North Kosovo

"The final agreement should be centred on mutual recognition," Bislimi, who is Prime Minister Albin Kurti's person in charge of the dialogue, added.

'Nothing is happening'

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti (second left) and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (right) meet for the first time in Brussels, June 15, 2021. Photo: Josep Borrell/Twitter. 

Deputy Prime Minister Besnik Bislimi in talks with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced that, following the local elections in Kosovo, "the Kosovo government will continue with the operations" seen on October 13th, when Kosovo special police entered northern Kosovska Mitrovica and Zvecan.

Responding to calls to dismiss a Kosovo Serb government minister, Goran Rakic, head of the Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista party, after his controversial statements, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti on Thursday said sacking him would not help anything.

"The issue is not Rakic. Dismissal would turn him into an issue," Kurti said on Thursday, ahead of municipal elections due on Sunday.

Namely, according to the media, that group sends exclusively reports to its headquarters, which are negatively intoned towards Serbs and the north of Kosovo. Such intelligence is also used as a cover for approving the actions of the Prime Minister of self-proclaimed Kosovo, Albin Kurti, through special units in the north of Kosovo.

Police crackdown on smuggled goods has provoked clashes in northern Serbia, which is populated mainly by Serbs.

The police used tear gas against demonstrators who were angry at the action directed to District in Northern Mitrovica and burned police officers in Zverchan.

Kosovo Police clashed with Kosovo Serb protesters in the divided northern town of Mitrovica on Wednesday as they conducted an operation against the smuggling of goods in the town.

Kosovo Serbs threw different explosive devices at the police and put up blockades of trucks on roads close to the technical high school in Serb-run North Mitrovica.

Drivers crossing the Kosovo-Serbia border on Monday started covering the state symbols on their vehicles' license plates in accordance with an agreement reached in Brussels last week.

This is a temporary solution to the license plates dispute between the two countries which saw the roads to two border crossings blocked by Kosovo Serbs for almost two weeks.

Back from the Brink

EU rule of law mission in Kosovo, EULEX, Police officers patrol the area near the border crossing between Kosovo and Serbia in Jarinje, Kosovo, September 28, 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

The roads Leposavi - Raka and Ribarii - Zubin potok were blocked for traffic on the tenth day, and the situation at the crossings is calm. The mayors of the Serb municipalities in the north of Kosovo and Metohija rejected the proposal of the KFOR commander that the units of the special Kosovo police be replaced by KFOR soldiers, and that the decision on temporary registrations remain.

Vui received the ambassadors of the United States of America, Great Britain, France, Italy and Germany, as well as the head of the European Union Delegation, who requested the de-escalation of the crisis in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, Office for Media relations of the President of the Republic of Serbia announced.