Serb deputies and mayors from around Kosovo gathered in the ethnically divided town of Mitrovica on Wednesday, and pledged to create a so-called community of Serb municipalities (ZSO) next month without government permission. Pristina and Belgrade agreed in a 2013 EU-brokered deal to the formation of the ZSO, to protect Kosovan Serbs’ rights and give them broad autonomy, but it is yet to take shape. The office of Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj said the creation of the ZSO “is an obligation that Kosovo has undertaken . Earlier, Moscow’s foreign ministry accused Kosovo and its western allies of trying to “brutally suppress [Serbs’] desire to defend their legitimate interests”. Russia is Serbia’s main ally in rejecting Kosovo’s 2008 independence declaration, which has been recognised by some 115 states.

Source: The Irish Times March 28, 2018 17:03 UTC