizations: Kosovo, Serbian, Reuters, NATO, Thomson Locations: Bare, Kosovo, Serbia, PRISTINA, BELGRADE, Serbian, Gnjilica, Balkans, Belgrade

☆ Kosovo PM presents plan to defuse tensions in Serb-majority area
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Around 200 Serbs gathered in North Mitrovica to protest against the arrest, with Kosovo Albanian police in anti-riot gear standing a few hundred metres away. During the operation to arrest Milun Milenkovic, three Kosovo Albanian policemen were lightly injured, Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla said on his Facebook page. Kurti said nothing about setting up the association of Serb municipalities which would ensure greater autonomy for the Serb majority area. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic urged Kosovo last week to grant more autonomy to Serbs before organising a new vote. NATO bombing drove out Serbian security forces but Belgrade continues to regard Kosovo only as its southern province.

Persons: Kurti, Milun Milenkovic, Xhelal Svecla, Albin Kurti, Quint, Aleksandar Vucic, Petar Petkovic, Milenkovic, Fatos, Ivana Sekularac, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: KFOR PRISTINA, Kosovo Albanian, NATO, KFOR, European Union, U.S, Serbia, Serbian, Thomson Locations: Kosovo, North Mitrovica, U.S, United States, Republic of Kosovo, Italy, France, Germany, Britain, EU, Serbian, Brussels, Serbia, Belgrade

BELGRADE, June 9 (Reuters) - Serbia's president urged Kosovo on Friday not to organise new elections for mayors in its north until more autonomy had been granted to ethnic Serbs who form a local majority and boycotted a previous vote. "All Serbs in the north think of Serbia as their country, not Kosovo. "We still don't have an association of Serb municipalities, there is still no withdrawal of (Kosovo Albanian) special police forces and mayors there," he said. Vucic said: "Serbs (in the north) are always ready to talk, but you have to offer them something." "We will keep our troops on high alert, not the highest combat alert, because that costs a lot."

Persons: Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, Albin Kurti, Vjosa Osmani, Kurti, Ivana Sekularac, Aleksandar Vasovic, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Kosovo, Reuters, NATO, European Union, Kosovo Albanian, Union, Serbia, Belgrade, Rafale, EU, Thomson Locations: BELGRADE, Serbia, Kosovo, Belgrade, United States, Pristina, Serbian, France, Russia, China

☆ Exclusive: Kosovo president open to new elections in Serb-majority municipalities
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Kim Vinnell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Summary Describes Serbian president as 'drama king'Osmani says Serb voters in Kosovo could petition a new pollWants peacekeepers to remain in KosovoPRISTINA, Kosovo June 7 (Reuters) -Kosovo could trigger new elections in Serb-majority municipalities rocked by violent protests if 20% of voters sign a petition asking for them, the president told Reuters. In an exclusive interview in her office, President Vjosa Osmani said she believed a petition was the most "democratic way" to proceed to new elections. Violent protests erupted in four northern municipalities after Kosovo installed ethnic Albanian mayors who were elected into offices on a turnout of just 3.5%. As tensions between Serbia and Kosovo simmer, NATO has reinforced its peacekeeping forces in the north of the country. She described the Serbian president as "a drama king".

Persons: Osmani, Vjosa Osmani, Joe Biden, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz, Fatos Bytyci, Ivana Sekularac, Leela de Kretser, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, Kosovo simmer, NATO, Kosovan, French, Thomson Locations: Kosovo, Kosovo PRISTINA, Kosovo's, Serbia, Belgrade, Serbian, Moldova, Pristina

☆ Tens of thousands gather in Serbia's anti-government protest
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] People attend the protest "Serbia against violence" by Serbia's opposition parties in reaction to the two mass shootings in the same week, in Belgrade, Serbia, June 3, 2023. REUTERS/Marko DjuricaBELGRADE, June 3 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Serbs joined an anti-government protest in Belgrade on Saturday, blaming a culture of violence for the deaths of 18 people in two mass shootings and calling on the interior minister to resign. The protest marked the one-month anniversary of the country's first school shooting on May 3, when a teenager killed ten in an elementary school. In response to the shootings, the government announced school summer holidays would start on June 6, two weeks earlier than planned. Recent Serbian reality TV shows have featured convicted criminals, including murderers, and shown men beating up women.

Persons: Marko Djurica, Aleksandra Vucic, Vucic, Nenad Hadzi Maricic, Bratislav Gasic, Aleksandar Vulin, Aleksandar Saran, Ivana Sekularac, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Marko Djurica BELGRADE, Protesters, Secret, Pink TV, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Serbia, Belgrade, Serbian

[1/2] An Italian member of the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) looks on while standing guard in Leposavic, Kosovo, June 1, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen TeofilovskiBULBOACA, Moldova, June 1 (Reuters) - The presidents of Serbia and Kosovo insisted on Thursday they want to defuse a violent crisis in northern Kosovo but showed little sign of backing down from their opposing positions. Violence flared on Monday after Kosovo authorities, backed by special police units, installed ethnic Albanian mayors in offices in northern municipalities. But he said Kosovo authorities should withdraw "alleged mayors" from the north and declared the Kosovo special police units were there illegally. Vucic said he did not even know who was coming to the summit from Kosovo.

Persons: Serbia's Aleksandar Vucic, Vjosa Osmani, Osmani, Vucic, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz, Albin Kurti, Macron, Scholz, Jens Stoltenberg, Andrew Gray, Fatos Bytyci, Ivana Sekularac, Sabine Siebold, John Irish, Daria Sito, Edmund Blair Organizations: NATO, Kosovo Force, REUTERS, Kosovo, European, Political, Thomson Locations: Italian, Leposavic, Kosovo, BULBOACA, Moldova, Serbia, Belgrade, Moldovan, European Union, United States, Oslo

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