Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti criticized Washington and its allies Thursday for its "harmful" statements rebuking his government for escalating tensions in Serb-majority areas of its country.
The statements were in response to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's call for Kosovo and Serbia to de-escalate the tension.
"[The] United States of America is our indispensable ally, friend, and partner," Kurti said. "But now it is also the time to speak our democratic truth to authoritarians in power."
He also said he was set to meet Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to attempt de-escalating the situation. Kurti added the meeting between Kosovo and Serbia is being organized by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, but the date is yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also attempted to tell Kurti and Vucic to de-escalate the riots. Both Macron and Scholz urged Kosovo and Serbia to organize new elections in northern Kosovo as soon as possible.
Washington Sanctions Pristina
Blinken's remarks last week came after 30 NATO peacekeepers were injured in clashes across Serbian areas of Kosovo. He said Kosovo's decision to mobilize its police force to install ethnic Albanian mayors in four Serb-majority towns was the catalyst of the unrest in the country.
As a result, the US removed Kosovo from participating in planned military exercises and threatened to end its lobbying for Kosovo's recognition of independence, which was declared in 2008.
In addition to Serbia, which has never recognized Kosovo as an independent country, five of the few countries not yet recognized Kosovo are the EU countries Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain.
Kurti: We Fight Against Authoritarians
While understanding the West's intention of keeping the peace, Kurti explained Kosovo currently deals "with the far right, with ultra-nationalists, and very dangerous authoritarian regimes."
"[S]tatements that are intended to keep peace just keep emboldening the authoritarian figures," he added in reference to Vucic, who he claimed was behind the riots in the Serb towns of Kosovo.
Vucic called for the withdrawal of the "alleged" Albanian mayors from the Serb towns within Kosovo.
Kurti doubled down his criticism of Washington by saying his country would not bend to international requests to remove police from town halls until protesters dispersed or were arrested.
Meanwhile, in an interview during the French Open, Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic said Kosovo was "in the heart of Serbia."
