Serbia, Kosovo on 'edge of another crisis,' warns top EU diplomat

Serbia and Kosovo are on the "edge of another crisis," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned on Monday, as tensions soar over a longstanding row on license plates.

"Kosovo and Serbia kept me busy this weekend in Paris. We are unhappily on the edge of another crisis and we have to get out of this crisis mode and look for a structural approach," Borrell told reporters in Brussels ahead of meetings of EU foreign and defense ministers.

Top Serbian and Kosovar officials held meetings over the weekend with Borrell, French President Emanuel Macron, and Miroslav Lajcak, the EU special representative for Western Balkans.

"We presented a proposal. This proposal has to be discussed. It is a good way out of this situation. I have to call on both parties to fulfill their commitments … to implement past agreements … and embark on structural solutions," said Borrell.

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

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

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start issuing fines this month to Serb drivers using old pre-independence plates and will confiscate vehicles with outdated registration numbers after April 21, 2023.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has said that Belgrade abides by the Brussels Agreement, a 2013 deal to normalize relations between Serbia and Kosovo, and called on the EU and Pristina to do the same.

The EU and NATO have urged both sides to refrain from unilateral actions, and resolve 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.