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Tense end to Vucic's visit as Albanians put up barricades (Tanjug, Prva Tv, B92)

President Aleksandar Vucic completed his two-day visit to Kosovo and Metohija on Sunday by addressing citizens at the central square in Mitrovica North.

The second day of Vucic's visit to Kosovo was marked by incidents and the roadblocks put up by ethnic Albanians on the way to the Serb village of Banje.

The president then decided to return to Mitrovica North, as police informed him that the blockades were two kilometers ahead of the convoy, and that it was not safe to continue the trip.

Vucic told Serbs in Mitrovica North that his obligation was to say that Serbia will always be with its people in Kosovo and Metohija, through thick and thin, and that it "only wants to win more rights for Serbs in Kosovo through a compromise."

He added that there is currently no "draft solution" for the Kosovo issue - "nor are we close to it."

Earlier in the day, roadblocks were set up on five locations using tractors and logs. Then the Kosovo government decided to cancel Vucic's visit to the village of Banje for security reasons. The decision came into force "immediately," Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj announced.

When he returned to Mitrovica North, Vucic addressed citizens in Banje by telephone.

"I'm sorry that I could not come, because Pristina authorities did not want it," Vucic said on the phone.

He said that those who had set up the barricades "will not encounter a unanimous condemnation, because whatever they do, it's their own baby."

"I've come to tell the truth about our difficult situation, because I cannot and must not be silent," he added.

Vucic said that the idea is to preserve peace, and "we are trying to establish bridges of trust towards the Albanians.

See at: https://www.b92.net/eng/news/politics.php?yyyy=2018&mm=09&dd=09&nav_id=105031