An unprecedented and warmongering statement by the Serbian Minister of State Administration and Local Self-Government, Snezhana Paunović, has sparked a strong wave of negative reactions in Kosovo and on the international arena. Paunović publicly stated that if she had been in the place of former Serbian President Slobodan Milošević in 1998, she would have “ethnically cleansed Kosovo.”

This open language of hatred and glorification of war crimes has set senior European officials in motion and has once again damaged the fragile climate of negotiations between the two countries.

EP Rapporteur: Shameful statement, destroys trust in dialogue
The first strong reaction from Brussels came from the European Parliament Rapporteur for Kosovo, Riho Terras. Through a message on the social network X, Terras strongly condemned the Serbian minister's stance, noting that such statements completely undermine the European Union's efforts for peace in the region.

"A shameful statement from a Serbian minister, Snezhana Paunovic. This seriously destroys trust in the EU-facilitated dialogue," Terras wrote bluntly.

Kosovo raises alarm in EU: Violation of Brussels Agreement
On the other hand, the Kosovar side has immediately reacted officially. Kosovo's chief negotiator in the dialogue with Serbia, Agron Bajrami, announced that this scandal has already been officially addressed to the highest authorities of the European Union.

According to Bajrami, such statements not only bring back the dark rhetoric of the '90s, but also openly violate the commitments recently made by Belgrade.

"The declaration constitutes a violation of the 2023 Brussels Agreement and seriously undermines the dialogue, trust and normalization process between Kosovo and Serbia," declared the Kosovo chief negotiator.

This scandalous statement by Paunović has brought unanimous condemnation from local and international officials, who emphasize that the use of this language is completely unacceptable and contradicts any efforts for good neighborliness, dialogue and reconciliation in the Western Balkans.