Serbia Will Retain Sovereignty Over Kosovo in Constitution

Belgrade will not remove from its constitution a clause on its sovereignty over Kosovo, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The leader stressed that Serbia "will neither directly nor indirectly" recognize the independence of Kosovo, and that ensuring the safety of Serbs living in Kosovo is an obligation of Belgrade.

"We never talked about changes in the constitution, have never started this discussions, and talking about it would be pointless," Vucic said.

In 1998, an armed conflict broke out between Kosovo Albanian militias seeking independence for Kosovo and Metohija, against Yugoslavian forces. The following year, NATO intervened in the conflict without UN approval, and began bombing Yugoslavia.

Belgrade subsequently lost control of Kosovo, as the Serbian government had to agree on the presence of a NATO military contingent in the area, and a transition of territory under UN administration.

In 2008, the Albanian government of Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia.

Unlike the United States and some European countries, Russia, siding with Belgrade, does not recognize Kosovo statehood, believing the region is part of Serbia.