The Director of the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, Petar Petković accused the authorities of Kosovo of “planting” the weapons found during an operation in northern Kosovo on June 23.
In a press conference, Petković stated that the weapons, which were discovered by the Kosovo Police near the municipality of Zvečan, had been confiscated earlier during operations for the disarmament of citizens in Kosovo.
Kosovo’s Minister of Interior Xhelal Sveçla stated on June 23 that a “terrorist attack had been prevented” thanks to the intensive engagement of the special units of the Kosovo Police.
According to him, a vehicle with Belgrade license plates was identified approximately 100 meters from the municipality of Zvečan, carrying a large quantity of weapons, explosive devices, and ammunition.
He also shared some photos of the weapons on his Facebook page.
“This is further evidence that Serbia, through such groups and organizations, aims to destabilize our country,” Sveçla said among other things.
According to Petković, Serbian authorities had informed foreign services on June 20, without specifying exactly which ones, that Kosovo was preparing new operations to arrest Serbs in the north.
“Members of the Kosovo Police are transporting illegal weapons and ammunition, which were previously confiscated from Serbian and Albanian citizens by all police substations of the Kosovo Police. Their aim is to use the aforementioned weapons for new arrests of Serbs or keep them in the north and then supposedly find and accuse Serbs,” Petković said.
Petković also mentioned that the car in which the weapons were found had an expired registration from 2020.
He warned that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić would make a statement on this issue.
Tensions in northern Kosovo have been high since May 26.
On that day, new Albanian mayors in the northern municipalities, predominantly inhabited by Serbs, entered municipal buildings with the assistance of the Kosovo Police.
Local Serbs opposed such actions, resulting in ongoing protests.
The international community has called on Kosovo and Serbia to urgently take measures towards de-escalation.
