Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has criticized the reported repositioning of KFOR personnel at the Ibër Bridge in Mitrovica and said he plans to discuss the matter with Serbia’s Chief of General Staff, Milan Mojsilović.
The bridge, which connects North and South Mitrovica, remains a sensitive point in northern Kosovo and has been the subject of repeated discussions involving Kosovo authorities and international security actors.
Speaking to Serbia’s public broadcaster RTS, Vučić claimed that KFOR had been preparing to open the bridge to traffic and said Belgrade had opposed such a move.
“He [Mojsilović] presumably spoke today with the KFOR commander about other matters, because they wanted to open the bridge over the Ibër in Mitrovica to traffic, and that is why our intervention followed, because such a thing must not be allowed,” Vučić said.
Vučić also repeated allegations concerning the treatment of Kosovo Serbs, claiming that members of the community are routinely mistreated, beaten and arrested. He did not provide supporting evidence for these claims.
His remarks come amid renewed political discussion over the future of the bridge and the security situation in northern Kosovo. Serbian officials have repeatedly criticized measures taken by Kosovo institutions in the north, while Kosovo authorities have defended their actions as part of the exercise of state authority.
Vučić also returned to his recent comments regarding the possible diversion of the Ibër River. He questioned Albania’s involvement in the debate and described the issue as an internal matter for Serbia.
“I don’t know what this has to do with Albania. What does the Ibër have to do with Albania? This is our internal matter,” Vučić said.
The issue has nevertheless generated regional concern because the Ibër is a transboundary river. It originates in Montenegro, flows through Serbia and Kosovo, and forms part of the wider Danube river basin. Any significant alteration to a shared water system can therefore have implications beyond a single jurisdiction.
The dispute has also involved Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić, who accused Albania of invoking a “Greater Albania” agenda after Albanian officials raised concerns over the proposed river diversion. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama rejected the allegation and reiterated that Albania supports Kosovo without pursuing territorial claims against Serbia.
Vučić said Serbia would establish a working group to examine issues concerning the Ribarić area and other sections of the Ibër.
The latest statements underscore how infrastructure, water resources and security arrangements in northern Kosovo continue to intersect with the broader political dispute between Belgrade and Pristina.
