This will be a catastrophe in the middle of Europe…

According to local media, there appears to be tension in Kosovo on the border with Serbia. There were reports of gunfire, but no one was injured. Air raid sirens blared. Both sides put up roadblocks. The situation is not clear. There have been no clashes between the two hostile countries, Serbia and Kosovo.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, 52, said, according to the N1 TV channel, that Serbia “has never been in a more complex and difficult situation than today”. He urged all sides to keep the peace, but warned: “If you don’t want to keep the peace, then I say that Serbia will win.”

Serbian politician Vladimir ukanovi, 42, a member of the ruling party, declared himself more threatening on Twitter on Sunday: “Everything looks to me like Serbia will be forced to start denazification of the Balkans.” Representatives are considered short-tempered and not very influential.

The term “denazification” still keeps one’s ears sharp – Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, 69, also uses it to justify his war of aggression against Ukraine. Serbia has traditionally maintained close ties with Russia. Many major media outlets have sided with Putin in the Ukraine war.

BUT: Belgrade categorically denies reports that troops have entered Kosovo. “Serbia has not crossed administrative boundaries and for now has not invaded the Kosovo and Metohija regions in any way,” the defense minister said. The word “for now” doesn’t help calm things down.

So far there has been no independent report on the current situation in Kosovo.

However, NATO also confirmed one thing statement Sunday night: “The general security situation in the northern community of Kosovo is tense.”

Weißer said in his statement: “The NATO-led KFOR mission is monitoring the situation closely and stands ready to intervene if stability is threatened.” “All necessary measures” will be taken to ensure a safe environment in Kosovo.

One of the backdrops for the latest escalation is a dispute over Serbian license plates on cars, which the Kosovo government does not want to allow again from tomorrow. Also, Serbian entry documents should no longer be as valid as they were before. For many people traveling between the two states, this makes crossing the border more complicated.

BUT: After talks with European and US partners, plans for a new border crossing were postponed by a month until September 1, the Kosovo government announced late Monday.

The government condemned the “blockade of roads in northern Kosovo” and shootings by gunmen, he said.

The tension, however, brings back bad memories: in 1999, NATO bombed Serbia to force the government of Slobodan Milosevic (1941-2006) to stop fighting in Kosovo. The UN-led peacekeeping force then moved to Kosovo, where the German armed forces also participated. Violent clashes erupted again and again. About 4,000 troops from 28 countries are currently stationed in Kosovo, including several units of the Bundeswehr.

In 2008, Kosovo declared its independence, which has since been recognized by 115 of the 193 United Nations member states. Serbia did not do this and claimed the territory for itself. Russia, China, India, Spain and Greece also do not accept Kosovo’s sovereignty.

(TL, rgz)