On Friday, the Kosovo authorities closed five parallel Serbian institutions in the north of the country – an area inhabited mostly by Serbs, Kosovo’s Minister of Local Self-Government Administration, Elbert Krasniqi, announced.
He said that parallel Serbian municipalities work under the leadership of Serbia, “violating the constitutionality and laws of the Republic of Kosovo.”
Krasnići stated that the following institutions were closed: Kosovo District Mitrovica, the parallel municipality of Mitrovica, the parallel municipality of Zvečan, the parallel municipality of Zubin Potok and the parallel municipality of Leposavić, reports Radio Free Europe.
The Embassy of the United States of America in Pristina criticized this decision and announced that it is “concerned and disappointed” by the continuous uncoordinated actions of the Government of Kosovo, which reflect the growing deterioration of relations between the two countries.
Kosovo police surrounded a building in the north of the country with tape, during the operation to close Serbian parallel institutions, on August 30.
The deputy director of the Kosovo police for the northern region, Veton Elšani, confirmed to Radio Free Europe that special units carried out an operation in four municipalities with a Serbian majority in the north. The action was carried out at two locations in North Mitrovica, as well as at one location in Zubin Potok and another in Leposavic.
According to him, the police carried out an operation in the hospital, in the laundry, after reports that there might be weapons.
The president of the Serbian List, Zlatan Elek, said at a press conference that “today it was clearly seen that Kurti does not want Serbs” in Kosovo, nor the institutions of Serbia, nor the Association of Municipalities with a Serbian majority.
The leader of this leading Serbian party in the north of Kosovo said that it was “another attempt at ethnic cleansing” of Serbs from Kosovo, primarily from the north.
Belgrade is asking for an immediate reaction from the international community
The Prime Minister of Serbia, Miloš Vučević, requested an urgent and the strongest reaction from the international community.
In a press release from the Government of Serbia, Vučević said that Serbia has sent a clear message that it firmly stands for peace and stability in the region, but that “it will not allow violence against its people.”
The director of the Office for Kosovo in Serbia, Petar Petković, announced that the closure of Serbian institutions in the north of Kosovo will have “far-reaching consequences for the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.”
“Albin Kurti has started to shut down all Serbian institutions in the north of the province, which are not parallel institutions, but those institutions that should be the basis for the formation of the ZSO”, said Petković, and added that the international community in recent months “repeated persistently” that Pristina the Association of Municipalities with a Serbian majority should be established as soon as possible.
As he said, the closed institutions provided the Serbs in Kosovo with “a minimum of public services and existence, from social benefits, through salaries and pensions”.
“This is an obvious proof that Kurti is not interested in the views of the international community,” said Petković.
Previously closed seven more
Earlier this year, Kosovo authorities closed seven more parallel Serb municipalities in other parts of the country, such as Prizren, Pec, Suva Reka, Istok, Klina, Orahovac and Dragaš.
“The institutions of the Republic of Kosovo offer services to all citizens, without distinction. They are the right address for all the demands and needs of our citizens. We remain committed to as many services as possible with the highest quality,” said Krasniqi.
The Kosovo Police previously announced that at the request of the Ministry of Administration and Local Self-Government, they conducted a police action in four municipalities in the north of Kosovo.
“The purpose of the police action is to establish order and legality and stop the activities in five buildings that were used as illegal communes, and which are in conflict with the constitutional legal order,” the police announced.
The government of Kosovo has said on several occasions that by abolishing parallel Serbian institutions, it is trying to establish law and order, especially in the north of Kosovo, which is populated mostly by Serbs.
Municipalities in the north
Four municipalities with a Serbian majority in the north, North Mitrovica, Zvečan, Leposavić and Zubin Potok, have been led by Albanian mayors since May last year, when they took office in local elections that were boycotted by the majority Serb population.
Local Serbs – although they received a petition to impeach the mayor – later boycotted the process, which was called for by Lista Srbija, the largest party of Serbs in Kosovo, which has the support of official Belgrade.
In Kosovo, there are municipalities, public enterprises and enterprises, kindergartens, primary and secondary schools and public universities that are directly financed by the Government of Serbia, and which are located in cities and towns where the Serbian community lives.
According to the laws in Kosovo, these institutions are illegal.
In 2013, in the dialogue for the normalization of relations in Brussels, Kosovo and Serbia reached an agreement on the closure of parallel institutions, but this agreement has not yet been fully implemented.
In the budget for 2024, Serbia has increased funds for the work of parallel institutions in Kosovo, improving the lives of citizens, providing information, but also for supporting the clergy and monasticism in Kosovo.
It also supports the work of the University of Pristina, based in northern Mitrovica, and invests in environmental projects.
