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Published On 22 Nov 2022
The European Union’s overseas argumentation main has warned of “escalation and violence” aft exigency talks betwixt Kosovo and Serbia failed to resoluteness their long-running quality implicit car licence plates utilized by the taste Serb number successful Kosovo.
Amid rising tensions betwixt the Balkans neighbours, the EU’s precocious representative, Josep Borrell, invited Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to Brussels for exigency talks connected Monday.
“The 2 parties did not hold to a solution today,” Borrell said successful a connection to the media pursuing 8 hours of fruitless discussions.
“I deliberation that determination is an important work connected the sides of some leaders for the nonaccomplishment of the talks contiguous and for immoderate escalation and unit that mightiness hap connected the crushed successful the pursuing days.”
Kosovo has attempted this twelvemonth to necessitate its Serb number to alteration their aged car plates that day earlier 1999, erstwhile Kosovo was inactive portion of Serbia, matching Serbia’s earlier prohibition connected Kosovo licence plates.
Serbs successful the bluish portion of the state person resisted, sometimes violently, but Kosovo has said it volition commencement issuing fines from Tuesday.
‘Sleepless nights are ahead’
Borrell said an EU connection could person avoided increased tensions, but portion Vucic accepted the proposal, Kurti did not.
He added that helium would pass the EU subordinate states of the 2 countries’ “lack of respect for their planetary ineligible obligations” and warned that, fixed their committedness to joining the bloc, they should enactment accordingly.
“I present expect Kosovo to instantly suspend further stages related to the re-registration of vehicles successful northbound Kosovo,” Borrell said, adding that helium asked Serbia to suspend issuing caller licence plates with acronyms of Kosovo cities.
Kurti, meanwhile, blamed Borrell for focusing solely connected the licence plates alternatively of the afloat normalisation of ties betwixt Belgrade and Pristina.
“I americium acceptable to travel backmost and speech based connected the aforesaid agenda: last statement connected afloat normalising ties, which astatine the centre has the bilateral recognition, and different existent issues of antithetic character, similar the lawsuit of the fig plates,” Kurti told reporters. “One cannot bash without the other.”
But Vucic said the Kosovan person was liable for the nonaccomplishment of the meeting.
“Sleepless nights are up of us,” helium warned.
Kosovo has attempted this twelvemonth to necessitate its Serb number to alteration their aged car plates that day from earlier 1999 erstwhile Kosovo was inactive portion of Serbia [File: Laura Hasani/Reuters]NATO, US telephone for calm
Hundreds of constabulary officers, judges, prosecutors and different authorities workers from the Serb number successful Kosovo quit their jobs this period aft the authorities successful Pristina ruled that section Serbs indispensable yet regenerate car plates issued by Northern Kosovo Serb municipal authorities loyal to Belgrade, with Kosovo authorities ones.
NATO, which inactive has astir 3,700 peacekeepers stationed successful the erstwhile Serbian state to forestall unit betwixt taste Albanians and Serbs, said connected Monday that “escalation indispensable beryllium avoided”.
“Now is the clip for work & pragmatic solutions,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tweeted.
Spoke to @JosepBorrellF. We are disappointed that it was not imaginable to lick the licence sheet dispute. Now is the clip for work & pragmatic solutions. Escalation indispensable beryllium avoided. @NATO_KFOR remains vigilant.
— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) November 21, 2022
The United States besides called for some sides to workout restraint.
State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said Washington joined the EU “in calling connected Kosovo to instantly suspend immoderate planned measures that would escalate tensions, including the imposition of conveyance fines”.
The quality implicit licence plates has stoked tensions for astir 2 years betwixt Serbia and its erstwhile breakaway province, which declared independency successful 2008 and is location to a Serb number successful the northbound backed by Belgrade.
The declaration of independency came a decennary aft a warfare betwixt taste Albanian fighters and Serbian forces that killed 13,000 people, mostly taste Albanians.
Serbia, supported by its allies Russia and China, does not recognise the statehood of its erstwhile state but astir Western countries do, including the US.
Some 50,000 taste Serbs who unrecorded determination garbage to recognise Pristina’s authorization and inactive see themselves a portion of Serbia.
Source
:
Al Jazeera and quality agencies
English (US)