The Government of Kosovo has called on the European Union (EU) to take stronger action in condemning recent remarks by Serbian Minister Snežana Paunović regarding ethnic cleansing in Kosovo, arguing that the bloc’s initial response was “limited and delayed.”
Paunović, Serbia’s Minister of Public Administration and Local Self-Government, said in an interview with Serbian broadcaster Kurir last weekend that, had she been in former Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević’s position in 1998, she “would have ethnically cleansed Kosovo.”
The statement sparked widespread condemnation. Kosovo has since filed criminal charges against Paunović and imposed a permanent ban on her entry into the country.
On Saturday, Kosovo’s government announced that First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Glauk Konjufca had sent a letter to EU High Representative Kaja Kallas, urging the bloc to respond more forcefully. Both Kosovo and Serbia aspire to join the European Union.
In the letter, dated July 16, Kosovo requested that the EU “clearly and publicly condemn Minister Paunović’s statements, make it clear to the Serbian authorities that such rhetoric is unacceptable and contrary to European values, and address the matter seriously within the framework of the political dialogue and Serbia’s EU accession process.”
The EU has already condemned Paunović’s remarks. On Thursday, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos reiterated that condemnation, saying she was shocked that Paunović continues to serve as a minister in the Serbian government.
“I will not repeat what she said. It was truly shocking to hear such a statement. I cannot imagine that a minister, after making such a public statement, could continue to perform her duties,” Kos said.
Meanwhile, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić stated that Paunović’s remarks “do not reflect my position or that of the Government of Serbia,” adding that “the policy of the Serbian state is dialogue, never ethnic cleansing.”
Paunović, who serves as vice president of the Socialist Party of Serbia—the party once led by Slobodan Milošević—has not withdrawn her remarks. Instead, on July 16, she claimed they had been “taken out of context” and apologized to President Vučić and the Serbian government for the reactions they had caused.
At the same time, Shaip Kamberi, the only ethnic Albanian member of Serbia’s parliament, announced that 53 opposition lawmakers had submitted a request to Serbian Prime Minister Đuro Macut seeking Paunović’s dismissal. They urged the prime minister to immediately propose her removal to Serbia’s 250-seat parliament. It remains unclear whether Macut will do so.
The 1998–1999 war in Kosovo claimed the lives of more than 13,000 civilians, the vast majority of them ethnic Albanians, while thousands more were reported missing.
More than 1,500 people—most of them ethnic Albanians—remain missing to this day.
