Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has accused Belgrade of trying to destabilize Kosovo by encouraging Serbs working in the police and public sector in the former Serbian province to resign. The release of the ethnic Serbs would be a sign of protest over Pristina’s decision to oblige all car owners to have Kosovo number plates and ditch the old Serbian-issued number plates, Reuters reported, according to News.ro.

The dispute over the old license plates has reignited tensions between Serbia and its former province of Kosovo, which gained independence in 2008 and has a Serbian minority in the north backed by Belgrade.

Kosovo’s government announced this month that it will begin fining drivers using pre-independence license plates and confiscating their vehicles if their license plates are not changed by April 21, 2023.

So far, 578 police officers have resigned over the dispute, the Interior Ministry in Pristina said, and Kosovo has had to hire agents from other regions to replace them.

Their resignations are part of a wider Serbian-backed move to walk out of Kosovo’s public institutions, including the courts, police, parliament and government, to protest the replacement of license plates.

Both leaders of Serbia’s ruling party, including President Aleksandar Vučić, and many Serbian opposition political leaders have expressed support for the Serbs’ actions in northern Kosovo.

“In recent days, we have noticed an increase in attempts by Serbia and the president of the state we border to the north to destabilize the situation in our country,” Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said at a press conference.

“It is clear that Serbia is interested in sabotaging the dialogue and any possible agreement,” he added.

In 2013, Kosovo and Serbia started an EU-backed dialogue to resolve any remaining issues between the two countries, but little progress has been made since then.

European Commission spokesman Peter Stano urged Serbia and Kosovo on Monday to prevent any escalation of tensions. “We have seen a very, very dangerous escalation in recent days, and this has implications not only for Serbia and Kosovo, but for the entire region,” he said.

Kosovo Serbs will not be left without Belgrade’s support “no matter what,” Serbian President Vucic wrote on his Instagram account on Monday, Reuters reported.