Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has accused Albania, Croatia and Kosovo of creating a “military alliance” aimed at endangering Serbia.
The statement was made during a speech to foreign ambassadors, where Vucic questioned the right of these countries to cooperate in the military field.
He said that the three countries have expanded their military agreements with Slovenia and are trying to include Bulgaria in these processes, emphasizing that the goal is to endanger Serbia’s territorial integrity and attacks on the civilian population and military-police structures.
“The Americans are arming Albanians in Kosovo, as is Turkey. The goal is an attack on Serbia and the Serbian population,” Vučić declared.
According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Serbia spent $2.2 billion on the military in 2024, which constitutes 2.6% of its gross domestic product, making it the country with the largest military investment in the region.
The most serious armed incident in recent times in the Western Balkans region occurred in September 2023 in northern Kosovo, when a group of armed Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police in the village of Banjska, killing a police sergeant. Three attackers were also killed.
Kosovo politician and businessman Milan Radoićić claimed responsibility for the attack, and has since been in Serbia, where he has not been prosecuted to date.
Vučić also accused Kosovo and the major powers of not respecting anything that has been signed so far within the framework of the Brussels dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.
The last agreement was reached precisely by Vučić and the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, in February 2023.
The implementation of that agreement, for the normalization of neighborly relations, never began.
Contrary to the agreement reached at the time, according to which Serbia would stop the campaign to de-recognize Kosovo, Vučić warned that Serbia “will have to continue the difficult and tedious work of canceling the recognitions.”