The rapporteur in the European Parliament, Viola Von Cramon, has attacked the Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic through a post on Twitter, referring to the kidnapping of Serbian soldiers in the north of Kosovo.

According to her, autocrats under pressure within the country are looking for ways and means to divert attention from problems at home. Von Cramon said that the kidnapping of the policemen is an illustration of this case.

“What autocrats do when they are under pressure at home? They look for ways and means to divert attention from problems at home. A classic case of this seems to be yesterday’s incident in the border area between Kosovo and Serbia,” she wrote.

The American State Department has also reacted for the first time after the kidnapping of the policemen in the north of Kosovo.

“To immediately and unconditionally release the three Kosovo policemen detained by Serbia”, said the US State Department in a statement this Thursday, adding that Kosovo and Serbia should take immediate steps to de-escalate tensions.

“We believe that Kosovo and Serbia should take immediate steps to reduce tensions,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

The police arrest Wednesday night is the latest in a series of developments that have raised tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, sparking fears of a repeat of violence between the former wartime enemies.