As tensions rise, Serbia arrests Kosovo police officers
Kosovo has sought the release of three border patrol personnel, accusing Serbia of ‘kidnapping’ them.
Serbian authorities reported they apprehended three “fully armed” Kosovo police officers near their common border, while Kosovo officials stated the trio was “kidnapped” while patrolling the region.
On Wednesday, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti condemned Serbia for the men’s kidnapping and demanded their release. They were apprehended 300 metres (330 yards) inside Kosovan territory near the border, he added.
“The entry of Serbian forces into Kosovo territory is an act of aggression aimed at escalation and destabilisation,” Kurti stated on his Facebook page.
Kosovo Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla also condemned the “kidnapping,” which he described as “violating any agreement and violating international norms.”
The minister urged the international community to “immediately increase pressure on Serbia not only to release our police officers, but also to cease its provocations.”
However, according to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, the three were apprehended as far as 1.8km (one mile) within Serbian territory, near the town of Gnjilica. Kurti was also accused of encouraging violence, according to him.
“We are at a fork in the road as to whether we will have peace or not… “And there is one man in the Balkans who wants to incite conflict at any cost – Albin Kurti,” Vucic remarked during a live TV broadcast.
He denied that Serbian police had entered Kosovo, claiming, “They did not even set foot there.”
Despite the fact that a NATO bombing operation forced Serbian security forces out of Kosovo in 1999, Belgrade continues to see it as a southern province.
Last month, riots in four primarily Serb communities in northern Kosovo, just outside Serbia, injured 30 NATO forces and 52 Serbs.
It erupted as Serbs protested against ethnic Albanian mayors who took office following a 3.5 percent turnout in a municipal election. The election was boycotted by Serbs in the area.
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