Selim Ibraimi- New tensions in the Balkans. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said he would divert the flow of the Ibar River, which originates in Montenegro, flows through Kosovo, and continues into Serbia. On Thursday, he said a group of Serbian experts was working on the project. However, the 1997 UN Watercourses Convention shows several other things. The convention represents an important contribution to strengthening the law in this area of international relations, because it requires the protection and preservation of international watercourses. Meanwhile, Serbia, although a signatory to this convention, is trying to use the Ibar as a geopolitical weapon. Recent statements have put the region under new pressure, especially Kosovo.
The Kosovo government has criticized such statements. Albania has also taken a stance, along with the EU and the US, with opinions to reduce the rhetoric of escalation. Albanian Foreign Minister Ferit Hoxha, in a post on X, informed about the concerns over the announcements of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić regarding the change of the course of the Ibar River. “Changing the course of a river that is part of a transboundary water system is not a purely internal matter or a decision that can be taken unilaterally, especially when its consequences directly affect the territory, environment, water security, water supply and the lives of citizens of another country.”
“International water law is clear on this point. The principles of equitable and reasonable use of transboundary waters, the obligation to prevent, control and reduce transboundary damage, as well as the obligation to cooperate, exchange information and consult on measures that may have transboundary impacts, are part of the consolidated standards of international law. Serbia has been a party to the UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes since 2010 and has also accepted its dispute settlement mechanisms.”
“Albania expects Serbia to fully respect its international obligations and the principles of good neighborliness. Any project or measure that may affect the flow, quantity or quality of waters affecting Kosovo should be treated with transparency, based on scientific data, with a full assessment of transboundary impacts and through consultation with the affected party. Water cannot be used as an instrument of political pressure or as a means to punish another country or population. Albania strongly supports Kosovo’s right to security, sustainable development and protection of its water resources. We strongly believe and expect that such issues will be addressed through dialogue, cooperation and European standards, not through threats or unilateral interventions and actions,” underlined, among others, Minister Hoxha on the X network.
In response, Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Djuric also on X said: “The Ibar River does not flow through Albania, nor is Albania a coastal state within its basin. Therefore, Albania has no territorial or hydrological basis to claim a role in determining how Serbia manages water resources within its territory, in accordance with its constitution, laws and international obligations.” “Tirana’s decision to engage in this matter, ignoring the systematic pressure against the Serbian population and attacks on Serbian property, inevitably raises questions about the political motives behind its intervention. It also revives legitimate concerns about popular regional concepts that seek to treat Serbian territory and Serbian resources as part of a broader Albanian political sphere. Let me also be clear: there is no place for a Greater Albania, or any other project based on ethnic expansionism and border redrawing, in the European future of our region. What we need is not the creation of new or larger nation-states, but a region in which borders progressively lose their power to divide us: open to people, trade, cooperation and shared prosperity, while fully respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each state.”
“Serbia is a sovereign state and will decide for itself how to manage its natural resources. Albania will not make these decisions, nor will anyone else outside Serbia.” Not long after, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama declared on the X network as follows. “Albania has no claim on Serbian territory and does not need to invent one. Nor do we need a “Greater Albania” to support Kosovo. Kosovo is a separate state. Kosovo Albanians are exactly that: Kosovo Albanians. They have their own Republic, their own institutions, and their own right to determine their own future. We will always support this right. That Serbia lost Kosovo. Repeating what it did not lose could perhaps turn defeat into victory in the geography of political imagination, but unfortunately maps are less than adequate. The territory of the Republic of Kosovo is not Serbian territory and the natural resources located within it are not resources of the Republic of Serbia. Our Serbian friends know this very well, including every time we sit together around European tables.” In this regard, there were also reactions from the EU and the US, calling for a reduction in tensions between Serbia and Kosovo.
“Progress in the normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia can only be achieved through dialogue.” An EU official told Radio Free Europe: “Declarations, including those on possible changes to the course of the river, and actions that do not support this goal should be avoided.”
“The normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo is a necessary part of this process,” a State Department spokesperson also told Radio Free Europe.
Meanwhile, according to national security authorities, a positive step has taken place in northern Kosovo. KFOR is in the initial phase of handing over the powers of the Mitrovica bridge and religious facilities to the Kosovo police. KFOR has supported this action in improving security in this part of Kosovo.
The Serbian List and the Serbian Orthodox Church have reacted to this transfer of responsibilities. But KFOR has emphasized that the process of optimizing KFOR was launched as a result of the improved security situation in Kosovo. KFOR Commander Major General Özkan Ulutaş reiterated during the meeting with the representatives of the Serbian List that this process will be carried out gradually. “It is conditional and can be reversed if required by relevant developments that may affect sustainable security in Kosovo and regional stability”. “KFOR will remain fully equipped and well positioned to respond to any relevant developments, in line with KFOR’s long-standing mandate. KFOR remains the first responder for the security of the Deçan Monastery, is committed to its security, and the gradual transition of KFOR’s presence from the main bridge in Mitrovica is in its initial phase”.
“Once this process is finalized, KFOR will maintain a strong presence in North Mitrovica and northern Kosovo for the benefit of all communities.”
Serbia has recently strained relations with Montenegro. Montenegrin Prime Minister Milorad Spajić announced in a post on the X network that Montenegro does not want conflict with Serbia. “We want good neighborly relations, but also a clear European policy that, apparently, Mr. Vučić does not want to understand. And it is not very appropriate for him to take the role of Russia’s PR from his position and teach others lessons in principle. Therefore, a simple question for President Vučić: how is it possible that Serbia, according to available data, is one of the most important sources of weapons and ammunition for Ukraine, while sending one message to Moscow and another to Europe…?
After the KFOR decision and threats from Serbia, Kosovo officials should be careful about possible future unrest in Mitrovica or other parts of Kosovo. Threats can come from outside and from within, so it is in the best interest of Kosovo’s sovereignty and territorial integrity that the opposition and the incumbent Prime Minister Albin Kurti form institutions that will respond quickly to Serbia’s policies, and at the same time strengthen Kosovo’s fragile regional and international position.
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