“Decisive steps are needed to deescalate, and not half-measures like the idea of the Americans to temporarily ‘resettle’ the new ‘mayors’ from municipal buildings to other facilities,” Zakharova said in a statement, published by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The spokeswoman also called on the West “to stop blaming” Serbs for violent incidents in Kosovo and influence authorities in Pristina.
“And not to provoke Belgrade, which was forced to declare full combat readiness of the armed forces and push it to the administrative line with Kosovo, at the risk of again being accused of ‘escalating tension,” Zakharova said.
The spokesman added that the NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR) showed unprofessionalism when dealing with the situation.
“They not only showed their unprofessionalism, but also became a source of unnecessary violence, an escalation factor,” Zakharova said.
On Saturday, Serbia's National Security Council condemned NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR) for standing by while Kosovar police used force to install new Albanian mayors in Serb-majority northern provinces. Later in the day, Serbian Defense Minister Milos Vucevic said the Serbian army was deploying its units near Kosovo in anticipation of provocations.