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☆ NATO says it has authorized additional forces for Kosovo
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A Swiss pilot member of the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) walks at NATOÕs headquarters in Pristina, Kosovo, June 20, 2023. REUTERS/Fatos Bytyci/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Sept 29 (Reuters) - NATO has authorized additional forces for Kosovo, the military alliance said on Friday, following the worst violence in northern Kosovo in years. NATO said in a statement that it had "authorized additional forces to address the current situation" but did not immediately specify how many or from which countries. Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008 after a guerrilla uprising and 1999 NATO intervention, accuses Serbia of arming and supporting the Serb fighters. Serbia, which has not recognised its former province's independence, blames Kosovo for precipitating violence by mistreating ethnic Serb residents.

Persons: Fatos, Wales's, Andrew Gray, Charlotte Van Campenhout, James Davey, Alex Richardson, Grant McCool Organizations: NATO, Kosovo Force, KFOR, REUTERS, Rights, Britain's Ministry of Defence, 1st Battalion, Wales's Royal Regiment, NATO’s Kosovo Force, Thomson Locations: Swiss, Pristina, Kosovo, Rights BRUSSELS, Serbia, London

☆ Exclusive: Kosovo's president blames Serbia for shootout, says Kosovo 'under attack'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"The (armed) group simply exercised the intentions and the motives of Serbia as a country and Vucic as the leader." Serbia, which has not recognized its former province's independence, blames Kosovo for precipitating violence by mistreating ethnic Serb residents, a charge Kosovo denies. "What I would say to President Vucic is stop messing with Kosovo. [1/4]Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani talks to Reuters after a deadly shootout in the northern part of the country, in Pristina, Kosovo September 28, 2023. REUTERS/Laura Hasani Acquire Licensing RightsRussia seized and annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014, and Kosovo authorities fear Serbia could carve away the northern part of Kosovo.

Persons: Vjosa Osmani, Aleksandar Vucic, Osmani, Vucic, Laura Hasani, We've, Albin Kurti, Fatos, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Kosovar, Reuters, Kosovo, REUTERS, Rights, European Union, EU, Sunday, Yugoslav, Kosovo's, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Serbia, Kosovo, Banjska, Serbian, NATO, Crimea, Kosovo's, Belgrade, Pristina, Republic of Kosovo, Rights Russia, Ukraine's Crimea

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

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo flared anew over the weekend when some 30 heavily armed Serbs barricaded themselves in an Orthodox monastery in northern Kosovo, setting off a daylong gunbattle with police that left one officer and three attackers dead. Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti accused Serbia of sending the attackers into Kosovo. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic denied that, saying the men were Kosovo Serbs who have had enough of “Kurti’s terror.”A look at the history between Serbia and Kosovo, and why the latest tensions are a concern for Europe. Vucic, meanwhile, is a former ultra-nationalist who insists Serbia will never recognize Kosovo and insists that an earlier deal to give Kosovo Serbs a level of independence must first be implemented before new agreements are made. International officials still hope Kosovo and Serbia can reach a deal that would allow Kosovo to get a seat in the United Nations without Serbia having to explicitly recognize its statehood.

Persons: yeraslong, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Kurti, Vucic Organizations: European Union, Kosovo, Serbian, Kosovo Serbs, EU, Ottoman, NATO, Government, Russia's, International, United Nations Locations: BELGRADE, Serbia, Kosovo, U.S, West, Europe, SERBIA, KOSOVO, United States, Russia, China, Balkan, Yugoslavia, Belgrade, Mitrovica, Ukraine, European, Crimea, NATO, United, EU

Pristina accuses Belgrade of backing the “terrorists,” an accusation Serbia denies, saying they are Serbs from Kosovo protesting the government there. Two of the gunmen and four Serbs discovered nearby with communication equipment were arrested and are being investigated for terrorist acts. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said the gunmen were local Kosovo Serbs “who no longer want to stand Kurti’s terror.”Vucic condemned the killing of the Kosovo policeman, but still said the clash was the result of “brutal” pressure on Kosovo Serbs by the Kosovo government. Serbia will never recognize the independence of Kosovo, that monster creation that you made by bombing Serbia,” Vucic said, referring to the 1999 NATO intervention which led to Kosovo separating from Serbia. In February, the EU put forward a 10-point plan to end the latest round of heightened tensions between Serbia and Kosovo.

Persons: Afrim Bunjaku, Bunjaku, Xhelal Svecla, “ It’s, logistically, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Kosovo Serbs “, ” Vucic, Vucic Organizations: —, Kosovar Albanian, Sunday, Kosovo, Kosovar, Police, Kosovo Interior, Kosovo Serbs, NATO, European Union, United, EU Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, — Kosovo, Pristina, Mitrovica, Serbia, Banjska, Belgrade, Serbian, Kosovo Albanians, EU, Brussels, Kurti, United States, Balkans, Tirana, Albania

☆ One Police Officer Killed, Another Hurt in Kosovo Gunfire - PM Kurti
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

PRISTINA (Reuters) - One Kosovo police officer was killed and another injured in a shooting in a village in the north of Kosovo early on Sunday, in the first such major violence in months, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in a statement. "At this moment, gunfire with various caliber firearms against our police is still ongoing," Kurti said in a post on Facebook, describing the incident as terrorist action. Tensions have run high in Kosovo, the former Serbian province, after clashes in May when more than 90 NATO peacekeeping soldiers and some 50 Serb protesters were injured in northern Kosovo. Ethnic Albanians form more than 90% of the population in Kosovo, with Serbs being the majority only in its northern region where a Serb-majority municipalities association is planned. (Reporting by Fatos Bytyci; writing by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Jamie Freed and Bernadette Baum)

Persons: Albin Kurti, Kurti, Josep Borrell, Fatos Bytyci, Daria Sito, Jamie Freed, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Facebook, NATO Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Serbian

☆ One police officer killed, another hurt in Kosovo gunfire, PM Kurti says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PRISTINA, Sept 24 (Reuters) - One Kosovo police officer was killed and another injured in a shooting in a village in the north of Kosovo early on Sunday, in the first such major violence in months, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said in a statement. "At this moment, gunfire with various caliber firearms against our police is still ongoing," Kurti said in a post on Facebook, describing the incident as terrorist action. Tensions have run high in Kosovo, the former Serbian province, after clashes in May when more than 90 NATO peacekeeping soldiers and some 50 Serb protesters were injured in northern Kosovo. Ethnic Albanians form more than 90% of the population in Kosovo, with Serbs being the majority only in its northern region where a Serb-majority municipalities association is planned. read moreReporting by Fatos Bytyci; writing by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Jamie Freed and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Albin Kurti, Kurti, Josep Borrell, Fatos Bytyci, Daria Sito, Jamie Freed, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Facebook, NATO, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Serbian

CNN —Kosovo police said Sunday that they have killed three armed attackers and arrested another amid an ongoing shootout in the village of Banjska in northern Kosovo. Kosovo is majority Albanian, but like other villages in the north, Banjska is predominantly Serbian. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but Serbia sees Kosovo as a breakaway state. Kosovo Police and a group of armed, masked men stand in front of the Banjska Monastery in North Kosovo. Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have escalated in recent months with violent protests erupting in May over controversial local elections.

Persons: “, ”, Veton Eljsani, Albin Kurti, Josep Borrell, ” “, Borrell Organizations: CNN, Kosovo police, Police, ”, Facebook, “ Kosovo Police, Kosovo Police, . Police, AP, Kosovo, Serbia’s Foreign, EU, KFOR, NATO Locations: Banjska, Kosovo, ” Kosovo, Serbian, Serbia, Belgrade, Pristina, “, North Kosovo, Banjska Monastery, EULEX

☆ Kosovo so awash with fake euro coins they are accepted as payment
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"At the beginning everyone was worried and was checking if the 2-euro coins were fake or not," said waiter Endrit. "Now we don't check anymore... we may be taking fake money or may be giving out fake money. The number of fake 2-euro coins in circulation has seen a massive increase this year, according to law enforcement agencies. In April they arrested a man and a woman trying to bring 10,600 fake 2-euro coins into Kosovo from North Macedonia. "We always complained in Kosovo that we don't have our own currency, well it looks we have now - fake 2-euro coins."

Persons: Endrit, Vjollca Mavriqi, Sokol Havolli, Fatos, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Police, Sokol, Kosovo's Central Bank, Reuters, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo's, Pristina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia

☆ Kosovo's Kurti accuses EU envoy of siding with Serbia during talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"On September 14 there was a clear positioning of the mediator against Kosovo...They have gone a long way in attacking the future of Kosovo," Kurti told a press briefing in Pristina. Kurti and Vucic met last Thursday for more talks in Brussels but they went nowhere, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said. It was mean to settle a conflict dating to the 1998-99 uprising by Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority against repressive Serbian rule and lead to normalised relations between Belgrade and its former province, which declared independence in 2008. "We will either implement the whole deal entirely or we will not implement only what Serbia wants. Kurti has said such an association as approved by previous governments would divide Kosovo along ethnic lines.

Persons: Albin Kurti, Ognen, Kurti, Miroslav Lajcak, Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, Josep Borrell, Fatos, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Kosovo's, REUTERS, Rights, European Union, Serbian, Kosovo, EU, NATO, Albanian, Thomson Locations: Ohrid, North Macedonia, Rights PRISTINA, Kosovo, European, Serbia, Brussels, Pristina, Kurti, Kosovo's, Belgrade

BRUSSELS (AP) — The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo held a long-awaited face-to-face meeting on Thursday in talks aimed aimed at improving their strained relations as calls mount for a change in the Western diplomatic approach toward them amid concern that their tensions could spiral out of control. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti are in Brussels for talks under the so-called Belgrade-Pristina dialogue process, supervised by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Serbia and its former province of Kosovo have been at odds for decades. Their 1998-99 war left more than 10,000 people dead, mostly Kosovo Albanians. Kosovo unilaterally declared independence in 2008 but Belgrade has refused to recognize the move.

Persons: Aleksandar Vučić, Albin Kurti, Josep Borrell, Kurti, Borrell, Angelo Michele Ristuccia, “, ”, aren't, Vladimir Putin, Kosovo — Organizations: Serbian, Kosovo, European Union, NATO, KFOR, United Locations: BRUSSELS, Serbia, Kosovo, Brussels, Belgrade, Pristina, Kosovo Albanians, Serbian, United States, Russia, Ukraine, West, Moscow, Balkans, Yugoslavia

☆ The West’s ‘see no evil’ approach to Serbia’s Vucic is destabilizing the Balkans
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +20 min

The result is that, despite Serbia’s professed hopes to join the EU, Vucic has continued to walk a tightrope between Moscow and western powers. A Pristina government official told CNN that they did not want to “surrender” official government buildings to protesters. A decade on, these municipalities have not been created, leaving disputes to fester over the degree of autonomy for Kosovo Serbs. After such episodes, Joseph told CNN that the “see no evil” approach to Vucic’s regime may be starting to crack. “The situation is clear who the bully of the Balkans still is,” Meliza Haradinaj, Kosovo’s former foreign minister, told CNN.

Persons: Moscow’s, Aleksandar Vucic, Vladimir Putin, Daniel Mihailescu, ” Jasmin Mujanovic, Vucic, “, Mujanovic, Alicia Kearns, ”, –, Serbia's Aleksandar Vucic, Albin Kurti, Serbia’s, you’ll, Kearns, wouldn’t, Putin, Viktor, Orban, ” Majda, you’re, Quint, ” Kurti, Kurti, Edward Joseph, Laura Hasani, He’s, Shqiprim Arifi, Arifi, Ben Kilb, ” Dusan, Milorad Dodik, Oliver Bunic, Boris Grdanoski, ” Joseph, Viktor Oban, Joseph, Biden, Aleksandar Vulin, ” “ He’s, ‘ we’re, ’ He’s, I’ve, ” Vucic, Meliza Organizations: CNN, European Union, Putin, Belgrade, Getty, Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, NATO, National Security, United Nations, Kosovo's, EU, Anadolu Agency, Gazprom, Serbian, European Council, Foreign Relations, ”, US, Kosovo Serbs, Kosovo’s, Johns Hopkins University, …, Kosovo Serb, Reuters, British, Kosovo, Kosovar Business Alliance, Kosovar, Serbs, “ Association of, Bloomberg, ASM, Russian, AP, Serbia ”, KFOR, NATO’s Kosovo Force, Red Star, Red Star Belgrade soccer Locations: Russia, Ukraine, United States, Serbia, Europe, Belgrade, West, Kosovo, Kosovo’s, Kosovar, AFP, Russian, Balkan, Western Balkans, British, United, EU, Brussels, Belgium, Moscow, ” Kosovo, Serbs, France, Germany, Italy, Balkans, Pristina, … Serbia, Zvecan, Serbian, Presevo, Albanian, Leposavic, Republika Srpska, ” Republika Srpska, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Dayton, Banja Luka, Kurti, Ohrid, North Macedonia, Republic of Serbia, appeasing Serbia

☆ As few as 4,000 steps a day can reduce your risk of death, but more is better
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Walking a minimum of 4,000 steps a day significantly reduces your risk of an early death, while taking 2,337 steps a day will reduce your risk of death specifically from cardiovascular disease but “more is better,” according to a new meta-analysis of studies. Anything below 5,000 steps a day is considered a “sedentary lifestyle,” according to the study. While approximately 4,000 steps a day was associated with a “significant” reduction in the risk of an early death, the biggest impact on risk occurred when people walked more than 7,000 steps a day, with the most benefit occurring at about 20,000 steps, the study found. Start early and keep it upAdults 60 and older who walked between 6,000 and 10,000 steps a day saw a 42% reduction in risk of early death, while people under 60 who walked between 7,000 and 13,000 steps a day had a 49% reduction in risk, he said. The difference is likely explained by the formula, “the earlier, the better,” Banach said.

Persons: Maciej Banach, David Katz, ”, Katz, “, Banach, Dr Ibadete Bytyçi, ” Banach, Andrew Freeman, Freeman, ‘, ‘ Don’t, ’ Organizations: CNN, European Society of Cardiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, True Health Initiative, European, Preventive Cardiology, University Clinical, Jewish Health, CNN’s Locations: Baltimore , Maryland, Australia, Japan, Norway, Spain, United Kingdom, United States, Kosovo, Pristina, Denver , Colorado

☆ In Kosovo, graffiti rejuvenates Pristina's concrete jungle
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Line Guillod, a graffiti artist paints a mural as part of the Meeting of Styles graffiti festival in Kosovo's capital Pristina, Kosovo July 28, 2023. REUTERS/Fatos BytyciPRISTINA, July 30 (Reuters) - Known as the capital of concrete, Pristina is trying to revitalize its dull and grey image with vivid graffiti on walls and buildings, helping transform public spaces into more inviting, vibrant areas. "When you see the concrete, it gives the impression that it is still under construction," said Agon Xhelili, organizer of the festival, Meeting of Styles Kosovo. Since its creation, it has organized more than 400 events such as the one in Pristina, helping thousands of artists all over the world. "I think it will be really positive (visually and for tourism) if they allowed more public art murals," said Sharon.

Persons: Agon Xhelili, Daniel Sharon, Sharon, Fatos, Bernadette Baum Organizations: REUTERS, Fatos Bytyci, Styles Kosovo, Thomson Locations: Kosovo's, Pristina, Kosovo, Fatos, Fatos Bytyci PRISTINA, Germany, London

☆ Brown bears in Kosovo fight the heat with frozen fruit treats
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] A bear eats fruits that the workers have thrown at an animal's pool at the Bear Sanctuary in Pristina, Kosovo, July 18, 2023. REUTERS/Fatos BytyciPRISTINA, July 18 (Reuters) - Workers at a bear sanctuary in Kosovo have come up with creative ways to keep their twenty brown bears cool as temperatures near 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) this week. The bears' pools are regularly topped up with fresh water and their keepers hurl fruit and vegetables into the water to encourage the animals to swim. They also place frozen fruit and vegetables they dub "ice creams" up in the trees, where the bears find them in just a few seconds. "The temperatures are very high and their fur is very thick and it is not easy for them," said Taulant Hoxha, from the bear sanctuary.

Persons: Taulant Hoxha, Fatos Bytyci, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: REUTERS, Fatos Bytyci, Workers, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Pristina, Kosovo, Fatos, Fatos Bytyci PRISTINA

☆ Kosovo buys Turkish Bayraktar drones
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PRISTINA, July 16 (Reuters) - Kosovo has bought a batch of Turkish-made Bayraktar drones, its leader said on Sunday, at a time when it faces unrest in the north where ethnic Serbs refuse to recognise Pristina authorities. He did not give the number or cost of the drones, Kosovo's first, nor say what they would be used for. Bayraktar drones have gained popularity globally after being used by Ukraine's military against Russian forces. In past months, Kosovo has faced its worst ethnic violence in the north which is home to some 50,000 ethnic Serbs, who are backed by Belgrade. Kosovo aims to join NATO but four of the alliance's members still do not recognise its 2008 independence from Serbia.

Persons: Albin Kurti, Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Fatos Bytyci, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Russian, NATO, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Pristina, Belgrade, Serbia, Serbian

☆ Kosovo moves to lower tensions in Serb majority area
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Violence in north Kosovo, where 50,000 Serbs live and form a majority, erupted in late May after Albanian mayors took office following an election boycotted by Serbs demanding implementation of a decade-old deal for more autonomy. NATO said 93 of its peacekeeping soldiers had been injured in clashes with Serb protesters, some of them severely, on May 29. Doctors in the north said 52 Serbs were also injured. The United States and European Union, Kosovo's main allies, have mainly blamed nationalist Prime Minister Albin Kurti for tensions in the north. Reporting by Fatos Bytyci; Editing by Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kosovo's, Albin Kurti, Fatos Bytyci, Stephen Coates Organizations: NATO, EU, European Union, Kosovo, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Serbs, United States, Pristina, Brussels

☆ EU wants concrete steps by Kosovo to ease tensions before lifting sanctions –envoy
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PRISTINA, July 4 (Reuters) - The European Union will not lift political and economic sanctions on Kosovo unless the government de-escalates tensions with ethnic Serbs, EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak said on Tuesday during a visit in Pristina. EU countries imposed punitive measures on ethnic Albanian-majority Kosovo after Prime Minister Albin Kurti's government failed to heed EU and U.S. requests to defuse strife in the country's north following the worst clashes in over a decade. "My wish is not to have sanctions," Lajcak told reporters in Pristina after a three-hour meeting with Kurti. Some 30 NATO peacekeeping soldiers defending three town halls in northern Kosovo were injured in clashes with Serb protesters, and 52 Serbs were hurt. Lajcak said the EU also wanted Serbia, which north Kosovo Serbs still devote their allegiance 15 years after Pristina declared independence from Belgrade, to act constructively to defuse the crisis, or face penalties as well.

Persons: Miroslav Lajcak, Albin Kurti's, Lajcak, Kurti, ”, Kosovo's, Fatos, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: European, EU, Kosovo, ”, NATO, Wednesday, European Union, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Serbs, Pristina, Brussels, Serbia, Kosovo Serbs, Belgrade, United States

☆ Bill Clinton tells Kosovo: stop 'foolishness' in Serb-majority north
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Former U.S. president Bill Clinton delivers his speech during a welcoming in Tirana, Albania, July 3, 2023. REUTERS/Florion GogaTIRANA, July 3 (Reuters) - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, largely credited for ending the Kosovo war more than two decades ago, on Monday told Kosovo's government to stop its actions in the Serb majority north, where tension has flared over the past few months. But the real thing we need to do is to stop this foolishness," Clinton said during a ceremony in Tirana where he received a medal from Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama. The United States and the European Union, Kosovo's main allies, have mainly blamed Prime Minister Albin Kurti for igniting tension in the north by installing four mayors in their offices with police despite objections from local Serbs. In Belgrade, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said growing tensions between Belgrade and Pristina "cause great concern, as well as the increase in violence".

Persons: Bill Clinton, Kosovo's, Clinton, Albin Kurti, Mark Rutte, Aleksandar Vucic, Rutte, Fatos Bytyci, Aleksandar Vasovic, Sonali Paul Organizations: U.S, REUTERS, Former U.S, Monday, NATO, Albania's, Edi Rama, Kosovo, Serbia's, European Union, Dutch, EU, Thomson Locations: Tirana, Albania, Florion, TIRANA, Former, Kosovo, Pristina, Serbia, Serbian, Kosovo Albanian, United States, Belgrade, Europe, Ukraine, Florion Goga

☆ Serbia releases three detained Kosovo policemen, easing crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The European Union welcomed the move and urged Kosovo and Serbia to take further steps to defuse the simmering crisis, including holding new local elections in northern Kosovo. [1/5]One of the released Kosovan policemen (L) arrives at the Kosovo-Serbia border crossing, in Merdare, Kosovo June 26, 2023. The ruling effectively allowed the Serb authorities to maintain the charges while letting the three return to Kosovo, beyond the reach of the Serb court. Albanian-majority Kosovo, formerly a southern province of Serbia, declared independence from Belgrade in 2008 with the backing of the West following a 1998-99 war. Violence flared in four northern Kosovo municipalities late last month after ethnic Albanian mayors took office following a local election.

Persons: Josep Borrell, Albin Kurti, Kurti, Oliver Varhelyi, Aleksandar Vasovic, Fatos, Andrew Gray, Toby Chopra, Andrew Heavens, Alex Richardson Organizations: European Union, Prosecutors, REUTERS, Court, Kosovo's, Twitter, Thomson Locations: BELGRADE, Serbia, Kosovo, Luxembourg, United States, Merdare, Serbian, Kraljevo, Belgrade, Serbs, Brussels, Washington, EU, Pristina

☆ Serbia army chief urges NATO, international agencies to protect Kosovo Serbs
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BELGRADE/PRISTINA, June 23 (Reuters) - Serbia's army commander urged NATO peacekeepers and other international bodies on Friday to step up measures to protect minority Serbs in Kosovo, adding that "the international community is not fulfilling its obligations." Mojsilovic in a rare public address said he had asked NATO peacekeeping mission KFOR and other international bodies to undertake urgent measures to protect ethnic Serbs there. Earlier on Friday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said he was "very alarmed" by the situation in northern Kosovo, citing "extrajudicial arrests" of Kosovo Serbs and the march by Kosovo Security Forces "followed by heavy rhetoric from Serbia". Ethnic Serbs, who make up the majority of the population in the region, had boycotted the vote. Ethnic Albanians make up more than 90% of the population in Kosovo, while the Serbs form the majority in four northern municipalities and several enclaves inside Kosovo.

Persons: Milan Mojsilovic, Mojsilovic, Xhelal Svecla, Svecla, Josep Borrell, Borrell, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Armend Mehaj, Aleksandar Vasovic, Fatos, Andrew Gray, Hugh Lawson, Mark Porter, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: NATO, European Union, KFOR, Belgrade, Kosovo Security Forces, Kosovo, Twitter, Kosovo Defence, Kosovo police, Serbian, Thomson Locations: BELGRADE, PRISTINA, Kosovo, Serbia, Mitrovica, Mojsilovic, Zvecan, Kosovo Serbs, Serbian, Brussels, Belgrade, Pristina, Yugoslavia, Montenegro

☆ No breakthrough as EU's Borrell holds crisis talks with Kosovo, Serbia leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, June 22 (Reuters) - EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell proposed steps to end weeks of violence in predominantly Serb areas of northern Kosovo to the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia on Thursday, but there were no signs of an immediate breakthrough. Tensions worsened after Serbian police arrested three Kosovo policeman last week, saying they crossed the border between the two countries. The top EU diplomat said he asked Kurti "to announce early elections, as soon as possible, in all four municipalities on condition of participation of Kosovo Serbs". "Here is the core of the problem and also the core of the solution - early elections, as soon as possible," Borrell told reporters after four hours of talks. Vucic said he was ready for more talks with EU mediators, adding that meeting Kurti in person "makes no sense".

Persons: Josep Borrell, Albin Kurti, Aleksandar Vucic, Borrell, Kurti, Borell, Vucic, Aleksandar Vasovic, Andrew Grey, Fatos, Alex Richardson Organizations: Kosovo, Kosovo police, EU, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Kosovo, Serbia, Pristina, Serbian, Brussels, Kosovo Serb, Kosovo Serbs, EU

☆ NATO ready to act to save Kosovo's peace, calls for de-escalation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PRISTINA, June 19 (Reuters) - NATO forces in Kosovo are ready to face any situation if acts of violence similar to recent encounters threaten the peace, the NATO commander in Pristina said late on Monday. Some 30 NATO peacekeeping soldiers defending three town halls in northern Kosovo were injured in clashes with Serb protesters late on May. We do not react, we act," the commander of NATO troops, known as KFOR, Angelo Michele Ristuccia told to a group of journalists from his headquarters in the outskirts of Pristina. Kosovo says the three were arrested inside its territory by Serbian officers who had crossed the border. Some 50,000 Serbs who live in the north part refuse Pristina ruling and consider Belgrade as their capital.

Persons: Angelo Michele Ristuccia, Ristuccia, Albin Kurti, Kurti, Fatos Bytyci, Franklin Paul Organizations: NATO, KFOR, European Union, Franklin Paul Our, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, Kosovo, Pristina, Serbs, Serbia, United States, Serbian, Belgrade

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