Petkovic: We submitted list of 50 escalatory moves by Pristina

BRUSSELS - The director of the Serbian government Office for Kosovo-Metohija Petar Petkovic said on Tuesday in Brussels he had discussed Pristina's escalatory moves with the EU special envoy for the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue Peter Sorensen and that he had submitted a list of 50 concrete escalatory moves made by Pristina in the past three months.

"We pointed out the scale of the persecution of Serbs that is underway in Kosovo-Metohija at the hands of Pristina institutions and the so-called Kosovo Police. We also raised the issue of MTS and Elektrosever," Petkovic said.

We discussed Albin Kurti's enormous terror against Serbs in Serbia's southern province, he told reporters.

"The violent behaviour of the 'Kosovo Police', closures of Serbian institutions and sports halls, the fact Serb children are not allowed to engage in sports, that so-called mayors in the north of Kosovo-Metohija make various anti-Serb political decisions directly leading to further escalation," he added.

"We spoke about the fact they want to carry out an illegal and forced eviction of internally displaced persons in Leposavic who have been given flats based on their status," Petkovic said.

He added that they had also discussed the fact that, on six occasions, Belgrade's liaison officer in Pristina Dejan Pavicevic had been banned from visiting Serbs incarcerated across Kosovo-Metohija.

The issue of missing persons was discussed as well, which is important for Serbia, he said.

"The issue, which we keep pointing out all the time, is aimed at finding all missing persons. There is progress in that direction and we hope the working group, and then also the joint commission, will meet very quickly and that, that way, we will also succeed in unblocking the entire process as Belgrade keeps insisting on that all the time," Petkovic noted.

He said he had particularly insisted on stopping the terror and persecution targeting Serb political representatives in Kosovo-Metohija and Srpska lista officials.

Nowhere in Europe is there such a clampdown on political opponents, he said.

"We are in Brussels to discuss all important key issues," Petkovic said.

"I especially insist on the difficult position of Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija and I keep pointing out the numerous examples of, above all, misuses of both the so-called Kosovo Police and the 'Kosovo' judiciary when it comes to Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija," he said.