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☆ 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

☆ Kosovo demands Serbia withdraw troops from border
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Kosovo police officers patrol, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, in Banjska village, Kosovo September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPRISTINA, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Kosovo on Saturday demanded that Serbia withdraw its troops from their common border, saying it was ready to protect its territorial integrity. "We call on President Vucic and the institutions of Serbia to immediately withdraw all troops from the border with Kosovo," the Kosovo government said in a statement. "The deployment of Serbian troops along the border with Kosovo is the next step by Serbia to threaten the territorial integrity of our country." On Friday the United States said it was monitoring a troubling Serbian military deployment along the Kosovo border that is destabilizing the area.

Persons: Ognen, Vucic, Aleksandar Vucic, Fatos Bytyci, Giles Elgood Organizations: Kosovo, REUTERS, Rights, Saturday, Kosovo police, Financial Times, European Union, USA, NATO, Thomson Locations: Banjska village, Kosovo, Rights PRISTINA, Serbia, Banjska, Serbian, NATO, States, Pristina, Republic of Kosovo

☆ The US is warning of a big build-up of Serbian troops on the Kosovo border. Here’s why tensions are high
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The long fractious ties between Kosovo and Serbia are once again on edge after one of the worst outbreaks of violence in years. Ognen Teofilovski/ReutersMore than 20 years on, fragile peace has been preserved in Kosovo, while Serbia continues not to recognize Kosovo’s independence. During the subsequent shootout in the village of Banjska in northern Kosovo, police said they killed three armed attackers and arrested another. Visar Kryeziu/APIn another development, a top Kosovo Serb politician, Milan Radoicic said he took part in the gun battle, Reuters reported. The White House has warned that the incident represents a threat to the safety of not only Kosovo personnel, but international personnel including NATO troops.

Persons: Ognen Teofilovski, What’s, Albin Kurti, ”, Vjosa Osmani, Aleksandar Vucic, Vucic, “, Visar, Milan Radoicic, Radoicic, John Kirby, Jens Stoltenberg Organizations: CNN, Kosovar, Federal, NATO, Sunday, Facebook, Kosovo, Reuters, Kosovo police, AP, Kosovo Serb, Kosovo Police, National Security Locations: Kosovo, Serbia, Yugoslavia, Serbian, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Montenegro, Banjska, Belgrade, Pristina, Serbs, Zvecan

☆ US monitoring large Serbian force along Kosovo border, White House says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A Kosovo police officer looks on, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, in Banjska village, Kosovo September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - The United States is monitoring a troubling Serbian military deployment along the border of Kosovo that is destabilizing the area, the White House said on Friday and called for the forces to be withdrawn. White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that Kosovo's peacekeeping force is going to be increasing its presence of NATO forces in northern Kosovo as a result of the tensions. Kosovo authorities said police fought around 30 heavily armed Serbs who stormed the Kosovo village of Banjska on Sunday and barricaded themselves in a Serbian Orthodox monastery. Kirby called "a large Serbian military deployment along the Kosovo border" a destabilizing development and called on Serbia to withdraw those forces and contribute to lowering tensions.

Persons: Ognen, John Kirby, Kirby, Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Steve Holland, David Ljunggren, Daniel Wallis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, White House, NATO, Thomson Locations: Banjska village, Kosovo, United States, Banjska, Serbian, Serbia, NATO

☆ US monitoring large Serbian force along Kosovo border -White House
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

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

☆ Russia 'closely monitoring' tense situation in Kosovo - Kremlin
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Kosovo police officers stand guard on the road to Banjska monastery, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, near Zvecan, Kosovo September 25, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Sept 25 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday it was closely monitoring what it called a "potentially dangerous" situation in Kosovo, where ethnic Serb gunmen stormed a village at the weekend, battling police and barricading themselves into a monastery. Russia does not recognise Kosovo, which has a majority ethnic Albanian population, as an independent country and traditionally supports Serbia, with which it has close religious and cultural ties. The situation is very, very tense and potentially dangerous, we are monitoring it very closely," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a regular news briefing. Ethnic Albanians form the vast majority of the 1.8 million population of Kosovo, a former province of Serbia.

Persons: Ognen, Dmitry Peskov, Gareth Jones, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Kosovar, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Banjska, Zvecan, Kosovo, Russia, Serbia, Belgrade, Kosovo Albanian, Serbian

☆ Russia 'closely monitoring' tense situation in Kosovo, blames local authorities
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kosovo police officers stand guard on the road to Banjska monastery, in the aftermath of a shooting incident, near Zvecan, Kosovo September 25, 2023. Russia does not recognise Kosovo, which has a majority ethnic Albanian population, as an independent country and traditionally supports Serbia, with which it has close religious and cultural ties. The situation is very, very tense and potentially dangerous, we are monitoring it very closely," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a regular news briefing. Ethnic Albanians form the vast majority of the 1.8 million population of Kosovo, a former province of Serbia. The ministry said Kurti was trying to escalate the situation in order to increase pressure on Serbs to recognise Kosovo's independence.

Persons: Ognen, Dmitry Peskov, Albin Kurti, Kurti, Gareth Jones, Maxim Rodionov, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Kosovar, Kosovo, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Banjska, Zvecan, Kosovo, Russia, Serbia, Belgrade, Kosovo Albanian, Serbian, Serbs

☆ 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'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

[1/5] FILE PHOTO-A drone picture shows where the former water line was more than one KM from the present line in Pretor, at Prespa Lake, North Macedonia September 6, 2023. The decline has continued over decades - the water at Lake Prespa, which is situated high in the mountains and is 5-million-years-old, is now more than 8 metres (8.74 yards) lower than the late 1970s. With a surface area of around 260 square kilometres, more than twice the size of Paris, more than two thirds of the lake belongs to North Macedonia and the rest to Greece and Albania. Any drop in water level can affect Lake Ohrid, a much larger lake just 10 km from Prespa and which draws around one third of its water from Prespa. "All (pesticides) go in the underground waters, in the lake, they go everywhere and are very dangerous for Prespa," said Mende Pandevski, harvesting plums close to the lake.

Persons: Vasilevski, Dragan Arsovski, Mende, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: NASA, The United Nations Development Program, Macedonian Geological Society, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Pretor, Prespa, North Macedonia, Greece, Albania, Macedonia, Lake, Paris, Ohrid, Skopje

☆ NATO ready to deploy even more troops to quell unrest in Kosovo - Stoltenberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Italian members of the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) stand guard behind wire fencing, in Leposavic, Kosovo, June 1, 2023. REUTERS/Ognen TeofilovskiOSLO, June 1 (Reuters) - NATO is prepared to deploy more troops to Kosovo to quell violence in the ethnically polarized north, the alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday, adding that the first 700 reinforcement troops are on the way there. NATO decided to boost its 4,000-strong mission in the region with 700 additional troops after 30 of its KFOR peacekeepers and 52 ethnic Serb protesters were hurt on Monday. Stoltenberg called the violence against NATO troops "totally unacceptable" and said allies were readying more troops in case NATO needed to send additional reinforcements to the region. Reporting by Sabine Siebold and Benoit Van Overstraeten; Editing by Bart MeijerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg, Stoltenberg, Sabine Siebold, Benoit Van Overstraeten, Bart Meijer Organizations: NATO, Kosovo Force, KFOR, REUTERS, U.S, Thomson Locations: Leposavic, Kosovo, Ognen, OSLO, Oslo, Kosovo's, Serbs, Pristina, Belgrade, EU

[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

☆ Factbox: Key facts on Kosovo, independent for 15 years from Serbia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Here are key facts about the small western Balkan republic:POPULATION: Around 1.8 million, according to the most recent census in 2011, which local Serbs boycotted. HISTORY & PEOPLE: Kosovo became part of the Kingdom of Serbia in the early 13th century, with a mixed population of ethnic Albanians, Serbs and Vlachs. Mutual expulsions and migrations to and from neighbouring Albania in the early 20th century changed Kosovo's ethnic makeup. He accused Kosovo Albanians of persecuting local Serbs and restricted their rights in education and local government. It backs nationalist minority Serbs in north Kosovo boycotting the state, creating a de facto partition.

☆ NATO head urges Kosovo to ease tensions with Serbia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Stoltenberg, the transatlantic military alliance's Norwegian secretary-general, said he had spoken to European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell about Kosovo. Ethnic Albanians make up more than 90% of the population in Kosovo as a whole. Local Serbs, backed by Belgrade, said they will not accept the mayors and that they do not represent them. The situation remained tense on Sunday with heavily armed police in armoured vehicles still guarding the mayors' offices. Reporting by Sabine Siebold, writing by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ NATO urges Kosovo to de-escalate tension with Serbia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The resulting clashes on Friday between Kosovan police and protesters opposed to the ethnic Albanian mayors prompted Serbia to put its army on full combat alert and to move units closer to the border. "We urge the institutions in Kosovo to de-escalate immediately and call on all parties to resolve the situation through dialogue," said Oana Lungescu, a spokeswoman for the transatlantic military alliance, in a Twitter post. She said KFOR, the 3,800-strong NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, would remain vigilant. It is also the right of citizens to be served by those elected officials," Kurti said on Twitter on Saturday. Ethnic Albanians form more than 90% of the population in Kosovo, with Serbs only the majority in the northern region.

As a result, the stakes of the inaugural trip by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock have risen, with many EU members hoping Berlin will use this opportunity to set out a clear and united EU line on China, analysts said. Baerbock must now make Germany's position on Taiwan clear during her visit, German foreign policy parliamentarian Nils Schmid told Reuters, adding Macron's remarks had destroyed a hoped-for impetus for a common European China policy. The foreign minister is due to meet her counterpart Qin Gang and China's top diplomat Wang Yi on the two-day trip. Europe's view of China as partner, competitor and systemic rival is the compass of its policy, she added. "More von der Leyen than Macron should be her guideline," conservative foreign policy lawmaker Johann Wadephul, who will join Baerbock on her trip, told Reuters.

☆ Kosovo, Serbia agree on "some kind of deal" to normalize ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/3] Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic speaks to the media, in Ohrid, North Macedonia March 18, 2023.REUTERS/Ognen TeofilovskiOHRID, North Macedonia, March 18 (Reuters) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that Kosovo and Serbia have reached "some kind of a deal" on implementing a Western-backed deal to normalize ties on Saturday. This is not the final deal," Vucic told reporters in Ohrid. He said that despite disagreements on some issues, talks with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti were "decent". He said Serbia's path towards EU membership will be conditioned on implementing the deal. Reporting by Fatos Bytyci and Ivana Sekularac; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Kosovo, Serbia leaders arrive for EU-backed talks on deal to normalise ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"I am optimistic," Kurti said ahead of the meetings, taking place in the lakeside town of Ohrid in North Macedonia. Kosovo and Serbia agreed in Brussels last month to a Western-backed deal to normalise relations, following nearly 10 years of EU-mediated dialogue during which little progress was made. "The eyes of the EU & the Western Balkans are on Ohrid today," Borrell tweeted. Belgrade and Pristina need to mend bilateral ties for both to achieve their strategic goal of joining the EU. "I want to caution that we may not have a final agreement," Gabriel Escobar, the senior U.S. diplomat for the Western Balkans who is also attending the Ohrid talks, told Pristina-based RTV21 station.

☆ Kosovo says 'yes' to EU's peace deal with Serbia, with caveats - PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] People are pictured through Kosovo flag as they take part in celebrations of the 10th anniversary of Kosovo's independence in Pristina, Kosovo February 17, 2018. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a decade after a guerrilla uprising against Belgrade's rule. Kosovo in 2013 pledged to give more autonomy to local Serbs, who refuse to recognise its 2008 independence, through such an association as part of a peace deal. However, Kosovo's highest court said some parts of the deal violated the constitution and should be changed before it takes effect. The proposed 11-point deal would not require Serbia to recognise the independence of its former province, but Belgrade would have to stop lobbying against Kosovo's membership in international bodies.

☆ Serbs in Kosovo block roads, clash with police as ethnic tensions worsen
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

In recent weeks Serbs in northern Kosovo, a hotbed of Serb nationalism, have met attempts by Pristina which they see as anti-Serb with violent resistance. Barricades must be removed immediately by groups of Kosovo Serbs. For a second day on Sunday, trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles blocked several main roads in northern Kosovo that lead to two border crossings with Serbia. After Saturday's incidents, Goran Rakic, the head of the Serbian List party, which is supported by Belgrade, called on Serbs in northern Kosovo to show restraint and cooperate with NATO peacekeepers and EULEX. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 with the backing of the West, following a 1998-1999 war in which NATO intervened to protect Albanian-majority Kosovo.

☆ Kosovo police exchange fire with local Serbs blocking roads
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Kosovo Serbs block the road near the village of Rudine, North Mitrovica, Kosovo December 10, 2022. REUTERS/Ognen TeofilovskiMITROVICA, Kosovo, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Kosovo Serbs and country’s police exchanged gunfire on Saturday after a flareup of tensions in the volatile northern part of the country. Earlier in the day Serbs from Kosovo's north blocked main roads in the region to protest against the arrest of a former member of the Kosovo police who quit his post last month along with other ethnic Serbs. With a crisis mounting in the majority Serb north, Kosovo's president Vjosa Osmani on Saturday announced that local elections in that area would be delayed until April 23. "Serbia has instructed its illegal structures to set up barricades in the north Kosovo.

☆ Kosovo president delays local elections in volatile north
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PRISTINA, Dec 10 (Reuters) - Kosovo's president on Saturday announced that local elections in majority Serb areas in the north would be delayed until April, a move aimed at defusing ethnic tensions that have intensified in recent months. Elections had been scheduled for Dec. 18 but Serbs said they would boycott the polls. Police in Pristina said Pantic was arrested for allegedly attacking election commission offices, police officers and election officials on Tuesday. Earlier, Kosovo police arrested another Serb, on suspicion of taking part in an armed attack on a police patrol. Reporting by Fatos Bytyci in Pristina, Ognen Teofilovski in North Mitrovica and Aleksandar Vasovic in Belgrade; editing by Ros RussellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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