Serbian DefMin: Military is not where it should not be

NEBOJSA STEFANOVIC
Tanjug/Rade Prelić

Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said on Tuesday that the Serbian military is on full alert in the Ground Safety Zone along the border with Kosovo but has not gone anywhere that it should not.

Serbian military units in the zone were put on full alert because of the tensions in north Kosovo after the authorities in Pristina banned entry for vehicles with Serbian license plates following the expiration of part of the Brussels Agreement which allowed the Serbian authorities to ban Republic of Kosovo (RKS) license plates. Both Belgrade and Pristina forced drivers to get temporary license plates.

Stefanovic told the pro-regime TV Pink that the military n the five-kilometer zone along the Kosovo border was put on full alert by President Aleksandar Vucic, adding that the troops are ready to defend their people. He said the president’s order was primarily a prevention mechanism. “We have the right of deployment on our territory… We are not in violation of any international agreement, the military has not gone where it should not be,” he said.

According to the Defense Minister, the order to put the military on full alert in the Ground Safety Zone encouraged people and showed them that no one would be allowed to kill them as well as demonstrating that Serbia is showing restraint and will not cause incident.