Serbian Nationalists Demand Referendum on Kosovo

Serbian nationalists opposed to an agreement with Kosovo have launched a call for a referendum on the issue, called "People's Initiative Stand up for Kosovo".

Those behind the initiative want to block any moves towards a legally binding agreement between Serbia and its former province.

"It is necessary to exert social pressure and prevent the signing of a so-called 'legally binding agreement', which means the renunciation of Kosovo and Metohija," one of the representatives of the initiative, Mladen Obradovic, told BIRN.

He added that idea was still in the phase of gathering support, after which the process of collecting signatures will begin.

Asked why contact email of the initiative have Russian extension @mail.ru, Obradovic said that "you know that we, Serbs, are naturally orientated towards the friendship with Russia".

He also added that Russian IT companies "progressed in this sense and offer quality on highest level", adding Yandex and Kaspersky as examples.

"So why not use it?," he noted.

Asked whether the initiative received support from Russia, which is widely seen as ally of all in Serbia who opposes Kosovo independency, Obradovic said the initiative is so far "only Serbian, but we are open to receive support from our Russian brothers". 

The goal, he said, is to gather 100,000 signatures, after which the initiative for a referendum will be filed to parliament, which will then be obliged to call a referendum.

Obradovic is the founder of Obraz [Honour] - a far-right organization that was banned in 2012 on the grounds that it aimed at the violent overthrow of the constitutional order and incited national, religious and racial hatred.

However, Obradovic claimed that ...