PM Brnabic: We will request additional guarantees for Serbs in Kosovo

NEWS 09.01.202309:40
Ana Brnabićf
N1/arhiva

Reacting to KFOR’s negative response to Serbia’s request for the return of its troops to Kosovo, Serbian Prime Minster Ana Brnabic said the fact that it was sent on Christmas Eve and just after an attack on Serb boys in Strpce, Kosovo, speaks about “the character of the response.” We will ask for additional guarantees for the safety of Serbs in Kosovo, because these are not conditions in which anyone in Europe should live in the 21st century, Brnabic stressed, reported the Serbian state TV (RTS).

Brnabic said she wished that Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija (the official name for what the Serbian authorities consider to be the country’s southern province) enjoyed all the protection and felt safe. “Unfortunately, this is not the case,” she said.

Serbia will continue to insist on the honoring of UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and all other agreements, especially the Brussels Agreement, and on Pristina’s obligation to form the Community of Serb Municipalities, said Brnabic.

The Prime Minister noted that what KFOR says is one thing, but that the reality on the ground is different.

“The reality is not just that the Serbs don’t feel safe, but that they are not safe. Three young men were attacked on Christmas Eve, and that is just the latest in a series of incidents. There have been over 300 such incidents in the past two years for which no one has answered,” said Brnabic.

“And then we hear that someone is capable of looking after the future of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, and that the only assistance that is not needed is that of Serbian troops. Albanian, German, Dutch and everyone else’s support is welcome, but not that of the Serbian troops,” said the Prime Minister, adding that this is not logical and that it is contrary to Resolution 1244.

“But that Resolution exists, even those who have violated it cannot escape it. And it has been violated by all those who recognized Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence. We will continue to insist on the honoring of the Resolution and we will ask for additional guarantees for the safety of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, because these are not conditions in which anyone in Europe should live in the 21st century, and I hope that we all agree at least on this,” said the Serbian Prime Minister.