Russia is involved in the conflict between Kosovo and Serbia after Pristina authorities have declared two Russian diplomats from the Pristina office of the Russian Embassy to Serbia persona non grata, the Moscow daily Kommersant wrote on Monday. Pročitaj više

The Russian Foreign Ministry described Pristina’s decision as a provocation and added it would not have consequences on the legal status of Russian diplomats who left Kosovo on Saturday.

Kommersant says Russia always respond reciprocally to such moves, but „in this case, it is impossible because Moscow does not recognise the independence of Kosovo and there are no representatives of Kosovo in Russia.“

The daily added that several Kosovo media reported that Russian diplomats Denis Vengerski and Alexei Krivosheyev left Kosovo on Saturday and published their photos, in which one was packing things in a car, while the other showed a car crossing the administrative border with Serbia.

It also reported that Kosovo media said Krivosheev was expelled from Albania in January. He had previously worked at the Russian Embassy in Skopje, where he „allegedly cooperated“ with opponents of the current Prime Minister Zoran Zaev.

The current diplomatic conflict between Pristina and Moscow is not the first of its kind. In May 2019, ordered by then Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, Kosovo’s Foreign Ministry declared the Russian diplomat from the UN mission, Mikhail Krasnoshekov, a persona non grata, Kommersant said.

It added the Russian Ministry then threatened Pristina that such precedent would have far-reaching consequences.