Vučić accuses the West of "being silent about the events in Kosovo"

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has accused the West of being "silent" regarding events in Kosovo, referring to the closure of institutions and facilities in northern Kosovo that operate under the Serbian system.

In an interview with Serbian public television, Vučić said that recent developments and incidents in Kosovo show that these are "organized actions" by Pristina, with the help of the "resounding silence" of the international community, led by Western states.

"They are keeping quiet because they hope that in silence, the Serbian people will be expelled from their centuries-old lands in Kosovo. At the same time, this is causing anxiety among some political actors in the West and the East, which is an additional nervousness for [Kosovo's acting Prime Minister, Albin] Kurti, and this, in a political sense, we should exploit," he said.

Kosovo began closing Serbian institutions in early 2024. Initially, the temporary municipal bodies, the Postal Savings Bank, the Post of Serbia, the Pension and Health Insurance Fund, social work centers, public enterprises, and similar institutions were closed.

The closure of other facilities that operate according to the Serbian system has then continued, including sports halls, city libraries, the city museum in North Mitrovica, and others.

Kosovo considers these institutions illegal and parallel.

The international community has consistently criticized Kosovo for uncoordinated actions in northern Kosovo, regarding the closure of institutions.

The latest reaction on this issue came just hours before Vučić's interview, from the United Kingdom, which expressed concern about the uncoordinated nature of the closure of institutions in northern Kosovo, which, according to London, provide vital services to the Serbian community and other non-majority communities living in northern Kosovo.

During the interview, Vučić stated that Serbia is trying to counter the "fierce attack of Albanians", who, according to him, with the support of some Western powers and Turkey, are trying to "find as many countries as they can to recognize Kosovo's independence".

"It is extremely difficult to refute this. We do not have as much money as they do, or weapons and resources to send people around the world to buy recognition," Vucic said, without providing evidence for this claim.

Recently, Kenya and Sudan have recognized Kosovo's independence, bringing the country's current recognition to 116 countries, according to data from the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora. However, in recent years, Belgrade has claimed that several countries have withdrawn their recognition of Kosovo.

During the interview, Vučić also spoke about an infrastructure project in Kosovo. He said that yesterday he had talked with the American construction company, Bechtel, which builds roads in Serbia, about the possibility of extending the Kralevë-Novi Pazar road. He said that he had insisted that the remaining 13.1 kilometers to Jarinjë – the border point between Kosovo and Serbia – be built as well.

"Then I said: if you can build the road to North Mitrovica, we are willing to pay for it and it would be a success for us and an important road to peace, something great for the Serbian people who are in those four municipalities [in northern Kosovo]. But, I mean it would be an important road to peace with the Albanians, who could also use it since they have built their roads to South Mitrovica, and if all these roads were connected it would be good news," Vučić said.

Serbia had previously mentioned the idea of ​​building a road that would connect Jarinje with South Mitrovica. But, in 2021, the Kosovo Government, led by Albin Kurti, had said that Serbia could not build such a road, because it is on Kosovo's territory and is Kosovo's responsibility. This idea, at the time, was considered unacceptable and inappropriate by Kosovo./ REL