NATO to send 700 more troops to Kosovo to help quell violent protests

PRISTINA, Kosovo — NATO will send 700 more troops to northern Kosovo to help quell violent protests after clashes with ethnic Serbs there left 30 international soldiers wounded, the alliance announced Tuesday.

The latest violence in the region has stirred fear of a renewal of the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives, left more than 1 million people homeless and resulted in a NATO peacekeeping mission that has lasted nearly a quarter of a century.

The clashes grew out of a confrontation that unfolded last week after ethnic Albanian officials elected in votes overwhelmingly boycotted by Serbs entered municipal buildings to take office. When Serbs tried to block them, Kosovo police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.

More violence followed on Monday when Serbs clashed with police and NATO peacekeepers.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said an additional reserve battalion would be put on high readiness in case additional troops are needed.

“These are prudent steps,” said Stoltenberg, who made the announcement in Oslo after talks with the Norwegian prime minister.

The NATO-led peacekeeping mission in the region is known as KFOR and currently consists of almost 3,800 troops.

Also Tuesday, KFOR’s multinational peacekeepers used metal fences and barbed-wire barriers to reinforce positions in a northern town that has become a hot spot. The troops sealed off the municipal building in Zvecan, where unrest on Monday sent tensions soaring.

A former province of Serbia, Kosovo’s 2008 declaration of independence is not recognized by Belgrade. Ethnic Albanians make up most of the population, but Kosovo has a restive Serb minority in the north of the country bordering Serbia.

Stoltenberg condemned the violence and warned that NATO troops would “take all necessary actions to maintain a safe and secure environment for all citizens in Kosovo.”

The United States and most European Union nations have recognized Kosovo’s independence from Serbia while Russia and China have sided with Belgrade.