“The fact that the international community did not prevent the Kosovo PM from making unilateral, risky moves and that the Serbs clashed with KFOR – are two key mistakes when it comes to dealing with the crisis in the north,“ the KoSSev editor-in-chief, Tatjana Lazarevic, assessed for Nova S news.
Lazarevic says that the thing KFOR has been avoiding for a whole year, namely being drawn into the conflict and violence breaking out, has just happened.
The Serbs in the north are weakened, susceptible to manipulation by Pristina, Belgrade, and foreign geostrategic interests, while SL leadership does not possess the strength to lead the people, she added.
KoSSev’s editor assessed the request for the withdrawal of special units of the Kosovo Police as both realistic and legitimate.
„The conflict between Serbs and KFOR is the second biggest mistake that happened yesterday. The first and greatest mistake and responsibility are that the international community failed to first ensure that the Kosovo PM does not make unilateral, risky moves, as well as the fact that from Friday until today they did not de-escalate the situation, that is, they did not force him to withdraw his unilateral moves, particularly because they failed to convince him not to send the mayors to their workplaces on Monday,“ said Lazarevic.
„That’s where the first greatest mistake was made, that the situation was created where he made those unilateral risky moves,“ she added.
In her words, another mistake that „makes the position of the Serbs terribly difficult“ is the fact that they clashed with KFOR.
„I want to emphasize the following: Serbs from the north were practically left alone, without leadership on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and you could see, I dare say, how they stood up until Monday with dignity, protesting peacefully, even carrying out civil actions, using legitimate means, taking care not to be labeled as a destabilizing factor in any way, in fact, when it comes to that all eyes were on the Kosovo authorities and Albin Kurti himself.“
The thing we were afraid of happening – happened, Lazarevic stated.
It takes two to tango and we no longer have a single bad guy, but now the weight has shifted to the local population itself
Talking about the inhabitants of the north, she noted that they have experience with a difficult and unstable political and security situation and know that they should not enter into conflicts with KFOR, however:
„We are currently the weakest side susceptible to external influences.“
At least three sides can carry out their agendas precisely through the local population in the north, says Lazarevic.
„There is the agenda of Pristina, which really wants an escalation in order to once again blame Serbia, especially if the Serbs and Serbia enter into a conflict with NATO. This is what the Kosovo authorities need and what they got so far. There are also geostrategic and geopolitical interests concerning the war in Ukraine in the ‘restless Balkans’. The current Serbian government, that is, Aleksandar Vucic, has never shown, even in this crisis, that he cares about defusing the situation, but also about strengthening the Serbian factor and the Serb community.“
Lazarevic pointed to the objective reasons why the citizens are easy to manipulate, that is, what the local Serbs as now being blamed for – clashing with KFOR.
„We live under pressure. Young people and even older generations are going through a very difficult time,“ she adds, emphasizing that the Serbian community is further weakened because it lacks strong leadership – as seen during yesterday’s events.
„You could witness that on the ground SL was unable to lead the people and make the people trust them. We had several incidents where people publicly and clearly expressed their displeasure with the way it dealt with the situation, that is, as they say, the party either didn’t deal with it, or they did so badly.“
In particular, she underscored, the largest Kosovo Serb party is being accused of leaving the people in the lurch on Friday, when the entire leadership traveled to Belgrade, bringing with them the majority of citizens, thus making the territory even more porous.
People feel humiliated, and frustrated, and have a sense of injustice and militarization that the local population has been facing for a long time, she warned.
Such sentiment is spreading like cancer, especially in the last year due to pressure from Pristina and Belgrade
What Kurti is doing in the north has nothing to do with democracy and human rights
Lazarevic specified that since Kurti came to power, a kind of ‘special operation’ has been underway – the subjugation of the north to the Republic of Kosovo.
In addition to the ongoing occupation of the territory of northern municipalities, control over institutions is now being established.
Kosovan institutions have been swept clear of Serbs, says Lazarevic, and now they are moving onto the institutions of the Republic of Serbia.
She stated that Kurti is actually hiding behind the fight against crime, rounding up statehood and democracy to all citizens.
„It is clear on the ground that this has nothing to do with democracy, human rights, or the liberation of Serbs from criminal structures, as Kurti often likes to emphasize to international representatives.“
It is clear to everyone here, and I would also say to a large part of the international community, that it has nothing to do with it – she adds.
The Pristina authorities, according to Lazarevic, have not shown that they care about all citizens.
„The current Kosovo government has not shown so far that they care about all its citizens. There is a strong narrative of symbols. I would say that the entire operation was carried out, among other things, just to display the Kosovo flag, for the Serbian flag never to be returned there and to take over the institutions.“
The international community proved unable to handle Kurti
Recalling that Kurti is one of the political representatives who at first had the strong support of the international community and that for the third year in a row, he has been making unilateral risky moves to unfreeze the frozen conflict, Lazarevic believes that this support „is starting to dissolve“.
„That support is rapidly dissolving. For a long time now, he has been labeled as a destabilizing factor in some international circles, but of course, they will not say that publicly,“ says Lazarevic.
KFOR has not learned its lesson
Noting that the international community poorly dealt with the crisis in the North, Lazarevic says that KFOR did not learn the lesson of avoiding conflict and violence in the north – as confirmed by yesterday’s events and the latest radicalization they faced on the ground.
„Until now, KFOR, supported by the US ‘machine’, considering the amorphousness of the EU itself, has taken care not to be dragged into a conflict and that a conflict does not occur in the north,“ Lazarevic assessed, adding that at this time any violence does not suit either KFOR, NATO or the US.
„As we can see, they allowed this mistake. They made the territory porous, they opened up a practical place for conflict. They did not show that they are able to handle Albin Kurti.“
„They wondered for more than three days how it was possible for Kurti to turn a deaf ear to all that was coming from the international community, including the US Secretary of State before they realized that time was running out and that it was necessary to act urgently to avoid a conflict,“ she declared.
The situation KFOR avoided all this time, which is to be caught between two conflicting parties, happened yesterday.
Locals believe that the action was coordinated
Lazarevic also conveyed the impression of the locals regarding the management of the latest crisis in the north.
The local population strongly believes there is a certain coordination between the current authorities in Belgrade and Pristina.
„The intentions of the Kosovo authorities are clear. As far as the Serbian authorities are concerned, if they have to implement the plan, then it is important for radical politicians not to show that they are part of that solution, but to show through radicalization that something ‘has been taken’ while keeping the so-called pro-patriotic narrative in the public discourse, while actually letting Kurti ‘take’, which he is doing, and what the Serbs could gain – they just additionally lose.“
The request of the Serbs for the withdrawal of special units is legitimate and realistic
The editor of KoSSev points out that the request of the Serbian people for the withdrawal of the special police forces is realistic and legitimate.
Primarily because the local population does not approve of their presence in the north.
„Because the presence of special units of the Kosovo Police, not only did not bring stabilization, but on the contrary, completely radicalized the situation on the ground. Because the presence of special forces is not something the local population approves of. There is a different way to solve the crisis.“
Read more:
Conflict in Zvečan between KFOR members and Serbs, there are casualties
Protests Break Out in Three Municipalities in Northern Kosovo, KFOR secures the scene
KFOR: Both Sides Must Refrain from Actions that Could Incite Violence and Cause Escalation
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
