KFOR operation raises tensions, official says

Serbian Ministry for Kosovo State Secretary Oliver Ivanovic has said that KFOR's closing of the alternative road around the Brnjak checkpoint was unnecessary. He claims that it raised tension in the northern part of the province. KFOR operation raises tensions, official says Ivanovic told Tanjug that he understood KFOR's initiatives when their own freedom of movement was in question, but that the alternative road used by Serbs in no way jeopardized the safety of the international troops. KFOR troops closed the alternative crossing between northern Kosovo and central Serbia on Saturday morning. He appealed to KFOR representatives to adjust their activities to the new situation and "wait for coming talks regarding northern Kosovo." "I think political solutions must be sought for the situation in the north, and northern Kosovo must be defined in a political and legal sense, but KFOR does not play a major role in this process," stressed Ivanovic. “KFOR's role must be reduced to ensuring the safety of all residents of Kosovo, above all Serbs, who are the only ethnic community truly at risk,” the state secretary concluded. Oliver Ivanovic (Tanjug, file) Tanjug

KFOR operation raises tensions, official says

Ivanović told Tanjug that he understood KFOR's initiatives when their own freedom of movement was in question, but that the alternative road used by Serbs in no way jeopardized the safety of the international troops.

KFOR troops closed the alternative crossing between northern Kosovo and central Serbia on Saturday morning.

He appealed to KFOR representatives to adjust their activities to the new situation and "wait for coming talks regarding northern Kosovo."

"I think political solutions must be sought for the situation in the north, and northern Kosovo must be defined in a political and legal sense, but KFOR does not play a major role in this process," stressed Ivanović.

“KFOR's role must be reduced to ensuring the safety of all residents of Kosovo, above all Serbs, who are the only ethnic community truly at risk,” the state secretary concluded.