The Kosovo Stability process

KFOR will be leaving the majority Serb Kosovo municipality of Štrpce

Štrpce Municipal President Zvonko Mihajlović told the Beta news agency that KFOR will we patrolling the municipality, but said that this is not enough because the situation in the municipality is far from normal.

He said that the decision to remove the KFOR troops from Štrpce is a farce that wants to show that the rule of law exists in Kosovo, that security is up to par, and that Serbs can move freely.

“The whole story regarding the transfer of authority from UNMIK to the temporary institutions and the exiting of KFOR from Štrpce and the closing of check points, has the goal of showing the situation the way it is not in reality, that everything is under control, that rule of law exists and rights exist, that Serbs can move freely, but that is not the truth,” Mihajlović said.

He said that Serbs cannot do anything to change the decision, because it was made by the American KFOR officials.

“It is not a move in a good direction, because Serbs still have limited freedom of movement,” he said, reminding that KFOR’s presence offered the residents security.

Mihajlović said that the Polish-Ukrainian KFOR contingent had a large role in the region and was a factor of stability and a guarantee that there will not be any escalations in the conflicts.

He said that KFOR’s role cannot be taken over by police because it is not capable of dealing with the greater challenges.

There are 16 villages in the municipality of Štrpce in which about 12,00 Serbs and 3,500 Albanians live.

The municipality has parallel governments—the one elected according to Serbian elections is headed by Mihajlović, while the municipal administration that recognizes the Kosovo government-organized elections is headed by Bratislav Nikolić.