Serbia and Kosovo must act in line with EU policy - European Commission President
Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Commission (Photo: Getty Images)
Serbia and Kosovo must meet the requirements set by international mediators to make progress in their efforts toward European Union membership, said Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, according to Bloomberg.
She emphasized that Serbia should "de facto" recognize Kosovo while Kosovo should implement a plan to provide ethnic Serbs with a certain level of autonomy.
Conflict between Kosovo and Serbia
On September 24, the authorities of Kosovo reported that around 30 Serbian militants crossed the northern border, killing a police officer and setting up barricades before engaging in an hours-long shootout with local law enforcement. The country then announced a special operation to apprehend the attackers, which concluded with the arrest of six individuals and the killing of three. This incident heightened tensions in the region.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic stated that Belgrade had no connection to the unrest and claimed to be conducting an independent investigation into the situation.
On the same day, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti stated that negotiations with Serbia had reached an impasse. He emphasized that Lajcak allegedly lost neutrality, and Vucic allowed himself to make derogatory remarks about Kurti.
