Vučić says Serbs will not participate in local elections in northern Kosovo

(Patria) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić confirmed today that Kosovo Serbs will not participate in the local elections on April 23 and assessed that the "security situation in Kosovo is difficult", and the dissatisfaction of Kosovo Serbs due to the violation of the agreement on license plates and other agreements "has reached its peak".

Vučić, after a meeting with representatives of Serbs from Kosovo in Belgrade, confirmed that Serbian representatives will not participate in the local elections on April 23 in four municipalities in northern Kosovo, after representatives of Serbs withdrew from Kosovo institutions during the crisis at the end of 2022.

- My idea was to agree today and announce all positions, but that was not possible and we agreed to work together in the coming days, both with representatives of the Serbian List and with representatives of our institutions and our bodies in Kosovo - Vučić said.

He emphasizes that "both people from the north and the south" of Kosovo have shown "enormous anger and fury" at the behavior of the Albanian leadership in Pristina, but "also at the silence of the international community".

- Serbs from Kosovo are simultaneously demanding "significant and greater support from the state of Serbia" - Vučić said, announcing a joint address with representatives of Kosovo Serbs next week, Hina reports.

Belgrade and Pristina accepted the European plan for Kosovo in Brussels on February 27, and then on March 18 in Ohrid, the Annex for the implementation of that agreement, which should lead to the normalization of relations, accompanied by constant tensions and crises.

The European Union, with the support of the USA, emphasizes that the offered plan, through coordinated implementation and tasks for both sides, should become legally binding for Serbia and Kosovo, but Pristina and Belgrade interpret the assumed obligations differently.

The last in a series of meetings was the technical dialogue on April 4 in Brussels, where modest progress was made in harmonizing the search for missing persons.

At the same time, new tensions arose in Kosovo due to different interpretations of the previously reached agreement on license plates, as well as after the arrest of several Serbs whom Pristina accuses of criminal acts, while the Serbian side considers this illegal and new pressure on Serbs.