Mijacic: Escalation in the north of Kosovo could happen tomorrow

Director of the Institute for Territorial Economic Development, Dragisa Mijacic, on the occasion of the violent incursion of Special Police Forces into the municipalities in the north of Kosovo, said that we had entered the weekend with a lot of diplomatic activities, but also with a lot of unrest and uncertainty, and that an escalation could be expected tomorrow, Politika reports.

"Monday is the first day after these events. We are not only talking about people who were elected in the "container elections" that were organized in April, we are talking about people who boycotted, people who work in those municipal facilities, and who need to come to work. Whether they will come to work, under what conditions, and whether they will be allowed to enter their premises, we really don't know at this moment," Mijacic said for Tanjug.

Mijacic pointed out that it was impossible not to have incidents in Serbian areas where there was a large presence of Kosovo's Special Police Forces, as well as members of the Albanian nation who, according to him, "imitate the roles of mayors in elections that really have no legitimacy."

When asked what the role of KFOR in the whole situation was, Mijacic explained that they acted in accordance with their mission and mandate, but in this case, they did not have the mandate to react.

Mijacic emphasized that the solution to the crisis was the withdrawal of Special Police Forces from Serbian municipalities in the north, as well as the withdrawal of Albanian politicians from the post of mayor.

"The way out of the entire crisis is clear and it is reflected in the immediate withdrawal of all Special Police Forces from the north of Kosovo, which according to the Brussels agreement do not have the right to be in that area, that all mayors withdraw," Mijacic said.

The announcements of the international community, says Mijacic, are no longer effective and it must take concrete diplomatic actions in order to send a message to Albin Kurti that he should not threaten the peace.

"We saw how the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, spoke about this action by Albin Kurti, where he strongly condemned the behavior of both the government and the Special Police Forces, but these announcements are not enough for us, they are not fruitful, we need diplomatic action," Mijacic said.

He stated that the current situation could only be resolved through dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, as well as that there was no military solution to the situation in the north of Kosovo.

"Regardless of all the voices coming from Belgrade, which may militarize the situation, the situation must be resolved diplomatically, through the pressure of international actors to withdraw the members of the Special Police Forces from the north of Kosovo," Mijacic said.

He believes that there is a political will of the international community to solve the problem in the north.

"I think it's high time to show Kurti that he cannot lead a unilateral policy that is not coordinated, not only with Belgrade but also with international actors, because it leads to a conflict in the northern area," Mijacic concluded.