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| American KFOR soldiers in the north of Kosovo |
Serbia insists that only members of the NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR, are stationed at the border on the Kosovo side. This statement followed a meeting on October 25th between the Serbian Minister of Defense, Millosh Vučeviq, and his Turkish counterpart, Jashar Guler. This request is similar to the suggestions of the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, that the North should be taken over by KFORI.
Turkey assumed command of KFOR in October.
"We strongly encourage direct communication between the Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Army and the KFOR Commander. We insist that only KFOR personnel should be present along the administrative line from the Kosovo and Metohija side. They should continue joint patrols of the Serbian Army with those of KFOR along the administrative line," said Vučeviq as Radio Free Europe reports.
Serbia, which does not recognize Kosovo, refers to the border with Kosovo as the administrative line.
The border between Kosovo and Serbia is guarded by the Kosovo Border Police and KFOR personnel.
Vučeviq stated that security in Kosovo was the "main topic of discussion" with his Turkish counterpart.
"We are encouraged by the assurances we received from Mr. Guler regarding the security of the Serb community," he added.
According to the announcement, Vučeviq reiterated Belgrade's position that Serbs in Kosovo "have no problem with the presence of KFOR personnel, and their presence reduces tensions and leads to de-escalation."
Relations between Kosovo and Serbia worsened further after an armed group of Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in Banjska, Zvečan, on September 24th. Responsibility for the attack was claimed by Milan Radojičić, former deputy chairman of the Serbian List, the leading Serbian party in Kosovo with the support of Belgrade.
Prishtina has presented drone footage showing Radojičić participating in the Banjska attack, which Kosovo considers a terrorist act. Serbia has stated that it will not extradite him to Kosovo. Currently, he is under investigation in both Kosovo and Serbia for various crimes.
Turkey has intensive diplomatic relations with Kosovo and is one of the largest investors in both states. Kosovo and Turkey also have military cooperation, and Prishtina has purchased weapons from Ankara for the Kosovo Security Force (KSF).
This cooperation has been criticized by Serbia.
During the meeting with the Turkish minister, Vučeviq also discussed the arming of the KSF by Turkey.
"I am pleased, not with promises or guarantees, but with the messages we received from Guler regarding the arming of the KSF," said Vučeviq.
Meanwhile, Guler stated that Turkey supports peace, stability, and the participation of Balkan states in international organizations and the membership of Serbia in the European Union.
He added that Turkey believes that dialogue is the only way to maintain peace and stability in the region.