Swiss Foreign Ministry urges Belgrade and Pristina not to escalate the situation

Swiss Foreign Ministry calls on Belgrade and Pristina to refrain from exacerbating the situation

Switzerland calls on Belgrade and Pristina not to escalate the situation, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“Once again we call on all parties concerned to refrain from any action that could further exacerbate the situation. KFOR (NATO-led International Force – ed.) and the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) play a key role in maintaining order and security for local communities in northern Kosovo,” it said in a statement posted on its Twitter feed.

Earlier, Serbian Defence Minister Milos Vucevic said that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic had ordered the armed forces to be placed on high alert.

The situation in Kosovo and Metohija remains tense. Police in the self-proclaimed republic of Kosovo detained several policemen in the north in December on suspicion of war crimes from the 1998-1999 conflict and of terrorism. On 10 December, Kosovo Serbs put up barricades and are on duty on roads in the north because of this.

The situation at the barricades in the municipalities of Leposavic, Zvecan and Zubin Potok remains peaceful, with local Serbs staying in tents during the night. Local women also come out to the barricades during the day. Videos of the movement of military equipment in the municipality of Raška and the overflight of Mi-35 helicopters of the country’s Air Force are spreading in the Serbian segment of the social media.

“Prime Minister” of the self-proclaimed republic of Kosovo Albin Kurti handed over Pristina’s EU Council presidency’s EU accession application to the Czech Republic on 15 December. In its turn, the Serbian Ministry of Defence handed over the request to the NATO KFOR mission command to introduce up to 1,000 Serbian policemen and military personnel to Kosovo and Metohija, in accordance with the UN Security Council resolution 1244. Several EU countries – Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Slovakia and Romania – do not recognise Kosovo.

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