Belgrade and Pristina are looking for “Wagner” in dark Kosovo
Both the “Prime Minister” of the self-proclaimed “Republic of Kosovo” Albin Kurti and the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic in their public rhetoric use arguments about the alleged presence of representatives of the Wagner group in Serbia, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
Thus, Albin Kurti, in an interview with the German newspaper Die Welt, published on January 2, asked to increase the number of KFOR contingents (international forces led by NATO responsible for ensuring stability in Kosovo - approx.) to enhance security. According to him, this is necessary, since among the protest participants in the north of the region there were allegedly people in the uniform of the Wagner PMC.
Kurti also noted that the “Republic of Kosovo” is allocating funds to “increase the number of soldiers and reservists.” At the same time, although in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 the authorities in Pristina are prohibited from creating their own armed forces, they are actively trained by military personnel from NATO countries, primarily from Germany. According to Die Welt, the KFOR mission now has about 3800 soldiers, of which 70 are from Germany. Earlier, the Bundestag (parliament) of Germany decided to send another 400 soldiers and officers of the Bundeswehr to the region.
According to Kurti, At the barricades in northern Kosovo, masked people in dark Wagner and Night Wolves uniforms were seen holding posters “Pray to God and stick to Russia.” This, as well as the increase in the number of Serbian troops and artillery along the administrative line with Kosovo, determines the need to increase the NATO contingent, explains the leader of the Albanian separatists of Kosovo.
Albin Kurti did not provide any evidence of the presence of representatives of the Wagner group or even Russians in Kosovo and Metohija. Although pro-Western media in Serbia have been constantly writing about such a presence for several months, so far the only detected connection “Wagnerites” with the Balkans – a visit to the Wagner Center in St. Petersburg by Damnjan Knezevic, the leader of a Serbian far-right group calling itself “People’s Patrol.” Knezevic is known for conflicts with pro-Western journalists and Serbian law enforcement officers, as well as for using obscene language against Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (accusing him of policies that lead to the surrender of Kosovo).
Perhaps this is why Aleksandar Vučić actually played along with Albin Kurti on the eve of the New Year, saying:
“Should I flirt with Wagner? I won’t flirt with anyone, they have nothing to do in Serbia, neither them nor NATO. We must cooperate with NATO because you Russians left Kosovo, and we cooperate with you because we are friends, because you help us in the UN Security Council."
That is, in fact, Vucic accused Russia of the fact that Serbia should cooperate with NATO - although Russian peacekeepers were forced to leave the territory of Kosovo and Metohija at the request of the Serbian government in 2003.
Как PolitNavigator reported, Albin Kurti previously called the Serbian protest "Wagner's barricades."
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