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Kosova

The Ministry of Defense confirmed that Turkey is sending its troops to Kosovo to reinforce KFOR

The Ministry of Defense confirmed that Turkey is sending its troops to Kosovo to

The Turkish Ministry of Defense has confirmed on Sunday, the departure of a number of Turkish soldiers to Kosovo, as reinforcement for the NATO mission in Kosovo, KFOR.

Through some images published on Twitter, the Turkish authorities have said that after the recent events in Kosovo, the battalion of the 65th Mechanized Infantry Brigade has headed towards Kosovo.

Since May 29, the local Serbs of the northern municipalities - Zveçan, Leposaviq and Zubin Potok - have been protesting to oppose the entry of the new Albanian mayors into the municipal buildings.

On May 29, the situation escalated in Zveçan, after Serbian protesters clashed with KFOR members. As a result, 30 members of the peacekeeping force and 52 Serbs were injured. The head of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, has strongly condemned the violence against KFOR members.

The violence has prompted NATO to commit an additional 700 troops to Kosovo, in addition to the 4,000 troops already in the country. The international factor has made continuous calls for taking steps towards reducing tensions.

Among the demands are the withdrawal of mayors from municipal buildings and the suspension of police operations in those buildings in the north. Some diplomats have also requested the holding of new elections in the north.

The President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani and the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti have given signs that something like this could happen.

As for Serbia, the international factor has asked this country to reduce the state of military readiness, and to help reduce tensions among the Serbian protesters in the north.

Kosovo and Serbia, with the mediation of the EU, started negotiations for the normalization of relations in 2011.

The parties have signed several agreements, but not all have been implemented./REL

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