Another article in the German press about Kosovo, the title of which mentions the word “war”. The German Zeit publishes an extensive analysis on its portal, signed by Mihael Tuman, the editor-in-chief of that paper in Moscow and a well-known expert on Russia and Eastern Europe. The title reads: ” Is a new war in the Balkans threatening?” However, the subtitle is somewhat different: “Why the build-up of the Serbian army on the border with Kosovo is a distraction tactic.”
The author first states that “invasions have become very frequentin recent times”. He cites the example of Ukraine, but also Azerbaijan, and then asks the question: “Are we facing a new invasion and refugee disaster, this time in Southeast Europe?”
The text explains in detail the history of the conflict over Kosovo and, among other things, states: “The European Union(EU) has been conducting dialogue with both sides for many years, thus far successfully preventing another war like the one in the 1990s. But now the dialogue is in danger, and with it the fragile peace in that part of Southeast Europe.”
On September 24th, “scenes like from an action movie” took place. A brief description of the event follows, and Milan Radoicic is also mentioned, “who is considered a villain in Albanian Kosovo, but a hero in Serbia.”
“And what is this about Radoicic?”, asks the author and offers two possible answers: “If Vucic controls him, as the close relationship between the two parties suggests, then that is bad. This means that the president is playing a double game: nice Aleksandar in Brussels and angry Vucic in Kosovo. But if Radoicic no longer listens to Vucic‘s commands, then it is much worse. This means that Vucic does not have control over the Kosovo Serbs and their political leadership. Therefore, he would be a weak figure on whom the EU would no longer be able to rely.”
In the end, the conclusion: “There will be no Russian-style invasion, Vucic‘s connoisseurs and observers in Belgrade are pretty sure of that. Serbia would thus completely devalue its status as a candidate for EU membership. Vucic himself stated that he issued orders for the withdrawal of some units. But it is also obvious that he left a part of the army – to rattle a little in the election campaign.”
Osmani for Welt: Serbia is following Putin’s Crimea scenario
The German newspaper Welt, under the title “Serbia wants to annex the north of Kosovo – according to Putin’s scenario for Crimea”, publishes an interview with the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, and here are some of her answers:
“Serbia has been planning to annex the north of Kosovo for a while, exactly according to the scenario that Russian President Vladimir Putin used in Crimea. Belgrade incites the Serbian community in Kosovo with its propaganda. Terrorist groups are trained in Serbian military bases. Heavy weapons and ‘green men’ – paramilitaries in uniforms without insignia – are smuggled into the north of Kosovo through illegal routes. We analyzed maps, drone footage, the attackers’ weapons and the phones they left behind as they fled. It is clear from this that the attackers on September 24th, in a hybrid operation, wanted to complete the matter at 37 locations at the same time and occupy the north of our country.”, N1 reports.
E.Dz.
