Peacekeepers in the region are “ready to act” in the event of a flare-up with minority Serbs, an alliance official says
NATO is prepared to send more of its troops to Kosovo in the event that tensions between local authorities and minority Serbs turn violent amid a vehicle-licensing standoff between Belgrade and Pristina.
Deputy commander of the US-led bloc’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (KFOR), Brigadier General Luca Piperni, told journalists on Tuesday that alliance forces are “vigilant and ready to act” if tensions rise.
“We can also draw on reserve forces that we can call in at short notice,” Piperni was quoted as saying by Reuters.
The statement comes after NATO’s secretary general proclaimed last month that the bloc was ready to intervene if “stability” is jeopardized in Kosovo, adding that KFOR would take “any measures that are necessary to ensure a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all the people of Kosovo.”
Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia escalated back in August after Pristina passed a law banning Serbian-issued documents and vehicle license plates. Kosovo tried to enforce the new measure by sending heavily armed special police to take control of the Serbia-Kosovo border while local Serbs resisted by erecting roadblocks and engaging in violent clashes with Pristina’s forces.