The central and local authorities of Kosovo preparing to open the main bridge over the Ibar River in Mitrovica for vehicles, prompting protests from the Serb population, the European Union (EU) and Nato.

The bridge separates the Serb-dominated north of the city from the Albanians in the southern part of the city. The authorities of Kosovo are reiterating plans to open the bridge just after they closed nine Post of Serbia offices in the northern part of Kosovo — another move criticised as unilateral and provocative by Serbia, the EU and the US.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti invited the Serbs last week to participate in public consultations held by the Municipal Assembly of North Mitrovica about the opening of the bridge over the Ibar River. The plans were announced by his government in mid-July.

“For too long, the Mitrovica Bridge over the Ibar has kept us at a distance. It has been unfairly given the epithet of separation and abnormal relations. Bridges unite us, and together let's make it a symbol of normalisation,” Kurti wrote on Facebook.

While a relatively small number of participants attended the meeting on August 8, hundreds of Serbs gathered a day before to protest the plans launched last year by the Mitrovica City Hall and backed recently by the government of Kosovo.

The discussion at the Municipal Assembly was in principle meant to inform the public about the advantages of opening the bridge, so representatives of Kosovan institutions would respond to their concerns.

The River Ibar separating Serbs from Albanians has provided certain safety in the city,  which Serb residents in the northern part of the city fear would vanish if the bridge was opened for vehicles, although there are other road bridges connecting the two sides of the city. 

Spokesperson of the European Commission, Peter Stano, called at a press conference held in Brussels on August 8 for the Kosovan government to refrain from “unilateral, uncoordinated and negative actions”. 

“We hope that finally Pristina will listen to the message and stop such actions. Otherwise, we will be forced to take appropriate measures to deal with this provocative behaviour," Stano said.

After the government of Kosovo unveiled its plan for the Ibar Bridge in July, the peacekeeping mission of Nato in Kosovo, KFOR, argued against claiming that such a decision should be taken within the framework of the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia.

Spokesperson of the US State Department, Matthew Miller, addressing the post offices’ closure in Kosovo during a press conference, reiterated that the US is concerned with the recent decisions by Pristina.

"We believe that they put at risk the opportunities that we have helped Kosovo to create,” said Miller.