Starting tomorrow, Kosovo will ban the entry of citizens with Serbian documents. Serbs build barricades, their president asks to protest peacefully

The authorities of Kosovo will stop allowing persons with Serbian documents into their territory from Monday. This caused a worsening of the security situation in the region.

The Serbian service of the BBC writes about it.

Starting August 1, the regime will be in effect, according to which persons with Serbian documents will be issued separate documents when entering Kosovo. Cars with Serbian registration will also not be allowed into the country. Numbers will also need to be exchanged for Kosovo ones.

The Kosovo authorities called the move "mutual", as Serbia has not recognized her documents for more than 11 years. In an address on Sunday, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić expressed his concern about this decision. "I am worried about the reaction of the Serbian people, I advise everyone to be calm. I am asking everyone for peace," said Vučić. He called on citizens, if they want to protest, to do so in a "peaceful" way.

The Serbian newspaper "Danas" reported on the sounds of sirens in the center of the Serb-populated North Mitrovica in Kosovo. The sirens worked for about an hour. Residents were urged not to leave their homes and stay away from windows.

Kosovo publication RTK Live reported that Kosovo temporarily closed two border crossings in the north of the country. The police announced that the Bernyak and Jarinje border crossings are closed for the passage of citizens. The police also said that local Serbs are erecting barricades on the Mitrovica—Jarinje and Mitrovica—Bernjak highways.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs recommended that citizens of Ukraine refrain from visiting the southern regions of Serbia and avoid places of mass gathering of people.

On the basis of the Embassy of Ukraine in Serbia, an operational headquarters was created and a 24-hour "hotline" was opened to help Ukrainians: +381631113185. In case of an emergency, you can also contact the "hotline" of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine: +380442381588.

In case of further aggravation of the security situation and blocking of roads in the south of Serbia, Ukrainians are recommended to use the checkpoints on the border with the Republic of North Macedonia.

• Kosovo is an area in Serbia inhabited by Albanians. In 1991, the district declared independence. The authorities of the former Yugoslavia introduced security forces into the territory of Kosovo. At first, it was a special operation, but in 1998, ethnic cleansing began in the region — Serbs exterminated Albanians. Because of this, in 1999 NATO bombed major Serbian cities, in particular the capital Belgrade. After that, troops were withdrawn from Kosovo, and the region came under the control of UN peacekeepers.
• In 2008, the parliament of Kosovo declared full independence from Serbia, which has never recognized this independence. Today, according to the Constitution of Serbia, Kosovo is part of it and is called the Autonomous Region of Kosovo and Metohija. De facto, the region is not controlled by Belgrade and is not subject to Serbia.
• The country has been recognized by almost 100 countries of the world. Serbia continues not to recognize the independence of Kosovo.