The army will continue to be on guard until further notice, as decided during the National Security Council session held today in Serbia. Following yesterday's unrest in Kosovo, the Serbian army began to mobilize close to the border with Kosovo. Serbian army units have been deployed along the Kosovo border, according to Defense Minister Milos Vucevic, who took over as the party's leader today after Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic resigned. The deployment is expected to be finished in the next few hours. Although we don't want to simulate a battle, Vucevic said, "We know what Serbia's red line is." The process of ordering the troops is still on within the context of the current situation, and they will remain here until the next order, he stated.

Additionally, the Serbian Presidency said in its statement that NATO had failed to uphold its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and emphasized that Serbia was tough and unyielding in safeguarding its own citizens. In a phone call to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, the Serbian List Party, one of the largest political parties representing minority Serbs in Kosovo, demanded that the Pristina administration halt the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue process until the new mayors are removed from Serb-dominated municipalities.

While NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu urged all sides to defuse the tension through communication, the USA, France, England, Italy, and Germany urged the Kosovo authorities to rapidly calm the situation.

What happened?

There was conflict between ethnic Serbs and the Kosovo police yesterday in the Serb-populated municipalities in the north of the country. The police intervened by using tear gas against the serb-boycotted demonstrators and forbade the newly elected mayors of Albanian descent from entering the municipal buildings. Following the unrest in Kosovo, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic also gave the order for the army to prepare for battle and go to the Kosovo border.