Petkovic to McGurk: With Popovic's arrest, Pristina endangers dialogue; we expect OSCE mission to protect the rights of Serbs

The Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Dr. Petar Petkovic, met with the Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador Michael Gerard McGurk, to whom he presented the highly unstable political and security situation, which has worsened significantly following the arrest of Igor Popovic and, as stated, a series of escalatory moves by Albin Kurti to the detriment of the Serbian people.

Petkovic conveyed to his interlocutor that with the arrest of Igor Popovic, an assistant in the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Pristina directly endangered the process of normalization of relations and the dialogue itself, which, he stressed, cannot continue while Popovic remains in a Pristina prison without any guilt.

He noted that Popovic, a distinguished legal expert, was actively involved in numerous issues through the dialogue process, and that his detention represents a direct blow by Kurti to the negotiations taking place in Brussels.

“Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija are being denied all basic human rights on a daily basis, and with the arrest of Igor Popovic, even the rights to freedom of movement, thought, and expression have been jeopardized. His case is a clear illustration of the complete absence of the rule of law in Pristina. Popovic called for justice for all victims and the punishment of perpetrators, and through his arrest, Pristina has shown that it has no intention of confronting its criminal past,” Director Petkovic said.

He emphasized that everything Kurti is doing points toward the creation of an “ethnically pure Kosovo and Metohija and the expulsion of Serbs.” For that reason, he added, Kurti continues to implement almost daily escalatory actions, raising tensions, provoking new crises on the ground, and attempting to avoid the obligation to establish the Community of Serb Municipalities.

Belgrade expects the OSCE Mission to take concrete and visible steps to protect the guaranteed rights of Serbs in Kosovo and to act toward the release of Igor Popovic and all other unlawfully detained Serbs, and it will continue to insist on this, according to the statement from the Office for Kosovo and Metohija.