Office for Kosovo and Metohija
Government of the Republic of Serbia

Press release of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija

At Belgrade’s suggestion, Priština representatives, mediated by the European Union, agreed during this week’s meeting in Brussels, which has been confirmed today, that construction work on the pedestrian zone in the Kralja Petra Street and the revitalization of the bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica should begin on Sunday August 14, in accordance with the Agreement on the bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica, reached on August 25 of last year.

This agreement, within the dialogue on the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Priština, specifies that construction works on the Kralja Petra Street and the bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica are to begin at the same time and that the bridge on the Ibar river is to be open for motor traffic after the renovation of the Kralja Petra Street into a pedestrian zone is fully completed and the issue of traffic in side streets is regulated, for which a deadline of January 20, 2017, was agreed.

For Belgrade, the safety of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija is most important and therefore it is of high importance for our initiative to turn Kralja Petra Street (from the bridge until the Šumadija Square and the Knez Lazar Monument) into a pedestrian zone, and to build traffic roundabouts on both sides of the bridge. Also, we received written guarantees that a KFOR checkpoint will be set up on the bridge on the north side of Kosovska Mitrovica. This would create security pre-conditions to prevent any possible attempts of provocation and attack on the Serbian population in northern Kosmet.

The opening of the bridge in Kosovska Mitrovica should become a symbol of the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Priština, which will allow the implementation of the Agreement on the establishment of the Community of Serbian Municipalities, as soon as possible, as an essential issue in this process, which would allow the Serbian population in the province to create necessary conditions for survival and progress.

In this way, by consistent implementation of the agreements reached by Belgrade, Priština no longer has any excuse to continue with obstructing the dialogue by not establishing the Community.