Is a new war starting in the Balkans?

The latest outbreak of violence in northern Kosovo has left at least four dead – after Serbia deployed artillery, tanks and infantry to the border regions, sparking international concern. The transfer of units, dramatically staged „frontline visits“, heightened combat readiness or partial mobilization are part of the usual arsenal of Serbian politics in times of crisis, writes Mihail Martens on this occasion in the „Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung“ (FAC). As in most cases the rattling of weapons does not mean an escalation of the situation, but rather leads to an easing of tensions – it works for the image of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic as a strong man who does not allow himself to be swayed by international political pressure, Deutsche Welle quotes .

With Milosevic’s methods

However, the latest case is different, FAC notes and recalls the story: the appearance last Sunday of a Serbian paramilitary unit, with armored cars, artillery and about 30 personnel, which ambushed a Kosovo police unit.

One policeman was killed, and at least three Serbs were killed in the ensuing firefights.

It is clear that the Serbian detachment could not have acted without an order from Belgrade – in the mostly Serb-populated Northern Kosovo, nothing significant happens without the favor of Belgrade.

Michael Martens also notes that Vucic applies the method of his teacher Milosevic, whose propaganda minister he was: „subcontractors“ are engaged in violence, who are systematically supported, while at the European level concern is expressed and the illusion of readiness for negotiations is created, as the goal is really just to buy time – the real goal is to control the territory.

As it became known, the paramilitary unit was under the command of Milan Radojčić, the deputy chairman of the Serbian List party, which is a kind of subsidiary of Vucić’s Serbian Progressive Party.

What’s more – Radojcic announced through his lawyer that he independently planned the action in Kosovo, without an assignment or support from Belgrade. It was about protection from the „terror“ exercised by Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti against the Serbian population in Kosovo, and the death of the Kosovo policeman was an accident, Michael Martens quoted Radojcic as saying.

The German publication also informs that the Serbian media call Radojčić a „dubious businessman“, which in most cases is deciphered as a mobster. At the same time, he is also defined as the real ruler of Northern Kosovo.

The EU has already requested that a case be filed against those responsible for the „heinous attack on the Kosovo police“, but Vucic is unlikely to hand over his „subcontractor“ Radojcic to Kosovo justice, predicts Michael Martens.

He also points out that if Radojcic remains in Serbia, and the EU seriously insists that he be handed over to the Kosovo authorities, the legal review of the latest police killing there will be consequences for Serbia – not least for Aleksandar Vucic’s Serbia.

Pristina: Serbia is preparing for war

Meanwhile, the government in Kosovo has warned that Serbia may be preparing for war. Pristina said in a statement that Serbian security forces were advancing on the border from three sides, with anti-aircraft systems and artillery at their disposal, Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NCC) noted.

In an interview with the Italian „La Repubblica“, also quoted by the NCC, Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani drew a parallel between the recent events in her country and the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014: then Russian paramilitary formations entered Ukrainian territory and fueled tensions until then. until Russia announced that it had to intervene to „protect the population“.

final theory test