Simic after meeting with Kallas: We requested concrete actions to stop what Kurti is doing

Member of the Presidency of the Serb List, Igor Simic, stated after a meeting between party representatives and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, that they had requested the EU take concrete action to stop everything Albin Kurti is doing—actions they warned are threatening the survival of Serbs in Kosovo. They also demanded respect for the Brussels agreements signed in 2013 and 2015, expressing the belief that the current situation would not have arisen if the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities (CSM) had already been established.

“We discussed the problems faced by Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, focusing above all on the need to take steps to prevent unilateral moves by Pristina that threaten the survival of the Serbian people on a daily basis—pushing them into an impossible situation to remain on their ancestral land,” Simic said.

He added that they demanded immediate de-escalation on the ground and concrete actions from the EU to stop what Kurti is doing to drive out Serbs.

“We insisted that the EU respect the agreements signed in Brussels in 2013 and 2015. Even then, Serbs did not have great trust in Albanian political representatives, but we believed that the EU would honor its own signature and invest its credibility to ensure the Serbs received the CSM. We firmly believe that what is happening today would not be happening if the CSM had been formed. It is high time it was established,” Simic emphasized.

According to him, special attention was devoted to the protection of the basic human rights of Serbs.

“Especially those who have been arbitrarily arrested and are facing proceedings for crimes they never committed—this is a form of institutional pressure aimed at forcing our people to leave their homes, through fabricated and politically motivated trials. These lead to a situation where returnees are almost nonexistent and those who remain live in daily fear of who might be accused next,” Simic said.

In this context, they requested that the EU form a monitoring team to follow all such proceedings and prevent arbitrary arrests of Serbs.

“We especially stressed the need for KFOR to take on a greater role in ensuring the security of Serbs, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 1244. The Serbian people place more trust in international institutions operating in the region than in Kosovo’s institutions, which, especially in the north, have acted more like a punitive expedition than a lawful authority. They implement the political agenda of Albin Kurti rather than the law,” said Simic.

When asked whether the Serb List had been informed about reports that Kosovo police officers are warning Serbs that Serbian-issued ID cards will soon no longer be valid, Simic said they are aware of the issue and that thousands of Serbs do not have and cannot obtain Kosovo ID cards due to the policies implemented by the regime in Pristina.

“In recent weeks, we have held intensive meetings with representatives of the Quint and all international organizations present on the ground. What they are telling us—and what remains unofficial—is that no written decision on this matter exists. According to their interpretation, this may be a case of certain police officers arbitrarily claiming such authority,” Simic explained.

He reminded that the agreement between Belgrade and Pristina allowed for the unhindered use of Serbian ID cards, regardless of the municipality or issuing authority.

“I believe the EU will insist in the coming period that what has been agreed upon is implemented in practice. I cannot imagine a situation in which thousands of our citizens, who have lived here all their lives or moved here and married, would be unable to return to their homes simply because someone is bothered by the fact that this many Serbs still live here,” said Simic.

He added that the Serb List is fully aware of the problem and is in contact with international representatives, firmly insisting that such a situation must not be allowed to happen.

“We know that the Office for Kosovo and Metohija and Belgrade’s negotiating team are also insisting that even verbal warnings be stopped. After all, verbal decisions were made when the import of goods from central Serbia was banned, and it took more than a year for that to be lifted. That’s why we’re not leaving anything to chance—we are fighting politically and doing everything we can to prevent such a situation,” Simic concluded.