Residents cross a bridge from the south side of the River Ibar, which divides ethnic Serb and Albanian communities, in Mitrovica, Kosovo, on Aug. 23, 2022. (Ben Kilb/Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg) -- Western partners called on Kosovo to stop its plans to reopen a key bridge over a river separating Albanian and Serbian communities, which may rekindle tensions in the north of the Balkan country.
US Ambassador to Pristina Jeffrey Hovenier said Friday that the US, NATO and European Union do not support any changes to the current status of the bridge over the Ibar River in the northern city of Mitrovica, one of four Serb-majority municipalities in northern Kosovo.
Nearly a thousand protesters gathered on the Serbian side of the city on Wednesday, demanding that the bridge remain closed to traffic out of fear that reopening it would intensify the presence of Kosovo’s Albanian-dominated authorities in their community.
The bridge in Mitrovica is currently only open to pedestrians. A former flashpoint, it’s now patrolled by international soldiers. It has become the iconic symbol of division between Kosovo’s Serb minority and its Albanian majority.
Kosovo’s prime minister, Albin Kurti, said he seeks to integrate Serb communities like north Mitrovica into Kosovo and denies the move to reopen the bridge is inflammatory, saying that it intends to “foster peaceful interaction.”
Nikola Kabasic, a retired judge, said at the protest that without the barriers on the bridge, the Serbian community would have been forced to leave the country, local media reported.
The latest controversy comes after Pristina received renewed criticism from its Western allies for unilateral and uncoordinated actions against Serb institutions in the area, such as banks and post offices. That move has also angered neighboring Serbia, which does not recognize Kosovo’s independence.
Kurti is keen to provoke a conflict before US elections as “his time is running out,” Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told reporters in Belgrade late Tuesday, referring to the Biden administration’s support for Kosovo.
A reopening could cause an “escalation of violence,” Vucic said, hoping that KFOR, NATO’s mission in Kosovo, would “preserve peace and Serbian lives” and “prevent an invasion by Albanians.”
In a post on X on Tuesday, Kurti said that the Serbian leader had made “false accusations” and was attempting to “create an atmosphere of fear” to elicit a reaction from KFOR in Mitrovica.
KFOR, NATO’s mission in Kosovo, said Tuesday that any decision to open the main bridge should be made through the EU-mediated dialogue between the country and neighboring Serbia.
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