Serbian President Accuses US, UK, Germany of Helping Create Kosovo Army
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic accused the US, UK, and Germany of aiding the self-proclaimed Kosovo Republic to create a regular army in an address to the country on 14 December.
"Today it became clear that Albanians and their sponsors never wanted compromise, it is clear that the US and UK were behind all their actions, and in regards to Kosovo's army — Germany too played its part," Vucic said, Sputnik reported.
The Serbian president added that his country was "disappointed" by this fact, but, at the same time, "not surprised".
On 14 December, Kosovo's parliament adopted a set of laws that enable the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) into a national army for the self-proclaimed republic. It is expected to be a 5,000-strong force, with 3,000 more reservists available for call-up.
Vucic has requested an urgent UN Security Council meeting to discuss the creation of Kosovo's army, stating that it violates the spirit of dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade, but also puts western Balkan peace and security at risk. Russia has also condemned the move as a "gross violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244" that could seriously aggravate the situation in the Balkans.
Kosovo is a partially recognized republic, which broke away from Serbia as the result of a war in Yugoslavia, in which NATO intervened in March 1999. NATO troops, called Kosovo Force (KFOR), still remain in Kosovo under the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 to maintain peace in the area.
