Why the flareup between Serbia and Kosovo? How IDs and license plates sparked protests
Tensions flared between Kosovo and Serbia as protesters blockaded roads and police closed border crossings.
The protests were prompted by new license plate laws and travel-related identity cards, according to media reports.
These laws,which may appear as bureaucratic red tape, have significant ramifications in the ongoing contentious and antagonistic relationship between Serbia and Kosovo.
Kosovo authorities moved to implement new laws regarding license plates and identity cards in an attempt to extend administrative control over the minority group of ethnic Serbians living within its borders, The Guardian reported. The laws were initially set to take effect on Monday, Aug. 1.
The license plate law would require Serbians to obtain plates from the Kosovar government, instead of the special status plates they previously obtained from the Serbian government, The Washington Post reported. Serbia has a similar law in reverse.
The new identity cards law would require ethnic Serbians to obtain additional identity documents, issued by Kosovo authorities, at the Kosovo-Serbia border and use these documents within Kosovo, The Associated Press reported. Serbia has a similar law for ethnic Kosovars.
According to Reuters, about 50,000 ethnic Serbians living in Kosovo still use the license plates and identity documents issued by the Serbian government.
Ethnic Serbians in northern Kosovo protested the news laws on Sunday by blockading roads and firing guns into the air, the Washington Post reported. The minority community used heavy machinery and trucks, some filled with gravel, to block roads near the Kosovo-Serbian border, Reuters reported.
In response, Kosovo police closed the border crossings in these areas, the Jerusalem Post reported.
KFOR, NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, monitored the developments, saying, “the overall security situation in the Northern municipalities of Kosovo is tense.”
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said Sunday that, “we have never been in a more difficult situation.”
Later on Sunday, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, said that his government would “postpone” the new laws for 30 days “on the condition that all barricades are removed.”
On Monday, NATO troops oversaw the removal of multiple blockades, Reuters reported. The troops said they were “closely monitoring the situation” and were “strongly committed to security, ready to adopt necessary measures.”
Concerns remain that the issue will reignite tensions in September, the Associated Press reported.
Kosovo and Serbia, neighboring regions in the Balkans of southern Europe, have a contentious and bloodied history, reported the Jerusalem Post.
After a brutal civil war, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Serbia still considers Kosovo part of Serbia. There is no unanimous international agreement on Kosovo’s status, but “over 100 UN-member countries” – including the U.S. – recognize Kosovo as “an independent, sovereign state,” according to the State Department.
