Kosovo

Five Western nations, including the United States, have welcomed Serbia’s upcoming referendum on judicial reforms but expressed regret that Kosovo will no longer allow the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to collect the ballots of eligible Serb voters living there.

Kosovo has ordered the expulsion of a Russian diplomat and member of the United Nations mission in the Balkan country on national security grounds.

Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti says that talks on the normalization of ties with Serbia are stalling despite of what he called a "tectonic shift for good" in bilateral relations.

Kosovo has ordered the expulsion of two Russian diplomats, accusing Moscow of “destabilizing” activities. President Vjosa Osmani said on October 22 that the two diplomats at Russia’s liaison office to Kosovo were declared personae non gratae and ordered to leave the country.

Tensions over vehicle licence plates and anti-smuggling operations, between authorities in Kosovo and Serbia, in recent weeks, may contribute to unravelling “steady but fragile progress made in rebuilding trust among communities” in Kosovo and Serbia. The warning came from Special Representative and head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Zahir Tanin, in a briefing to the Security Council on Friday.  

Several ethnic Serbs and police have been injured in clashes after an operation targeting smuggling gangs in northern Kosovo. Regional tensions remain high after a standoff between Serbia and Kosovo over border controls.

Serbia and Kosovo have reportedly agreed to end a standoff at their border that was ignited by a dispute over license plates.

In an interview with DW, the president of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, confirms her commitment to EU integration and NATO. She also emphasizes the country's full support of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers war crimes court.