EU Calls for Calm after Macedonia, Serbia Diplomatic Incident

An EU Commission spokesperson told BIRN that the diplomatic incident in Skopje "is a bilateral issue between the two countries, which the EU is closely following" in a statement Tuesday.

"We look to both sides to exercise restraint and deal with the issue calmly, in the spirit of good neighbourly relations," the EU Commission said.

The European Parliament's Rapporteur for Serbia, David McAllister, issued same statement ahead of an impending visit to Serbia.

Serbia unexpectedly withdrew all diplomatic staff from Skopje, Macedonia, on Sunday.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and the foreign minister, Ivica Dacic, said on Monday they withdrew diplomatic staff from Macedonia after receiving intelligence about "offensive actions" planned against Serbia.

Vucic said on Monday that Serbian embassy staff were withdrawn from Macedonia after Belgrade obtained "evidence of very offensive intelligence against the institutions of Serbia."

Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic gave a similar statement to Tanjug news agency, also citing "offensive actions against the Republic of Serbia."

Both Vucic and Dacic also said "foreign powers" were also involved, but declined to provide more details.

However, the former EU ambassador to Macedonia, Erwan Fouere, told BIRN that the departure of staff is a disturbing development.

"If there are differences of opinion between neighbours, removing the entire diplomatic staff as Serbia has done in the case of Macedonia is not the way to resolve such differences. Quite the contrary," he said on Tuesday.

Fouere added that the new Macedonian government led by Zoran Zaev has gone out of its way to establish a close and respectful relationship with Serbia through...