NATO's mission in Kosovo has no mandate to decide whether the main bridge over the Ibar River - which connects the Albanian-majority South Mitrovica and the Serb-majority North - should be fully opened, the alliance's top US admiral, George Wikoff, said on Tuesday.
Wikoff, commander of NATO's Joint Forces Command in Naples, said that this should be decided by Kosovo and the European Union (EU) itself, after KFOR ends its permanent presence on the bridge.
"Decisions regarding KFOR's presence at the Mitrovica bridge are based on our assessment of the security situation," he said, according to a KFOR statement.
KFOR reiterated in the statement that it is developing a process to limit the presence of its troops on the bridge, which is open only to pedestrians, but not to vehicle traffic.
The peacekeeping mission's decision to limit its presence and transfer responsibilities on the bridge to the Kosovo Police has been opposed by Serbia.
The bridge over the Ibar River was blocked after the 1999 war and, over the years, has been a hotbed of ethnic clashes.
For this reason, the peacekeeping mission has been keeping the bridge under surveillance ever since.
Now, NATO says that the gradual withdrawal of troops from the bridge is part of the process of optimizing KFOR's presence, following the improvement of the security situation in the country.
KFOR added that it will continue to regularly assess the situation on the ground and maintain a positioning designed to contribute to sustainable security for all people living in Kosovo.
He stressed that its personnel will continue to be present in the areas around the bridge.
Meanwhile, Wikoff's statements come a few days after a planned meeting between Kosovo's acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, and KFOR Commander, Ozkan Ulutash, failed.
Kurti announced the meeting with Commander Ulutash for last Saturday. But later that day, KFOR announced that “due to unforeseen circumstances,” the meeting between them did not take place.
Kosovo has repeatedly called in recent years for the bridge to be fully opened, and Kurti said days ago that it was "absurd" that the main bridge over the Ibar River continues to be closed.
On the other hand, a European Commission spokeswoman said last week that she expects “effective coordination and meaningful consultations between the affected municipalities and the central institutions of Kosovo” for the opening of the bridge.
"What we also ask for is that the Kosovo Police guarantee the security of all communities, in accordance with democratic principles, human rights and the rule of law, so that everyone feels safe," the spokeswoman said.
The Kosovo government had announced in July 2024 the opening of the main bridge over the Ibar River to vehicle traffic, an initiative that caused tensions and reactions from the international community.
While the bridge did not fully open, Kosovo authorities built two other bridges next to the main bridge – one for pedestrians and one for vehicles – with the aim of connecting North Mitrovica with South Mitrovica.
Serbia has opposed KFOR's plans to limit its presence on this bridge.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has written a letter to NATO chief Mark Rutte, asking him to stop this process.
"I just sent a letter to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, demanding that KFOR, in accordance with UN Resolution 1244, stop the terror against Serbs, their persecution and arrests, the demolition of houses, as well as the opening of the bridge over the Ibar River," Vučić wrote on Instagram on August 20.
According to Vučić, the withdrawal of KFOR from the bridge at this moment would "create conditions for a final confrontation with the Serbian population" in northern Kosovo.
But Kosovo's acting Defense Minister, Ejup Maqedonci, said Serbia's efforts to present the limitation of KFOR's presence as a threat to the Serbian community or as evidence that the situation in Kosovo is unstable do not match the reality on the ground. /Taken from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
