The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo have warned of difficult negotiations brokered by the EU on Thursday as Serbia’s president Aleksandar Vučić accused his opposite number of “lying” about Belgrade’s plans to attack its neighbour.
Vučić and Kosovo’s prime minister Albin Kurti will hold rare direct talks in Brussels on Thursday, weeks after disagreements between their two countries boiled over into border disturbances and attacks on police officers, sparking fears of potential conflict.
The EU and Nato have since stepped up pressure on both sides to de-escalate the tensions for fear of destabilising the wider Balkan region and south-east Europe, already shaken by almost six months of war in Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion.