Serbian president to meet French counterpart over tensions with Kosovo

BELGRADE, Serbia

The Serbian president on Wednesday said he will meet his French counterpart over the tensions with Kosovo recently ignited over a longstanding row on license plates.

Aleksandar Vucic told a news briefing in Belgrade that he canceled his trip to Egypt and Qatar to attend the Paris Peace Forum this Friday and Saturday.

Vucic is also expected to hold meetings with EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and Miroslav Lajcak, the bloc's special representative for Western Balkans.

Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade continues to regard it as its territory.

Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo have risen after Kosovo Serbs withdrew from all central and local institutions in protest against Pristina's decision to replace license plates issued to Serbs by Serbian authorities with plates from the Republic of Kosovo.

Pristina said it will start issuing fines this month to Serb drivers using old pre-independence plates and will confiscate vehicles with outdated registration numbers after April 21, 2023.

Vucic said Belgrade abides by the Brussels Agreement, a 2013 deal to normalize relations between Serbia and Kosovo, and it was time for the EU and Pristina to do the same.

The EU and NATO have urged both sides to refrain from unilateral actions, and resolve the outstanding issues through dialogue.

Brussels has facilitated a dialogue between the two countries designed to decrease tensions and resolve bilateral issues, one of the requirements for full-fledged EU membership.