The acting Government of Kosovo intends to build two new bridges alongside the main bridge over the Ibar River in Mitrovica. These new structures would connect North Mitrovica, which has a Serb majority, with South Mitrovica, predominantly inhabited by Albanians.
The plan for their construction comes just days after Mitrovica—Kosovo’s most ethnically divided city—established a Joint Board between its southern and northern municipalities. This board’s formation was welcomed by the acting government, as well as by both municipalities, which view it as an opportunity to implement joint projects that improve the lives of citizens on both sides of the Ibar River.
New Bridges for Enhanced Connection and Development
Kosovo’s acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s Vetëvendosje movement released an image illustrating the proposed design of the two new bridges. These bridges would be built to the left and right of the existing main bridge, which is part of the Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia on freedom of movement, reached in Brussels as part of the dialogue for normalizing relations.
“This project will facilitate the movement of citizens and serve as an infrastructure for communication, integration, and development between the two parts of the city,” Vetëvendosje announced on June 19.
A day earlier, acting Minister of Infrastructure Liburn Aliu announced the signing of a “memorandum for supporting infrastructure projects between the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning and both municipalities, for a more connected, functional, and better city for all citizens.” The signing took place with North Mitrovica Mayor Erden Atiq and South Mitrovica Deputy Mayor Ariana Tahiri, in the presence of Minister of Local Government Administration Elbert Krasniqi.
Serbian Reaction and Ongoing Bridge Tensions
However, the Serb List—the largest party representing Kosovo Serbs, supported by official Belgrade—reacted negatively yesterday to the construction of these two bridges, among other issues. They claimed that Kurti is “rapidly and without any concealment implementing the plan for the ethnic cleansing of the Serb population from the territory of Kosovo.”
The main bridge over the Ibar River, which divides Mitrovica into a southern Albanian-majority part and a northern Serb-majority part, is currently open only to pedestrians.
Last July, the Kosovo Government’s announcement that it planned to open this bridge to vehicle traffic sparked tensions and drew reactions from the international community. KFOR, NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, maintains a presence on this bridge. KFOR told Radio Free Europe at the time that any decision to open the bridge must be made within the framework of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, facilitated by the European Union. KFOR affirmed its support for this dialogue and stated its role is to contribute to a safe environment for all citizens of Kosovo, at all times and impartially. “This includes a permanent presence at the bridge in Mitrovica and regular patrols in the surrounding area,” KFOR stated.
The European Union also reiterated that the issue of opening the bridge was a subject of the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia for the normalization of relations, and therefore all decisions must be made within that dialogue with the participation of official delegations from Pristina and Belgrade.
