Lawmakers in Kosovo voted unanimously in favor of a set of laws that would allow their nation to create an army on Friday, but opposition Serb politicians boycotted the vote in protest.

"The creation of the Kosovo army is the result of a century of sacrifice," wrote Kosovo's president, Hashim Thaci, on Twitter.

On Facebook, Albanian President Ilir Meta called the creation of the Republic of Kosovo's army a "historic decision." Meta said it shows that Kosovo "is capable of taking on new responsibilities regarding the creation of democratic institutions, contributing to peace and stability in the region."

A former Serbian province, Kosovo separated from Belgrade during the 1998-99 Balkan war and unilaterally declared independence in 2008. Serbia is one of the countries that has not yet recognized Kosovo as a nation, as well as Russia.

Rattling the neighbors

In response to the vote, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said her country would "stay on its path of peace and prosperity."

"For me this is a hard day, not a day that contributes to cooperation in the region," she added.

Nevertheless, Serbia has suggested a range of possible reactions to the move, including an armed intervention, which Brnabic says is "one of the options on the table."

Speaking to DW Phil Gayle, Serbia's ambassador to Germany Dusan Crnogorcevic did not specify what kind of threat would prompt a miltiary response from Serbia.

"We are extremely worried in Serbia that the kind of miltiary muscle that [the Kosovo authorities] want to show will have a negative impact on the Serbian population in Kosovo," Crnogorcevic told DW TV.

Earlier on Friday, Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said Friday that Serbia will seek a special meeting of the UN Security Council to deal with the issue, which Belgrade says is a clear violation of the UN resolution that ended Kosovo's war of independence in 1999.

The new law would create a new defense ministry and lays out a plan to double the size of its current small crisis-response unit, the Kosovo Security Force (KSF), to gradually transform it into a professional army of 5,000.

Read more: Kosovo: Survivors of wartime sexual violence speak out

"The process of transforming the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) began 10 years ago under the instructions and assistance of our NATO partners," Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj said about the vote. "We are at a point where it is a logically necessary step," he said.

US supportive, NATO wary

NATO, which has kept a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo since the war, warned that the move was "ill-timed," given the small nation's poor relationship with Serbia. Four members of the alliance reject recognizing Kosovo's independence.

As the new laws were approved, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Twitter that he "regretted" the decision and that "all sides must ensure" that it will "not further increase tensions in the region."

But the US and the UK have favored the move. US ambassador to Kosovo, Philip Kosnett, celebrated the vote on Twitter, saying the KSF's transition was historic.

"The US will support the professional development & organizational evolution of KSF, which must play a positive role for Kosovo & the region," Kosnett wrote.

Thomas Silberhorn, a conservative lawmaker with Bavaria's CSU who serves in the defense ministry, told DW that the German government viewed a new Kosovar army with caution.

He added that, generally, Germany would support the transition process of the Kosovar security forces, but that Pristina should stay away from outright labeling them "armed forces," given the country's delicate political situation.

"Kosovo is not recognized by everyone, this is disputed issue," Silberhorn said.

Peter Beyer, Christian Democratic Union lawmaker and member of the foreign affairs committee of the Bundestag, told DW that he understood Kosovo's wishes to have an army as a matter of "national pride."

Beyer noted "we're not talking about tens of thousands of troops" and emphasized that the new law would trigger a long process of developing the Kosovar security forces.

Tensions with Serbia

Predictably, Kosovo's army plan has drawn the ire of Belgrade. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday that the Kosovo problem was his "worst nightmare."

Vucic accused Pristina of "beating war drums" and threatening the minority Serb population. Serbia still considers its former province a renegade territory and has sounded the alarm over the safety of 120,000 Serbian minority still living in Kosovo, most of whom reside in the north near the Serbian border. Kosovo's population is more than 90 percent ethnic Albanian.

Kosovo's prime minister, Ramush Haradinaj, sought to allay such fears by noting on Twitter: "This army belongs to all, we will always stand for freedom. The army will never be used against our own people — whether in the south, in the north, or here at home, the Kosovo army will never be used against them."

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The Serbs who live in the border area tend to be loyal to Belgrade and are also broadly against the army plan. Ethnic Serb lawmakers in Pristina boycotted Friday's vote.

EU-led talks to normalize their ties between Kosovo and Serbia have generally faltered. Normalization in relations is seen by the EU as a condition for either to eventually join the bloc.

The EU said it opposed the the law to transform security forces into an army.

"Like NATO, the EU continues to share the view that the mandate of the KSF should only be changed through an inclusive and gradual process in accordance with the Kosovo constitution," an EU foreign affairs spokesperson said.

Recently, tensions between the two neighboring nations have increased. Last month, Kosovo slapped a 100 percent tariff on Serbian goods in retaliation for what it saw as Belgrade's attempts to undermine it on the world stage.

Read more: Kosovo slaps 100 percent tariff on Serbian goods after Interpol bid failure

Serbia has blocked Kosovo from several international organizations, including the UN, and has actively lobbied foreign governments to revoke their recognition of its statehood.

js, jcg/msh (dpa, AFP)

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Traces of war In the late 1990s, the conflict in Kosovo was escalating as tens of thousands of people fled the region. After all efforts at pacifying the region failed, NATO began carrying out air raids on military bases and strategic targets in Serbia on March 24, 1999. Eleven weeks later, Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic finally gave in.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Peaceful resistance fails In the mid 1980s, protests began in Kosovo against government attempts to curtail the rights of the Albanian majority. The reprisals worsened in the 1990s. Ibrahim Rugova, leader of the political movement in Kosovo since 1989, tried to make Milosevic change course using peaceful resistance - without success.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Armed guerilla warfare An armed resistance formed in Kosovo. The self-appointed liberation army UCK started a brutal guerrilla war and carried out violent attacks against Serbs and Albanians whom they saw as collaborators. Serbia reacted with retaliatory measures: Houses were torched and shops plundered, as hundreds of thousands fled the region.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Systematic expulsion As time passed, the war became ever more brutal. Serbian forces increasingly attacked civilians with the aim of breaking the UCK's resistance and its support among the population. Many people looked for refuge in the forests. Trains and trucks transport thousands of people to the borders - without passports or other documents which could prove that their home had been in Kosovo.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Last attempt at negotiation Under the auspices of the US, France, the UK, Russia and Germany, the conflicting parties attended a conference in Rambouillet, France in February 1999 with the aim of working out a limited settlement guaranteeing Kosovo's autonomy. Representatives of Kosovo accepted the conditions of the deal, but their Serbian counterparts were not willing to make any concessions. The negotiations failed.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia 'Humanitarian intervention' On March 24, 1999, NATO began bombarding military and strategic targets in Serbia and Kosovo in order to stop the violence against Albanians. Germany joined the military action, known as Operation Allied Force. It was NATO's first war in its 50-year history - and that without the official backing of the UN Security Council. Russia sharply condemned the intervention.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Infrastructure destroyed Next to military installations, NATO also attacked transportation networks such as railroad tracks and bridges. During the following 79 days and nights, the alliance carried out more than 37,000 operations with 20,000 rockets and bombs striking Serbian territory and killing countless civilians - what NATO referred to as "collateral damage."

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Poison clouds over Pancevo Industrial sites were also among the targets. NATO bombs hit chemical plants and a fertilizer factory in the town of Pancevo near the capital, Belgrade. Huge amounts of toxic substances made their way into rivers, soil and the air, with grave health consequences for the local population. Serbia accused NATO of having used depleted uranium ammunition, as well as cluster and fragmentation bombs.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia War against war propaganda In order to deprive Slobodan Milosevic of his most important propaganda tool, NATO decided to attack Serbia's public television station in Belgrade. The Serbian government, although told of the attack in advance, withheld the information from the public. Sixteen people lost their lives in the bombing.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Off target In Kosovo, NATO bombs inadvertently hit a group of Albanian refugees, killing an estimated 80 people. More "collateral damage" occurred when NATO bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, killing four people. The incident led to a severe diplomatic crisis between Beijing and Washington.

1999: NATO intervention against Serbia Horrific outcome In early June, communications out of Belgrade showed that Milosevic was finally willing to make concessions. NATO brought an end to its raids on June 19. During the air strikes, thousands of people were killed, 860,000 refugees were displaced and Serbia's economy and infrastructure were largely destroyed. Kosovo was placed under the administration of the United Nations. Author: Sonila Sand / ad



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