US Ambassador says Kosovo crisis requires political solution

He said that everyone involved is trying to get to the point where the situation calms to tackle political issues which need to be resolved.

The ambassador said that he understands the frustration of the Kosovo Serbs which have been in place for some time. He said that the Serb community has been in Kosovo for centuries and has the right to know what their future will be. According to him, efforts have to be invested so that the Serb community can live and feel good in their homes in Kosovo.

He warned that the barricades put up by the Serbs in northern Kosovo following the arrest of several of their countrymen are an evident problem which the Serbs see as a protest. He is quoted as saying that he understands why everything happened by that its time for the people who set up the barricades to remove them and voiced hope that they are prepared to do that.

He voiced hope that the political process will continue with less tension to resolve important issues such as the way the Community of Serb Municipalities (CSM) will operate. The CSM is an agreed obligation and we are now dealing with ways to implement it.