The Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a reaction late Tuesday, considered the agreement on the military alliance signed by the Defense Ministers of Kosovo, Albania and Croatia, today in Tirana, a "provocation".
In response, Serbia said it would send an urgent request to the Foreign Ministries of Croatia and Albania, demanding a detailed explanation regarding the signing of the trilateral memorandum on cooperation in the field of defense. According to Belgrade, with this agreement, these two countries, "together with the illegal representative of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government in Pristina", have taken steps that undermine regional stability.
Serbia, as the reaction claims, as a state that guarantees peace and military neutrality in the Balkans, “rightly demands answers on the nature and objectives of this cooperation in the field of security”. Serbia particularly finds it worrying that this military alliance was formed without any consultation with Belgrade, “with the direct involvement of a structure that has no international legitimacy and that poses a threat to the Serbian people and the entire region”.
"We will not ignore the clear political message of this initiative. It is obvious that this memorandum is not the result of a casual cooperation, but a strategy aimed at isolating Serbia and strengthening paramilitary structures in the southern province of Serbia, in violation of international law and UN Security Council Resolution 1244," the Serbian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Serbia finds it very significant that two of its neighbors, Croatia and Albania, have decided to initiate this agreement and that an invitation to join this cooperation has also been sent to Bulgaria. If, as is said, this agreement is not directed against anyone, then Serbia demands an explanation as to why it has been excluded from any negotiations on collective security in the region.
Serbia claims that the unilateral arming and military cooperation with illegal structures on the territory of Kosovo constitutes a serious violation of the international legal order and a direct threat to regional peace.
"Serbia will not accept this silently. As a state that, despite its military neutrality, is active in the fight against terrorism and modern security threats, Serbia has been ready to consider the possibility of sincere cooperation with Croatia and Albania. However, this initiative, which is being implemented without Serbia, but with Pristina, represents open provocation and gross disregard for the reality on the ground," the statement said.
Serbia, according to the statement, expects immediate responses from Zagreb and Tirana on the true aims and objectives of this "dangerous" military initiative.
