PRISTINA Serbia plans to seize a slice of northern Kosovo just as Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014, Kosovo's president told Reuters on Monday, as the two Balkan neighbours trade accusations of wanting to ignite a new regional war.Kosovo special police units on Saturday prevented a train painted in Serbia's national colours and bearing the words "Kosovo is Serbia" from crossing the border.Serbia does not recognise the independence of Kosovo, its former province, and did not seek Pristina's permission for the passage of the train, which it paid for and organised. On Sunday Serbia's president, Tomislav Nikolic, said Kosovo's action had shown it wanted war with Belgrade.Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci said the train was aimed at "provoking" Kosovars in order to create a pretext for Serbia to intervene militarily and annex northern areas of Kosovo, home to some 50,000 ethnic Serbs who refuse to accept the province's independence and want to be governed again by Belgrade."Serbia’s intention is to use this train, which was donated by Russia, first to help carve away the northern part of Kosovo and then ... attach it to Serbia. It is the Crimea model," Thaci said in an interview.He was referring to Ukraine's Crimea peninsula, home to Russia's Black Sea fleet and populated mainly by ethnic Russians who after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 continued to feel loyalty to Moscow rather than to the newly independent government in Kiev.

Crimea's ethnic Russians welcomed Moscow's annexation - carried out initially by soldiers wearing unmarked uniforms to disguise their identity - though the move also triggered Western economic sanctions against Russia."CHAIN REACTION"

Serbia lost control of Kosovo when NATO air strikes forced Belgrade to withdraw its troops in 1999 after they had killed 10,000 ethnic Albanian civilians. NATO still has around 5,000 troops stationed in Kosovo to keep the fragile peace.As well as Serbia, its ally Russia and some other countries also refuse to recognize Kosovo's 2008 independence. After talks with Serbia's military top brass and state security chiefs in Belgrade on Sunday, Serbia's Nikolic threatened to send troops back into Kosovo.

"If they are killing Serbs, we will send the army, all of us will go, I will go as well, it would not be my first time," said Nikolic, who is a former member of the ultra-nationalist Serbian Radical Party and in the 1990s fought alongside Serb paramilitaries in Croatia. Responding to Nikolic's remarks, Thaci said any attempt by Serbia to annex northern Kosovo would set off "a chain reaction across the whole Western Balkans".Belgrade and Pristina both aspire to join the European Union and normalising relations is a condition of their progress, but Serbia continues to block Kosovo's membership of international organisations such as the United Nations.Bilateral relations came under renewed strain this month when former Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj was arrested in France on a warrant from Serbia, which accuses him of war crimes. (Reporting by Fatos Bytyci; additional reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic in Belgrade; Editing by Gareth Jones)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.</s>Image copyright Getty Images

Serbia has warned it will defend "every inch" of what it claims as its territory in neighbouring Kosovo.

President Tomislav Nikolic accused Kosovo of seeking a war, after a train painted in Serbian colours and the words "Kosovo is Serbia" was prevented from crossing the Kosovan border.

Kosovo saw the train as a deliberate provocation.

As tensions grew, Mr Nikolic said that he would be willing to send the army to defend Serbs in Kosovo, if necessary.

Kosovo, historically a province of Serbia, declared independence in 2008. It is recognised by the US and most EU countries but not by Serbia or its ally Russia.

The train - heralded as an important transport link by Serbia - was the first direct link between the Serbian capital, Belgrade, and Mitrovica, in northern Kosovo, since 2008.

Many of the remaining Serbs in Kosovo live around Mitrovica.

Serbia said the slogan "Kosovo is Serbia" in many languages was a celebration of its cultural heritage, as were the Serbian Orthodox religious symbols adorning the inside, and the liberal use of the Serbian national colours.

But Kosovo's Prime Minister Isa Mustafa told reporters that the train had been stopped "to protect the country's sovereignty" and that Kosovo would not allow "machines that will provoke with a message of occupation."

Kosovo had deployed police forces along the border to prevent the train crossing over - which forced President Nikolic to order a halt to the service.

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic alleged that Kosovan forces were planning to blow up the tracks, and accused them of playing "war games".

Image copyright EPA Image caption Ethnic Serbs in Mitrovica took to the streets, protesting the interruption of the service

The incident has heightened tensions, causing protests by ethnic Serbs in Kosovo, and prompting Mr Nikolic to comment that the two nations had briefly been "on the brink of conflict".

Kosovo and Serbia - key recent dates

1991 - Start of the violent break-up of Yugoslavia

1996 - Rebel Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) steps up attacks on Serbian authorities in Kosovo - met with a Serbian crackdown

1999 - Nato bombs Serbian targets - Yugoslav and Serbian forces respond with ethnic cleansing against Kosovo Albanians but withdraw from Kosovo after a peace agreement

2008 - Kosovo unilaterally declares independence.

Balkans war: a brief guide

Kosovo has had a constant Nato peacekeeping force since 1999.

Tensions with Serbia were already running high, after former Kosovan prime minister Ramush Haradinaj was arrested in France on 5 January. He was detained on a Serbian warrant accusing him of war crimes.

Mr Haradinaj has twice been cleared of such charges at the United Nations, but Serbia insists he should be extradited. He remains in France pending a court decision.</s>Serbia plans to seize a slice of northern Kosovo just as Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014, Kosovo's president told Reuters on Monday, as the two Balkan neighbours trade accusations of wanting to ignite a new regional war.

Kosovo special police units on Saturday prevented a train painted in Serbia's national colours and bearing the words "Kosovo is Serbia" from crossing the border.

Serbia does not recognise the independence of Kosovo, its former province, and did not seek Pristina's permission for the passage of the train, which it paid for and organised. On Sunday Serbia's president, Tomislav Nikolic, said Kosovo's action had shown it wanted war with Belgrade.

Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci said the train was aimed at "provoking" Kosovars in order to create a pretext for Serbia to intervene militarily and annex northern areas of Kosovo, home to some 50,000 ethnic Serbs who refuse to accept the province's independence and want to be governed again by Belgrade.

"Serbia's intention is to use this train, which was donated by Russia, first to help carve away the northern part of Kosovo and then ... attach it to Serbia. It is the Crimea model," Thaci said in an interview.

He was referring to Ukraine's Crimea peninsula, home to Russia's Black Sea fleet and populated mainly by ethnic Russians who after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 continued to feel loyalty to Moscow rather than to the newly independent government in Kiev.

Crimea's ethnic Russians welcomed Moscow's annexation - carried out initially by soldiers wearing unmarked uniforms to disguise their identity - though the move also triggered Western economic sanctions against Russia.

Serbia lost control of Kosovo when NATO air strikes forced Belgrade to withdraw its troops in 1999 after they had killed 10,000 ethnic Albanian civilians. NATO still has around 5,000 troops stationed in Kosovo to keep the fragile peace.

As well as Serbia, its ally Russia and some other countries also refuse to recognize Kosovo's 2008 independence.

After talks with Serbia's military top brass and state security chiefs in Belgrade on Sunday, Serbia's Nikolic threatened to send troops back into Kosovo.

"If they are killing Serbs, we will send the army, all of us will go, I will go as well, it would not be my first time," said Nikolic, who is a former member of the ultra-nationalist Serbian Radical Party and in the 1990s fought alongside Serb paramilitaries in Croatia.

Responding to Nikolic's remarks, Thaci said any attempt by Serbia to annex northern Kosovo would set off "a chain reaction across the whole Western Balkans".

Belgrade and Pristina both aspire to join the European Union and normalising relations is a condition of their progress, but Serbia continues to block Kosovo's membership of international organisations such as the United Nations.

Bilateral relations came under renewed strain this month when former Kosovo prime minister Ramush Haradinaj was arrested in France on a warrant from Serbia, which accuses him of war crimes.</s>Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has accused Kosovo of provoking "war" after a Serbian train, adorned with signs declaring that "Kosovo Is Serbian," was halted before it entered Kosovo.

Nikolic said on January 15, "Yesterday, we were on the verge of clashes."

Nikolic warned that Serbia will defend "every inch of its territory," including its former province of Kosovo where ethnic Serbs allegedly are under threat from Kosovar Albanians.

On January 14, Serbia decided to stop the train from traveling from Belgrade to Serb-dominated northern Kosovo amid reports of a planned attack by ethnic Albanians.

The train, which Serbia bought from Russia, is painted in the colors of the Serbian flag and features pictures of churches, monasteries, and medieval towns, as well as the words "Kosovo Is Serbian" in 21 languages.

The promotional ride would have been the first from the Serbian capital to the town of Mitrovica in Kosovo since the 1998-99 war.

Serbia and Kosovo, a former province which unilaterally declared independence from Belgrade in 2008, have been locked in EU-facilitated talks since 2011 to normalize ties.</s>Serbia has told Kosovo it will defend “every inch of its territory” including its former province where Serbs are allegedly under threat from Kosovan Albanians.

Serbian president Tomislav Nikolić issued the warning on Sunday after a Serbian train bearing signs reading “Kosovo is Serbian” was halted on Saturday before it entered Kosovo due to reports of a planned attack by ethnic Albanians.

“Yesterday, we were on the verge of clashes,” Nikolić said after a meeting of the country’s top security body and the train’s overnight return to Belgrade. He accused the Kosovo Albanians of “wanting war”. “We are a country which has to protect its people and its territory,” he said.

Kosovo leaders saw the train, painted in the colours of the Serbian flag and decorated on the inside with Serbian Orthodox images, as a provocation and a threat to the sovereignty of the former Serbian province.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Serbia and its ally Russia do not recognise the split. Serbia has sought to maintain influence in Kosovo’s north, where most of the country’s Serb minority is located.

Nato-led troops have controlled Kosovo’s borders since a three-month air war in 1999 to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists. Officially, Serbia is seeking EU membership, but has been sliding toward the Kremlin and its policies to increase its influence in the Balkans.

The Kosovo prime minister, Isa Mustafa, said on Saturday he had contacted the US and the EU to express his country’s concerns.

Nikolić, who is staunchly pro-Russian, said the EU and the west have never been on Serbia’s side nor come to its aid. “Why were the so-called international community and the Albanians so upset about one train?” he said. “Maybe because it had ‘Kosovo is Serbian’ written on it, and because it had pictures of our icons inside.”

Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo soared following the recent detention in France of Ramush Haradinaj, a former Kosovo prime minister, on an arrest warrant from Serbia. Kosovo has called the warrant illegitimate and urged France to ignore it, while Serbia is urging Haradinaj’s quick extradition to face war crimes charges.</s>An elaborately decorated Serbian nationalist train took off Saturday from Belgrade aiming for northern Kosovo but halted at the border in a stunt that triggered a dramatic escalation of tensions between the former wartime foes.

Kosovo officials had protested earlier that the train was in violation of their country's sovereignty and promised not to let it in.

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic ordered the train stopped at the Serbian town of Raska as it approached the border with Serbia's former province, claiming that Kosovo's ethnic Albanians had tried to mine the railway.

Kosovo police strongly denounced such accusations but said they had had checked the railway and found no explosives.

Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said he had contacted the United States and the European Union to express his country's concerns.

"I believe that turning back the train was the appropriate action and its entry into the independent and sovereign Republic of Kosovo would not be allowed," he said at a Saturday evening news conference.

The Russian-made train was painted with Serb flags, religious Christian Orthodox scenes, monasteries and medieval towns and inscribed with "Kosovo is Serbian" in 20 world languages. Hostesses on it wore the colors of the Serbian national flag.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Serbia does not recognize the split and has sought to maintain influence in Kosovo's north, where most of the country's Serb minority is located.

At an urgently called news conference in Belgrade on Saturday, Vucic accused the Kosovo government in Pristina of plans to arrest the train's driver and passengers.

"This was an ambition to provoke a conflict, to start a wider conflict in this territory that we consider as ours," Vucic said. "It was my decision to stop the train in Raska to preserve the freedom and lives of our people, to prevent a wider conflict and show that we want peace."

He warned ethnic Albanians in Kosovo not to attack Kosovo's Serb minority "because Serbia will not allow those attacks."

"We sent a train, not a tank," Vucic said.

NATO-led troops are controlling Kosovo's borders following an intervention in 1999 to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo.

Saturday's promotional ride was the first from Belgrade, the Serbian capital, to the northern Kosovo town of Mitrovica since the 1998-99 war. The train later turned back toward Belgrade.

Kosovo President Hashim Thaci said Saturday on his Facebook page that Kosovo respects the freedom of movement of people and goods but a train covered in nationalist banners that violate Kosovo's constitution and laws "is completely unacceptable."

He also noted the train had some passengers and Serb officials who did not have permission to enter Kosovo.

"Anything that is illegal and threatens Kosovo's state sovereignty, must be prevented. This train is the latest provocation and authorities in Kosovo must use all legal means to stop this train immediately," he wrote.

Earlier, as the train left Belgrade, Marko Djuric, who heads Serbian government's office for Kosovo, described the rail link as important for northern Kosovo.

"This is like a mobile exhibition presenting our cultural heritage," he said.

The clash of viewpoints came amid already heightened tensions between Serbia and Kosovo following the recent detention in France of Ramush Haradinaj, a former Kosovo prime minister, on an arrest warrant from Serbia.

Kosovo has called the warrant not legitimate and urged France to ignore it.</s>The train is emblazoned with the phrase "Kosovo is Serbian" in 21 languages, including Albanian, and is decorated inside with images of Serbian-built monasteries and churches. Hostesses on the train wear uniforms in the colors of the Serbian flag.

"This is like a mobile exhibition presenting our cultural heritage!" Marko Djuric, head of the Serbian government's office for Kosovo, said of the rolling statement, ABC News reported. He also warned that any attempt to block the train from entering Kosovo would be a violation of freedom of movement.

And anyway, "I don't see why something that is part of world heritage would present a provocation for anyone," Djuric asserted.

Djuric's deputy and the director of the Serbian national railway company were to take part in the 10-hour journey northward.

Kosovo, now mostly Muslim and Albanian-speaking, declared independence in 2008, nearly a decade after the end of a bloody war with Serbia, and is recognized as such by the US and much of the EU.

Serbia, however, does not recognize the independence of its former province.

The January 14 promotional tour was the first train ride from Belgrade to Mitrovica since the end of the war, Deutsche Welle reports.

​Kosovo State Minister Edita Tahiri called the train "illegal" January 13 and accused Serbia of undermining regional stability.

"This is a provocation against Kosovo, which shows that Serbia has openly come out with aggressive politics threatening Kosovo's territorial integrity and sovereignty and its national security," she said. She asked the EU to get involved in the matter.

Belgrade announced that it was considering setting up a regular train service to Kosovska Mitrovic, a Serbian dominated area in the mostly-Muslim young nation. A temporary service will be launched later this month and will run through much of February; a decision on whether to make the service permanent will be made later.</s>Deep-lying tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have erupted in a furious row after a Serbian train, emblazoned with patriotic graffiti, was blocked from crossing the border.

Serbia accused its neighbour, which gained independence after a bloody war in 2008, of plotting to blow up the train track in a bid to stop the route and of wanting to "provoke a full-scale conflict".

The train was the first of a new service from the Serbian capital Belgrade to the town of Mitrovica in Kosovo, where many ethnic Serbians live. Kosovo has said the route is a breach of its sovereignty and claimed turning back the train was an “appropriate action”.

In a move that was itself condemned by Kosovo as an act of "provocation", the train was decorated in Serbian flags and messages reading “Kosovo is Serbia” in 20 world languages. Images painted on the carriages depicted Serbian Orthodox religious icons from monasteries in Kosovo, and staff were dressed in Serbia’s national colours.

Serbia said it was merely “a mobile exhibition presenting our cultural heritage”.

The two states have been embroiled in ongoing tensions since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 after a violent struggle. Neither Serbia nor Russia recognises Kosovan independence. Nato troops control Kosovo’s border.

Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said he had contacted the US and the EU to express his country's concerns about the train.

"I believe that turning back the train was the appropriate action and its entry into the independent and sovereign Republic of Kosovo would not be allowed," he said.

Edita Tahiri, the Kosovan government minister responsible for dialogue with Serbia, called on the international community to act to stop the "illegal Serbian train".

She said: "Serbia has a dangerous plan that should worry us all – both Kosovo and international partners. This is a provocation towards Kosovo, which shows that Serbia has openly shown its aggressive policy, which endangers the sovereignty and territorial integrity and national security" of Kosovo.

However, Aleksandar Vucic, the Serbian Prime Minister, condemned the decision to block the train. He said he had ordered it to stop in the Serbian town of Raska, near the border, after allegedly hearing of Kovovan plans to arrest the driver and passengers.

Mr Vucic also claimed ethnic Albanians in Kosovo were planning to blow up the track. Kosovan police said they had checked the railway and found no explosives.

"This was an ambition to provoke a conflict, to start a wider conflict in this territory that we consider as ours," Mr Vucic said.

"It was my decision to stop the train in Raska to preserve the freedom and lives of our people, to prevent a wider conflict and show that we want peace."

“We sent a train, not a tank”, he added.

Serbian president Tomislav Nikolic said his country would defend “every inch of its territory” and accused Kosovan Albanians of provoking “war”.

“Yesterday we were on the verge of clashes”, he added.</s>Serbia and Kosovo were "on the brink of conflict," according to the Serbian president, after a Kosovo-bound train with the popular catchphrase 'Kosovo is Serbia' was prevented from crossing the border by Albanians, who deemed it an affront.The train bound for Serbian Mitrovica was the first direct link in 18 years between the Serbian capital Belgrade, and the city in northern Kosovo under Serbian control since the partially-recognized province gained independence in 2008.The train, adorned with the common Serbian patriotic catchphrase 'Kosovo is Serbia' and painted in Serbian national colors, had stopped just short of entering Kosovo after Kosovo Albanians sent the ROSU - their special police - preventing the train's entry and forcing Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic to call it back, narrowly averting an international incident."The appearance of ROSU was a sign the Albanians wanted war," the Serbian leader was quoted by RTS as saying, as he spoke to journalists following a national security meeting. Nikolic added that such moves by the breakaway government are "twitches of the outgoing US administration."The government in Kosovo said it saw the inscription on the train as a provocation and a message of occupation, while the Serbian side insisted that it merely denotes a celebration of Serbia's cultural heritage, which stretches back hundreds of years.But tensions rose during the incident, prompting Nikolic to put things bluntly - that the two had briefly been on the precipice of war, and that the Serbian move to call back its train was quite measured, but will not be next time if Albanians threaten Serbian lives.Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said earlier that he had contacted the US and EU to voice his concerns. Meanwhile, Edita Tahiri, the Kosovo government minister responsible for dialogue with Serbia, complained to Kosovo's Western partners of the "illegal Serbian train," alleging, according to local media, that "Serbia has a dangerous plan that should concern us all."Nikolic and senior Serbian officials condemned these moves. The Serbian president said he will be expecting a clear response from Brussels on whether it is true Mustafa had consulted the EU and had US support before illegally stopping the train."We do not care for war, but will not hesitate to send in the armed forces if need be, to protect Serbs from potential slaughter... We do not want a conflict, but there are situations when one can't cave in... We shall henceforth behave in accordance with Serbian Law, which is clear. We have a duty to defend every inch of the territory and every citizen. We all agree on this, and no one should test us," the Serbian leader said."We acted well yesterday, and there is no cause for Albanian jubilation here. Each new attempt will end badly - let them think about that... them and their sponsors," Nikolic added, referring apparently to the US and the EU.The conflict has roots going back hundreds of years, but most recently in 1991, during the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia, which started a chain reaction, leading to the bloody war of 1998-99, and eventually, to Kosovo unilaterally declaring independence in 2008, backed by the US and the EU.The Republic of Kosovo is split into seven administrative divisions and 38 municipalities, following the Brussels Agreement of 2013, which sought to form new municipalities with Serb majority populations. The Albanian-controlled government sits in Pristina, with the Serbian minority occupying Mitrovica and its municipalities.Russia-allied Serbia continues to see the terms offered it in Brussels as unfair - a result of the same policies that led to the breakup of Yugoslavia.The near-volatile situation with the train comes on the heels of another incident - when French Police had seized former Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj on an old Serbian international warrant. He was later released, thanks to a French court, despite Serbian allegations of Haradinaj's war crimes during his KLA years.</s>A Serbian train halted at the border with Kosovo and bearing signs reading "Kosovo is Serbian," has fueled a major crisis in the Balkans and escalated a potential Russia-West row over dominance in the heart of the war-torn region.

 

 President Tomislav Nikolic said the neighbours had been "on the brink of conflict" on Saturday, while Kosovo's prime minister told reporters the train, a project of the Serbian government, sent "a message of occupation."

 

 Serbia accused Kosovo's leaders on Sunday of "wanting war" and warned that it would defend "every inch" of its territory, a day after the train, provocatively decorated in Serbian Christian Orthodox symbols and flags, was prevented from entering the neighboring nation.

 

 Kosovo, supported by much of the West, declared independence from Serbia in 2008. But, Serbia and its Slavic Orthodox ally, Russia, do not recognize the split.

 

 Serbia has sought to maintain influence in Kosovo's north, where most of the country's Serb minority lives. NATO-led troops have controlled Kosovo's borders since a three-month air war in 1999 to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists.

 

 Kosovo Prime Minister Isa Mustafa said he had contacted the United States and the European Union to express his country's concerns. "The time of provocation, conflicts and wars should belong to the past," Mustafa said, adding that such moves "are unacceptable, unnecessary actions that do not contribute to the normalization of the relations between our two countries."

 

 Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci said on his Facebook page that he hopes "Serbia has learned a lesson" from the latest incident.

 

 Serbia officially is seeking European Union membership, but has lately been sliding toward the Kremlin and its policies to increase its influence in the Balkans. Serbia has strained relations with most of its neighbors — something many analysts believe is a Russian influence.

 

 Relations between Belgrade and Pristina came under renewed strain on Jan. 4 when former Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj was arrested in France on a warrant from Serbia which accuses him of war crimes. Kosovo has called the warrant illegitimate and urged France to ignore it, while Serbia is urging Haradinaj's quick extradition to face war crimes charges.

 

 Kosovo Albanians make up more than 90 percent of Kosovo's 1.8 million population. Northern Kosovo, where Mitrovica is situated, is home to a Serb minority of around 40,000 to 50,000 people who do not see Pristina as their capital.

 

 Normalizing relations between Kosovo and Serbia is key condition for both countries to progress towards membership in the European Union both governments are aiming for. In 2013 Belgrade and Pristina opened an EU-mediated dialogue to normalize relations, but Serbia is still blocking Kosovo's membership in international organizations including the United Nations.
Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić accuses Kosovo of "seeking a war" after a train, en route to the Serb-majority city of Mitrovica in North Kosovo, and decorated in Serbian national colors and the words "Kosovo je Srbija" (Kosovo is Serbia), was prevented from crossing the Kosovan border. The Prime Minister of Kosovo Isa Mustafa says the train had been stopped "to protect the country's sovereignty".