After qualifying for the second round of Roland Garros, Novak Djokovic wrote a political message about Kosovo’s independence on camera at the Philippe Chatrier Arena on Monday after defeating Aleksandar Kovacevic.

Novak Djokovic: “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia”

“Kosovo is the heart of Serbia! Stop the violence!”, Djokovic wrote this message on the traditional camera dedicated to players’ signatures.

The Serbian player’s politically charged words were uttered in a context in which his country has been disputing Kosovo’s self-proclaimed independence for 15 years. The phrase, written in Cyrillic, comes as tensions between Serbia and Kosovo have escalated in recent weeks.

“Kosovo is our cradle, our fortress, the center of the most important things for our country… There are many reasons why I wrote this on camera” – Novak Djokovic for the press from Serbia, quoted by RFI.

According to AFP, around 30 members of KFOR were injured on Monday during clashes with Serbian demonstrators demanding the resignation of Albanian mayors, and Belgrade reported dozens of injured demonstrators.

In recent days, the situation has been very tense in the north of Kosovo, where many representatives of the Serbian community in the four cities do not recognize the authorities of Pristina and are loyal to Belgrade. Serbs boycotted the April municipal elections in these settlements, which resulted in the election of Albanian mayors, whose turnout was less than 3.5%.

The mayors were sworn in last week by Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s government, and calls for calm from the European Union and the United States have been ignored.

The Serbian press did not hesitate to comment on this departure of Nole, who once again demonstrates his political position. In 2008, after his first Grand Slam victory at the Australian Open, Djokovic recorded a video in support of a rally in Belgrade, proclaiming “Kosovo is Serbia”.