Milivojevic: We can expect a continuation of repression; Kurti's goal is to conquer the north

In the circumstances that have arisen following the tragic events in Banjska, a continuation of the same policy of Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, which led to this incident, can be expected, as well as the continuation of repression by Pristina, according to former diplomat Zoran Milivojevic, adding that he is not convinced that significant moves leading to the calming of the situation can be expected from the international community.

"What we have been warning about for the past six months has unfortunately happened this time with casualties. This is a direct consequence of the implementation of a policy and repression by Pristina that obviously could no longer be tolerated. Considering the reactions of Western centers of power, it is clear that Kurti understands what is happening, and all assessments of this event are in his favor. In such circumstances, we can only expect a continuation of such a policy, repression, and complete uncertainty regarding the position of the Serbs, not to mention dialogue or any other political solution to this problem," Milivojevic said.

He points out that for now, the only thing heard is condemnation of the Serbian side, and no one mentions Serbian victims.

One of the arguments that repression will continue, according to Milivojevic, is that Pristina has declared four municipalities in northern Kosovo a "zone of anti-terrorist operations."

"That is already a legal and security framework for the continuation of repression, and let's not forget about the long guns and all those structures, there is no reaction from KFOR or international actors, so under these circumstances, only the continuation of repression and an increase in the level of escalation we have seen so far can be expected," he notes.

According to him, there is now a complete absence of trust, and it is questionable whether there is anything to talk about, given that this is a tailwind for Kurti and an alibi for his pursued policy. There is no way he will change his stance on the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities and engage in a dialogue that could potentially lead to a return to negotiations.

"When it comes to the Serbian side, there is no alternative to dialogue; it is the rational and realistic basis, everything else is conflict. Serbia will not bear responsibility for future moves, it is important that, once again, it did not participate and is not responsible. Now, everything is in the hands of Western centers, in Washington and most in Brussels," the diplomat says.

As he explains, it is clear what can be expected from the statement of Germany's special envoy, Manuel Sarrazin, who, in a conversation with Kurti in Pristina after the incident in Banjska, unequivocally stated that Berlin supported the Pristina side.

Milivojevic points out that the current situation has put Serbia in a different position, namely that there is no longer any talk about status issues.

"That story is over, and any attempt to build a position on that is baseless," he says.

He also believes that this must come to the agenda of those responsible, namely the UN Security Council, KFOR, international actors who absolutely have control over the situation in Kosovo, and everything that happens in the coming period will depend on them.

He points out that we still do not have full information about what happened in Banjska.

"We only have information from one side, including their interpretation of events. There is no correction of that. The impression is that the West supports such an approach, but that is not the whole truth in this story. It is very important to see who is behind this, what it was intended for, and what the goal is because it is obvious that Belgrade was excluded from this in every sense. There is one very important coincidence - this happened at a time when Pristina was in a defensive position, in serious trouble, after failed talks in Brussels, and especially after the verification of principles in the UN General Assembly. After that, Banjska happened. There is an inevitable impression that there is some correlation. That coincidence and correlation are obvious because no one is crazy in this country to 'shoot themselves in the foot.' I am not sure that we will find out the truth because someone does not want the truth to come out," he said.

Commenting on Albin Kurti's statement that nothing will be the same after these events, Milivojevic says that he aims to completely conquer northern Kosovo, to change the factual situation.

"He wanted to say that he was right when he talked about criminals, that he has arguments for the policy he is pursuing, and two things - that he will not give up his policy of completely conquering the north and that he has no intention of forgiving anything to the Serbs. This is a terrible and dangerous message, and others should think about that message because I am not sure that the Serbs will easily leave their ancestral homes, nor will Serbia give up a part of its territory," Milivojevic warns.