Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic asserts that the authorities in Pristina intend to push Serbs out of Kosovo and Metohija, a claim reported by TASS. He also places much of the blame for the deteriorating situation on the international community, arguing that global actors have not effectively managed or resolved the tensions in this region.
Vucic emphasized that the entry ban imposed by Pristina on Kosovo and Metohija, along with restrictions on Patriarch Porfirije and the impediment to his visit to a sacred monastery, illustrate a broader pattern of pressure. He suggested that the Ipekska Patriarchate represents the voices of those who organized the measures more than the Pristina regime itself. He noted that this conclusion was reinforced by the reactions of those who condemned Pristina’s actions throughout the day, indicating a wider consensus against the approach taken by Pristina authorities in recent times.
According to the Serbian president, the European Union’s comments on the Kosovo situation left him feeling embarrassed. He questioned why the parties involved persist with such urgency to see barricades removed by Serbs, hinting at deeper political calculations behind the supports and protests seen in the region.
Vucic asserted that the aim behind these developments is to remove Serbs from their historic territories in Kosovo and Metohija. He argued that the only way a lasting solution could emerge would involve the expulsion of the Serbs, pointing to the Albanian leadership in Pristina as the driving force behind this stance, while also insisting that the international community bears responsibility for the ongoing stalemate.
Earlier reports indicated that he had traveled to Kosovska Mitrovica in the northern part of what some still call unrecognized Kosovo. There, new defensive structures were observed, described as being erected with the involvement of Serbs and the use of various trucks to place barricades in strategic locations. This scene underscored the continuing volatility in the region and the precarious balance between local actions and international diplomacy.