The acting Government of Kosovo has announced plans to build two new bridges on either side of the main bridge over the Ibar River, connecting the predominantly Serb-populated North Mitrovica with the predominantly Albanian-populated South Mitrovica.
The initiative comes just days after Mitrovica—the city with the starkest ethnic division in Kosovo—established a Joint Board between the southern and northern municipalities.
The formation of the board was welcomed by the acting government, as well as by both municipalities, which see it as an opportunity to launch joint projects that improve the lives of residents on both sides of the river.
The Vetëvendosje Movement, led by acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti, released a visual rendering showing what the two new bridges would look like. According to the images, the bridges would be constructed to the left and right of the main bridge, which itself is part of the Kosovo-Serbia Brussels Agreement on freedom of movement.
“This project will ease citizens’ mobility and serve as infrastructure for communication, integration, and development between both parts of the city,” Vetëvendosje stated on June 19.
A day earlier, Acting Minister of Infrastructure Liburn Aliu announced he had signed a memorandum supporting infrastructure projects between the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning and the two municipalities. The goal is to create a more connected, functional, and livable city for all residents. The memorandum was signed with North Mitrovica Mayor Erden Atić and South Mitrovica Deputy Mayor Ariana Tahiri, in the presence of Minister of Local Government Administration Elbert Krasniqi.
The Serb List—the main political party representing Kosovo Serbs and supported by the Serbian government—responded critically, claiming Kurti is “rapidly and openly implementing a plan for the ethnic cleansing of the Serbian population from Kosovo.”
The main bridge over the Ibar, which divides Albanian-majority South Mitrovica from Serb-majority North Mitrovica, remains open only to pedestrians.
