The President of the Assembly of Kosovo Kadri Veseli, told the Austrian prestigious newspaper “Die Presse” that what is happening in northern Kosovo reminds him on the operations at Crimea peninsula, prior to being annexed by Russia.
“To us, the train as such does not represent a problem. The railway line between Kraljevo in Serbia and Mitrovica north exists ever since 3 March of 2008. We are for the freedom of movement of people. However, this train was a different matter. It was carrying the slogan “Kosovo is Serbia.” This a political provocation of Belgrade. We do not need such things,” Veseli said.
Asked whether the Kosovar party acted too harshly by sending the special police being that, as Serbia’s Prime Minister Vučić put it, they did not send tanks but only a train, Vesli said that in the contrary, Kosovo institutions did not react harshly. “They only did what they are responsible of doing. Serbian leaders wanted to demonstrate their power over Kosovo with this action. We did not accept this.” Veseli reportedly said.
Speaking about the threat of the Serbian President. Tomislav Nikolič, that Serbia would send the army if required, Veseli said that Nikolić’s statement is a provocation. “We will try with all our strength to avoid conflict. However, Kosovo is an independent country and it will not tolerate any aggression of Serbia. Serbia has led many wars with terrible consequences. Many of my compatriots paid with their lives. We hope that the era of conflicts in Balkans is over,” Veseli said.
Asked what should be done to avoid repetition of the conflict, Veseli said that Kosovo is in the process of the dialogue with Belgrade, led by the EU. The train event was completely unnecessary. “We can resolve all these issues together in Brussels. This dialogue is important and we want to continue with it,” Veseli said.
