NATO: "Decision on opening the bridge in Mitrovica must take into account the needs of all communities"

A NATO official, responding to Radio Free Europe’s request for comment on Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić’s letter to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, in which he urged KFOR to prevent the opening of the main bridge over the Ibar River in Mitrovica, said that Rutte is “in regular contact with President Vučić.”

In his letter to Rutte, Vučić said that the decision to withdraw KFOR from the Ibar bridge and involve the police of Kosovo’s provisional institutions in the security arrangements around the Visoki Dečani Monastery was premature. He argued that KFOR’s security assessments had not adequately identified all the risks to the safety of the Serbian and other non-Albanian population in northern Kosovo and Metohija, as well as to the security of the monastery, which he described as a jewel of Serbian and world cultural heritage.

Vučić said he expected Rutte to respond “in one way or another” in the coming days and added that he believed Rutte wanted, both on behalf of NATO and personally, to ensure the safety and security of all people in the Balkans.

The main bridge over the Ibar River has been closed to vehicles since 1999 and has been continuously guarded by Italian Carabinieri serving with KFOR.

However, on August 10, KFOR announced that it had begun the “gradual transition of its permanent presence” on the main Ibar bridge.

An EU spokesperson told Gazeta Express on August 16 that, for the European Union, the condition for reopening the bridge had been met following notification from KFOR.