Although technically possible, changing the course of the Iber River by Serbia to the detriment of Kosovo would violate international laws and conventions, experts say. However, according to them, guarantees are needed to ensure the security of this water source, as well as alternatives to reduce the heavy dependence on this vulnerable waterway.
The explosion that damaged the Iber-Lepenc water canal in northern Kosovo, which Kosovo authorities blamed on Serbia, has sparked a discussion about the security of this vital water supply for many Kosovo residents.
The attack could have also jeopardized Kosovo’s electricity supply, prompting the Kosovo government to decide on an alternative solution to supply water to the power plants.
Following the November 29 incident, which has led to ongoing water restrictions for parts of Kosovo, several arrests were made and homes were raided in the northern region.
On the other hand, Serbia denied involvement and stated it would conduct its own investigation into the event.
In a statement following the explosion, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić even mentioned that since 1985 “there has been an idea to change the course” of the Iber River to meet the needs of the population near the lake, which would dry up Ujman, the water source supplying Kosovo. According to him, this could happen “with a decision from the Serbian government.” However, he added that he had been against this idea when it was proposed to him, even when he was Prime Minister, emphasizing that he did not want “nature to be used for political purposes.”
According to Kosovo government spokesperson Përparim Kryeziu, “Serbia has no right to exploit the Iber River in a way that severely harms Kosovo, let alone intentionally cause this damage by changing the river’s course.”
Kryeziu also said that Vučić’s address, where he mentioned the idea of altering the river’s course, “is also an indication that they are behind the attack on the Ibër-Lepenc Canal in Zubin Potok,” a northern town with a Serbian majority.
“So, instead of changing the course of the Iber, they planted explosives on the Ibër-Lepenc canal,” said Kryeziu.
The Iber River, about 270 kilometers long, originates in Montenegro, flows through Serbia, enters Kosovo for 82 kilometers, and then flows back into Serbia.
It then feeds into the artificial Ujman Lake, which straddles the Kosovo-Serbia border, with two-thirds of the lake lying within Kosovo.
The river supplies seven municipalities with water, is used for irrigation, and cools the power plants in Obiliq, which produce most of the country’s electricity.
According to the Kosovo government, if the attack on the Ibër-Lepenc canal had succeeded, “the consequences would have been catastrophic,” creating a chain reaction leading to water shortages, power outages, heating disruptions, and even telecom failures.
“On December 3, the Minister of Economy signed a decision obliging ‘KEK,’ Ibër-Lepenc, and the Pristina Water Supply to find an alternative technical solution for the water supply of the Kosovo B Power Plant to enhance the security of its water supply,” said Përparim Kryeziu to Radio Free Europe.
Does International Law Allow Changing the River’s Course?
One key international instrument regulating cross-border water issues is the United Nations Convention on the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (1997).
Serbia is a party to this convention, while Kosovo is not, as it is not yet a UN member.
Among other provisions, the convention stipulates that “equitable and reasonable” use and participation should be followed for transboundary waters.
Other principles in the convention include “the obligation not to cause significant harm” and the “general obligation to cooperate.”
“This convention also applies to countries in conflict,” says Miguel Borja Bernabé-Crespo, a professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Madrid.
Bernabe-Crespo is also the president of the “Geographical Thought Group” of the Spanish Geographical Society and an editor for the scientific journal “Water and Territory.”
In 2019, he published a study on water management in Ujman Lake, which lies in a contested border area.
“The main problem here is that the border exists only from Kosovo’s perspective, as Serbia does not recognize its independence,” says Bernabé-Crespo.
“However, even if Serbia does not recognize it, Kosovo represents an actor with a government recognized by many other states, so the international community could exert pressure for cooperation,” he adds.
According to him, in the case of a Serbian government decision to change the river’s course, the UN Convention requires strong justification for such an action.
“The convention requires states to notify each other of any measures that could affect the other state,” he says, adding that human interests such as water supply and environmental consequences should also be considered in these cases.
Kosovo Water Expert Avdullah Nishori also says such an action by the Serbian government would be nearly impossible, even for economic reasons.
“It would be a megalomaniac investment to try to change the course of the Ibar,” says Nishori, who is also a member of the board of the Ibër-Lepenc company that manages the Ibar and Ujman waters in Kosovo.
However, Nishori adds, Kosovo needs to think about alternative and emergency resources for cases like this recent attack, as well as “natural disasters that threaten water supply.”
He mentions that in the past, ideas for dams or water reservoirs, which could serve as emergency supplies, were overlooked.
One such proposal was made around 2016 with a feasibility study by the World Bank. However, this investment was never realized.
According to this project, a dam would have been built in the village of Mihaliq in the municipality of Vushtrri, which could have provided emergency water supplies in the event of a disruption from the canal.
“Approximately 20 million euros were allocated for infrastructure improvements and, as part of this, a dam,” Nishori says.
In the study that Radio Free Europe reviewed, the construction of the dam was proposed without the need for land expropriations as most of the surrounding land was pasture.
Although Nishori is not certain of the reason for the project’s cancellation, he believes it may have been considered unnecessary at the time.
Can Kosovo Develop New Water Resources?
According to official data, Kosovo is considered a “water-stressed” country due to its insufficient water supply capacity.
In Kosovo’s Water Strategy for 2023-2027, it is stated that compared to regional countries like Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo has the least water resources per capita.
“The geographical position is such that most rivers flow out of Kosovo or pass through it very little. Also, our rivers are seasonal—during the winter, when we need less water, there is plenty, but during the summer when demand increases, we may not have enough,” explains Nishori.
According to him, investments in new water accumulations as a long-term solution take time and are costly.
“I’m not inclined to say there are quick solutions, because usually, they’re bad. And there are no cheap solutions, as infrastructure must be built,” he says.
The Kosovo government told Radio Free Europe that it has projects for the construction of around eight new water reservoirs that could increase the country’s water supply capacity by about 120 percent of current levels, excluding Ujman.
However, it did not provide a timeline for when these projects might be realized.
“These essential projects are part of the strategy to address climate challenges, including droughts and floods, and to ensure a sustainable water supply for the entire country,” says Përparim Kryeziu, a government spokesperson.
Some of the mentioned reservoirs, particularly those in the villages of Firajë and Shtime, had been part of a project dating back decades.
The Ibër-Lepenc canal infrastructure, which began construction in the 1970s in Kosovo, originally envisioned a consolidated structure for managing the waters of two Kosovar rivers: the Ibar and Lepenc.
The Ibar section was completed and is functional, while the Lepenc section, located in the southeastern part of the country, was never developed.
According to Kosovo’s water strategy, this infrastructure would have provided more sustainable supply to nine additional municipalities in eastern and southern Kosovo.
The Ibër-Lepenc company told Radio Free Europe that it has recently prepared a project that includes the construction of a dam in Firajë, a village in the Shtime municipality (central Kosovo), which would be filled from the Lepenc River.
In a second phase of the project, according to them, the construction of a dam and reservoir in Shtime is planned “which will also be used for irrigation and energy production.”
According to the company, this phase “is much more expensive,” although they did not disclose figures or potential timelines for either phase of the project.
Nishori says that in the initial Ibër-Lepenc project, “this structure also included a channel to supply water to the Kosovo B power plant as an alternative,” but according to him, this investment could be delayed for years.
“Investment in Infrastructure and Water Recycling”
“It is always a good idea to diversify water supply sources. First, to avoid heavy dependence on shared water resources (with Serbia),” says Bernabe-Crespo.
However, according to him, Kosovo urgently needs to improve its water infrastructure “to avoid water losses.”
According to official data, Kosovo’s water supply systems suffer from losses of up to 50 percent, including physical losses (leaks from pipes) or commercial losses (metering and reading errors, thefts,
