Kosovo begins take-over of Serbian border crossings

TIRANA, July 27 – Last weekend, Kosovar special police units launched an operation to take control of two disputed border crossings in Kosovo’s northern Serbian-run border region, following the ban by Kosovar authorities on goods coming in from Serbia– a decision made to counter Serbia’s ongoing rejection of Kosovo’s 2008 declaration of independence. Albania has remained generally quiet on these latest developments, only reacting on Wednesday. Kosovar authorities said they were forced to move after the European Union’s rule of law mission, known as EULEX, failed to enforce the ban. NATO peacekeepers have been deployed to the area to deal with any violent threats and their top commander Maj. Gen. Erhard Buehler has engaged in talks with Serbian demonstrators to diffuse the situation. Kosovo authorities have criticized EULEX for not moving against Serbian warlords in Kosovo’s north, and of being biased against former ethnic Albanian rebels that fought against Serbia during the 1998-99 war. EULEX has launched a series of investigations into alleged war crimes committed by the former rebels as well as embezzlement of public funds by the former guerrillas turned political leaders. Kosovo says it now controls two borders crossings with Serbia that were previously loosely managed by both EU police and Serbian members of the Kosovo police who refused orders from the capital, Pristina. Lightly armed special police units crossed into the Serbian-run north late Monday and early Tuesday in an operation aimed at placing troops loyal to the capital Pristina in a region that takes orders from Serbia. On Tuesday, a policeman was seriously wounded after an ambush in Kosovo’s north as tensions grow with local Serbs. The officer was shot and wounded in the head during a firefight near the northern town of Zubin Potok, as the police undertook an operation to extend the authority of the Kosovo government into the Serbian-controlled north. He died later at the hospital. Throughout Tuesday there were reports of shootouts and skirmishes between police and local Serbians, but the claims could not be independently verified. Another officer was wounded in a grenade attack as Serb demonstrators tried to block the operation launched late Monday. Serbian officials want Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian police to fully withdraw from the north and leave Serbian members of the force to man the border crossings. Monday’s move by Kosovo’s police unit was met with condemnation from the European Union. It said the police action was done unilaterally and the 27-member bloc did not approve, an its 3,000-strong rule of law mission was quick to distance itself from the action.
In Washington, President Barack Obama’s administration criticized Kosovo for taking control of the crossings without coordinating with the international community, but he fell short of condemning the action itself.
Tirana said Wednesday it was following the developments of recent days in the north of Kosovo and expressed its regret that one police officer lost his life and many others remained injured.
“The Republic of Albania has supported and supports Kosovo’s independence and extent of its sovereignty throughout the territory of the Republic, internationally recognized by 77 countries, as a factor of peace and stability in the Balkans,” said a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
“It is essential that the solutions come through the dialogue and reached agreements, from the implementation of the “Strategy for the North” of the Government of Kosovo and the International Civilian Office, which will enable the legitimate exercise of power from elected local authorities and central government in the north of Kosovo.
The resolving of the remaining problems between the Republic of Kosovo and that of Serbia should be made through the process of dialogue and it is essential that the conclusions reached between them, mediated by the EU, become enforceable agreements with international warranty,” it added.
But such actions could undermine progress made between Kosovo and Serbia in EU-sponsored talks aimed at resolving practical issues, such as travel documents. Kosovo has been recognized by 77 nations. But Serbia has successfully blocked its membership in the United Nations, where many countries share its rejection of unilateral declarations of independence by separatist regions.