Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti states Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic prepared and bought an attack in northern Kosovo “to destabilise” the nation with the objective of beginning a war.
About 30 greatly armed Serbs stormed the town of Banjska last Sunday, battled Kosovo cops in a weapon fight, and barricaded themselves into a Serbian Orthodox abbey. A Kosovo police officer and 3 Serb aggressors were eliminated.
Hours later on, cops retook the abbey where they discovered a big cache of weapons and ammo. 6 injured members of the armed group were hospitalised in southern Serbia, according to Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla, while other enemies got away.
Kurti informed Al Jazeera that Serb “paramilitary developments” in Banjska had actually devices made in Serbia that can not be discovered on the free market.
While details is still being collected by district attorneys and Kosovo authorities, “what we understand is that we’ve taken 5 million euros [$5.3m] worth of ammo and weapons and it was all made in factories in Serbia,” Kurti declared.
“Hand grenades, gatling gun, whatever that we seized was produced in Serbia and can not be discovered on the marketplace. It’s apparent the army of Serbia provided this to the paramilitary developments.”
Kurti stated the supreme objective of Sunday’s attack was for Serbia to stage a circumstance and raise stress.
“They desired our authorities to get in the Banjska abbey so they might then share pictures around the world [showing] bullets on the abbey’s walls. That didn’t occur since our authorities are extremely strong and really expert and [the attackers] gotten away.”
“They just desired the start of a war to be on Sunday, September 24. [It’s well known] how the war began in Sarajevo. On March 1, 1992, throughout a wedding event, an Orthodox Serb priest was hurt. We were extremely cautious that something comparable does not take place. I believe they desired to duplicate the circumstances from the start of the war [in former republics of Yugoslavia]”
Kurti stated Milan Radoicic, a leading Kosovo Serb political leader who confessed on Friday that he prepared the attack, “got logistical, military devices and preparation from Belgrade, and likewise got political orders from President Vucic”, noting their close ties.
Radoicic– vice president of the “Serb List”, a Belgrade-supported Serb political celebration in Kosovo– resigned from his position on Friday and called the attack a “defence” operation versus Kosovo authorities. He has actually rejected any participation or assistance by the Serbian federal government.
‘Serbian security organizations’
Dan Ilazi, head of research study at the Kosovar Centre for Security Studies, informed Al Jazeera that German and United States authorities likewise acknowledged the devices included would be tough to obtain without top-level connections.
“For circumstances, among the grenade launchers they utilized can just be bought by the authorization of the federal government in Serbia. Plus, a few of the people associated with this attack, according to Kosovo cops, belong to the security facility in Serbia,” Ilazi stated, including that Radoicic’s “connections to the Serbian federal government are really transparent”.
“The level to which the Serbian president himself learnt about this attack is arguable … The duty over this attack, the proof provided up until now, plainly appears to reveal involvement of Serbian security organizations.
“My individual suspicion is that this maybe is likewise prompted, or supported or motivated by Russia, who keeps a strong existence in Serbian security organizations,” Ilazi stated.
Vucic and his workplace did not react to Al Jazeera about the accusations, however he has actually rejected any federal government participation in Sunday’s attack.
On Thursday, he informed the Reuters news firm that Serbia will examine the origin of the taken weapons consisting of a cache of attack rifles, anti-tank rocket launchers, hand grenades, ground mine and drones.
“Why this would be advantageous for Belgrade? What would be the concept? To damage our position we have been developing for a year? To damage this in a day? … Serbia does not desire war,” Vucic stated.
He stated suspects will be examined and Radoicic would be “summoned by the district attorney”.
In turn, Vucic implicated Kurti of wishing to expel Serbs from Kosovo.
Kurti’s rejection to form an Association of Serb Municipalities, as part of the 2013 contract in between Belgrade and Pristina that would designate Kosovo Serbs more autonomy, is what sustained stress resulting in violence in Banjska, he stated.
Vucic informed Serbian television he has year-old details that Serbs in Kosovo have actually been getting ready for resistance, keeping in mind the barriers Serb locals established more than a year back.
“The scenario is boiling … Kurti did this, he joined Serbs,” stated Vucic.
Some 50,000 Serbs who reside in north Kosovo do not identify Pristina organizations and view Belgrade as their capital. Clashes have actually consistently accompanied Kosovo cops and NATO-led peacekeepers referred to as KFOR. Sunday’s violence was the worst in years.
‘They pertained to assault’
Kurti questioned what a greatly armed Serb paramilitary group was carrying out in a 14th-century abbey in Banjska.
“Who are they protecting there? They concerned attack … [Vucic] enjoys war, he wants war and he desires war since he desires a Republika Srpska in Kosovo,” Kurti informed Al Jazeera, describing the Serb-led entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina, formed throughout the Dayton peace contract in 1995, which officially ended the war however is the source of much chaos today.
[Republika Srpska was formed] since there was a war and a genocide in Bosnia. And now he desires a war and another genocide in Kosovo so he can get a Republika Srpska [in Kosovo]however he will not,” Kurti included.
On Friday, White House National Security Council representative John Kirby informed press reporters the United States is calling on Serbia to withdraw its forces from the border, after it found an “extraordinary” Serbian military accumulation– “a really destabilising advancement”.
In a declaration on Friday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated he talked to Vucic to de-escalate stress. He “invited KFOR’s increased existence and the North Atlantic Council’s choice to authorise extra forces”.
To prevent such attacks from occurring once again, Kurti informed Al Jazeera 2 things are urgently required– security for Kosovo and sanctions for Serbia.
“All the time they are running some military drills by our border … I believe this is really harmful. They will believe you are either scared or weak. That’s why the worldwide neighborhood– the European neighborhood, NATO, the United States and the UK– should reveal and show to Belgrade that a go back to the 1990s will not be permitted.”