Serbian Defense Minister Miloš Vučević announced on Tuesday that President Aleksandar Vučić, as commander-in-chief, has ordered the country’s armed forces to be on high alert so they can carry out any tasks, Serbian news agency Tanjug reported. , quoted by Agerpres.

“Of course, no one wants any conflicts or wars and no one intends to play such games. Serbia is a serious country that takes all measures to be able to respond to any difficult situation and any potential problem,” Vucevic said on the TV show.

He made the announcement while commenting on Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s recent decision to ignore calls from Western powers to delay for ten months the implementation of a rule requiring ethnic Serbs in Kosovo to change their license plates to some local ones, a decision that could exacerbate ethnic tensions .

However, the Kosovo government has delayed for 10 months the measure to confiscate the cars of drivers who do not comply with the rule.

Vucevic also stated that he does not believe that the international community can influence the Kosovo prime minister and Pristina. He also said that he was present at the meeting between Vučić and the NATO delegation, and it seemed that the North Atlantic Alliance did not want escalation, but a solution obtained through dialogue.

Vučević said the Serbian armed forces are ready to carry out any order from Vučić as commander-in-chief to protect Serbia and all its citizens and ensure the safety of Kosovo Serbs.

Serbian government insists it is on the side of “peace” and “stability”

“When Serbia talks about peace and stability, it does not mean that we are weak or cowardly and that we can be humiliated,” said the Serbian Defense Minister.

The Kosovo government’s attempt to force the Serb minority to change its old license plates has met with staunch and sometimes violent resistance from Serbs living in northern Kosovo this year.

Kosovo’s main supporters, the United States and the European Union, have publicly asked Prime Minister Albin Kurti to delay the implementation of the rule for ten months and avoid ethnic tensions.

The Kosovo government has given ethnic Serbs 60 days, starting September 1, to install new license plates. Kurti said about 10,000 drivers must change their old car registrations, dating back to 1999, when Kosovo was still a province of Serbia.

More than 13,000 people are estimated to have died during the Kosovo War (1998-1999), when the territory was still part of Serbia under Milosevic. Kosovo unilaterally declared independence in 2008, but around 50,000 ethnic Serbs living in northern Kosovo refuse to recognize Pristina’s rule