Yesterday (November 8), a statement by the spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, appeared in the Serbian media, claiming that the West is pushing the situation in northern Kosovo towards an open conflict.
The articles published in Serbian media bear this title: "Zakharova: The West is pushing the situation in Kosovo and Metohija towards open conflict."
The article quotes Zakharova's statement, which claims that Russia is concerned about the escalation of the situation in Kosovo, because, according to her, the West is pushing the situation towards open conflict and is doing nothing to stop the provocations of radicals from Pristina.
Links to the statement published in several Serbian media outlets:
https://www.politika.rs/sr/clanak/524146/Zaharova-Zapad-gura-situaciju-na-KiM-ka-otvorenom-sukobu
https://www.k1info.rs/vesti/svet/7194/zaharova-zapad-gura-situaciju-na-kim-ka-otvorenom-sukobu/vest
http://www.tanjug.rs/full-view.aspx?izb=756955
https://www.dnevnik.rs/politika/zaharova-zapad-gura-situaciju-na-kim-ka-otvorenom-sukobu-07-11-2022
Parts of the statement published in Serbian media:
"We are concerned by the worsening situation around Kosovo, where the so-called Pristina authorities are again deliberately raising tensions under the passive eye or even with the direct support of their sponsors in Washington and European allies," she said.
She stressed that the current escalation is occurring at a time when the European Union, which was authorized by the United Nations General Assembly to mediate in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, is essentially unwilling or unable to resolve this issue.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova is tendentiously claiming that the West is pushing the situation in Kosovo into open conflict, as according to her, it is not taking effective steps to end the provocations of radical Kosovo Albanians.
Zakharova makes these claims after the escalation of the situation in the north, where neither the West nor official Pristina are instigating open conflict, as Zakharova claims.
Furthermore, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, after a conversation he had with Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić regarding the current situation in northern Kosovo, said in a Twitter post that he had asked both sides to refrain from escalating the situation. (here)
The United States also called on Kosovo and Serbia to choose the path of negotiations and refrain from actions that would lead to violence and clashes, as well as to fulfill the obligations arising from the dialogue mediated by the European Union in Brussels. (here)
Furthermore, the European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, has also called on Pristina and Belgrade to refrain from any unilateral action that could increase tensions. (here)
The European Union has reiterated its calls for maintaining calm in Kosovo and avoiding an escalation of tensions. Peter Stano, EU spokesman for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said at a press conference that, “"The EU wants to bring Kosovo and Serbia closer to a European solution, to reduce tensions and to engage in dialogue as soon as possible, because this is the only way out of the current escalation. This is the path that leads to a European perspective for both partners.". (here)
Based on the statements of US, EU, and NATO officials, who represent the Western position that Zakharova is addressing, there is an open call for restraint from any unilateral action that could increase tensions, and not, as Zakharova claims, pushing the situation in Kosovo into open conflict.
Analyze:
Serbian media has published a claim by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova that the West is pushing the situation in the north towards an open conflict.
Statements by US, EU and NATO officials, as representatives of the West, regarding recent developments in the north, openly call for restraint from any unilateral action that could increase tensions.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info considers these claims to be "conspiracy theories".
ASSESSMENT
"Conspiracy theories" are media reports that disseminate a false or unverifiable description of a phenomenon, event, or person, presenting it as part of or the result of a secret plan ("conspiracy"). A characteristic of these reports is that they present a series of claims, presented as facts, between which cause-effect relationships are established, without providing any credible evidence.