British representative plays down fears of renewed conflict in Kosovo

Prishtina, Kosovo (Tirana Echo) – British Ambassador to Kosovo Ruairí O’Connell plays down media allegations of a possible renewed armed conflict between Serbia and Kosovo.

Mr. O’Connell accused various media outlets and political circles of spreading fear through ‘fake news’ while encouraged both sides to continue their EU mediated talks in Brussels, as the best way to move forward.

‘It’s been 18 years now that KFOR is present in Kosovo and this is the best guarantee for Kosovo and its people to remain calm. We are here and this should be enough for you. There is no chance for a new conflict. Whenever I hear such statements I feel sorry about the situation. The Balkans do not need any more conflicts,’ said the O’Connell.

O’Connell accepted the fact that many Kosovo citizens are already armed as a result of the 1999 war in, but said that this should not be an excuse to tolerate such statements.

‘KFOR is here, EULEX too and many other European Institutions which will guarantee peace and stability so please stay calm and work for your further integration,’ stated O’Connell.

Tensions between Serbs and Albanians escalated when Serbia sent a passenger train covered with the nationalistic slogans such as “Kosovo is Serbia” in several languages to the Serb populated area of northern Kosovo.

The train was stopped by Kosovo’s Government resulting in Serbia’s President Tomislav Nikolić, a radical, who said that Serbia would deploy its army in Kosovo if the local Serbs were endangered, triggering heated reactions in Kosovo.

This week both sides held their regular talks in Brussels mediated by the EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini, who confirmed that both Belgrade and Prishtina have agreed to tone down tensions and work to advance in ‘normalizing’ relations between the two countries.

“They discussed the developments over the past days, agreed to leave the tensions behind and to focus on the work ahead,” Mogherini said in a statement released after the talks this week.