Petkovic in Brussels with representatives of the European Commission and ambassadors on the situation in Kosovo

Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija and Belgrade's negotiator in the dialogue with Pristina, Petar Petkovic, held a working meeting today in Brussels with ambassadors, representatives of EU member states, as well as representatives of the European Commission and the European External Action Service, during which he provided detailed information on the current political and security situation in Kosovo, with a special focus on the course of the dialogue and the recent tragic events in Banjska.

According to the statement from the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, during the two-and-a-half-hour presentation and open discussion, Petkovic conveyed to the diplomats present that Belgrade, under the leadership of President Aleksandar Vucic, was doing everything to maintain peace and stability, and that Serbia had not in any way wanted or participated in the recent tragic events in Banjska.

He emphasized the need for an objective and impartial investigation of the mentioned events, "given that Pristina is trying to label Serbia as the culprit with numerous disinformation and falsehoods".

"Belgrade, within the presentation, refuted Pristina's lies with numerous documents, photographs, and video recordings, providing evidence that clearly shows that Pristina is the root of all problems," the statement from the Office for Kosovo and Metohija said.

It is added that the Serbian delegation effectively reminded the interlocutors of numerous incidents and attacks by Pristina, with the Serbs being the sole target, emphasizing that the sole culprit for the intolerable situation that resulted in the events of September 24th was Albin Kurti, "who, through a policy of terror and institutional violence against the Serbs in northern Kosovo and Metohija, led to tragic events".

Petkovic reminded that Belgrade had been warning the entire international community for the past year that the situation on the ground would escalate further if the West did not exert strong pressure on Albin Kurti. Therefore, Petkovic reiterated the demand for KFOR to fully assume the role of protecting the Serbs in northern Kosovo and replace the Kosovo Police, which the Serbs perceived solely as an occupying force.

"The only way forward is through immediate de-escalation and the withdrawal of the Kosovo Police from the north, as well as the continuation of the dialogue and concrete steps towards the formation of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities," Petkovic said, reminding that Pristina had been refusing to form the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities for a full ten years, and instead of the collective and individual rights guaranteed to them by the First Brussels Agreement, Pristina was conducting ethnic cleansing against the Serbs.

The working meeting took place in the premises of the Mission of the Republic of Serbia to the European Union, with the participation of Milan Ravic, Director of the Office for Coordination of Negotiating Process with the Temporary Institutions in Pristina, and Daniel Apostolovic, Chargé d'affaires of the Mission of the Republic of Serbia to the EU.