More than a thousand Serbs gathered, on Wednesday, in front of the municipality of Zvecan in exchange for a security cordon formed by the forces of the NATO-led international peacekeeping mission in Kosovo (KFOR), amid continuing protests that began by local Serbs on May 26, in northern Kosovo.
On Wednesday, the protests that local Serbs started on May 26 in northern Kosovo continued.
More than a thousand Serbs gathered in front of the municipality of Zvecan in exchange for a security cordon formed by the forces of the international peacekeeping mission led by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Kosovo (KFOR).
The demonstrators carried a 250-meter-long Serbian flag, chanting slogans such as "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia".
In a speech during the demonstration, Srdan Milosavljević, the former head of the Zvecan Municipal Council, reaffirmed their conditions for ending the protests, which are the exit of the Kosovo police special forces from the municipality buildings, and the non-entry of the newly elected Albanian mayors, whom he described as "counterfeiters", to the municipality buildings. And the release of two Serbs who were arrested due to tensions in the region, last Monday.
And the forces of the international peacekeeping mission strengthened their security measures by pulling barbed wire on Wednesday morning around the security cordon they had set up around the Zvecan municipality building.
It is expected that local Serbs will continue to gather in front of the municipal buildings until their demands are met by the relevant authorities.
On Tuesday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the dispatch of 700 troops in addition to Kosovo due to the continuing tensions and protests in the north of the country.
Stoltenberg said, during a press conference, that the alliance will put a battalion of the reserve force on high alert in order to send it as well if necessary.
He urged the attacks to stop in Kosovo, following the injury of at least 30 NATO soldiers in clashes with Serb protesters.
NATO soldiers were wounded against the backdrop of violent clashes between local Serbs in northern Kosovo and members of the security and police.
On Friday, local Serb protesters gathered in front of the predominantly Serb municipality of Zvecan to prevent newly elected Albanian mayors from entering municipal buildings to start their duties.
The mayors took office after winning local elections organized last month in 4 municipalities, mostly of Serb population, who largely boycotted these elections, as only 1,500 voters out of 45,000 registered participated in the poll.
Kosovo, which has a majority Albanian population, separated from Serbia in 1999 and declared its independence in 2008, and Serbia still considers Kosovo part of its territory and supports a Serb minority in it.
Job's situation : Calls for higher wages A strike paralyzes trains in Portugal and cancels half of the trips
On Wednesday, the railway workers' strike paralyzed trains in Portugal. While the unions insist on their demands to increase the wages of workers in the sector.
The movement of trains witnessed unrest in Portugal on Wednesday due to a strike by observers demanding an increase in their salaries, which led to the cancellation of half of the train trips scheduled for Wednesday morning, according to the Portuguese Railways Administration.
However, the provision of a minimum level of services mitigated the impact of the strike, which will continue for 24 hours, that is, until the end of Wednesday.
Some 143 out of 251 trains have had their trips cancelled, according to a preliminary report by Portuguese Railways.
Several unions gave advance warning before the strike was carried out, and after a meeting Tuesday with Secretary of State for Infrastructure Frederico Francisco, only the FRA stuck to the strike.
The union denounces different wage increases according to the categories of workers in the company, which "increases inequalities," he said.
The head of the Federation of Railway Controllers, Luis Bravo, told Radio "TSF" that the agreement signed with the union of train drivers "consumed a large part of the funds allocated to all workers."
The railway workers, in turn, carried out several strikes in December and January, demanding higher wages.
"Provocative act" Stoltenberg condemns North Korea's launch of a military satellite, security region
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg expressed his strong condemnation of North Korea's launch of a military satellite, and called on it to stop such "provocative actions" that threaten the security of the region.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday condemned North Korea's launch of a military satellite, and called on it to "stop provocative actions."
"I strongly condemn Pyongyang's launch of a military satellite using ballistic missile technology," Stoltenberg said in a statement.
He stressed that "this step raises tension, threatens the security of the region, and constitutes a flagrant violation of UN Security Council resolutions."
He also called on North Korea to return to dialogue in order to achieve "complete and viable denuclearization."
"We support the position of our close partners in the region, South Korea and Japan," Stoltenberg concluded.
In turn, the South Korean National Security Council condemned the launch of the military satellite, describing it as a "serious provocation that threatens peace on the Korean Peninsula."
This came in the statement issued by the Presidential Office after the emergency meeting of the National Security Council in the capital, Seoul.
The members of the Standing Committee of the Security Council stressed that "this launch, regardless of its success or failure, is a serious violation of UN Security Council resolutions and a serious provocation that threatens peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, and in the international community."
In the same vein, Japan lodged a protest with North Korea over the launch, with government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno saying, "The relevant authorities are analyzing whether the projectile is a satellite missile."
Earlier today, North Korea admitted that its new missile, "Chollima-1", which was carrying a military reconnaissance satellite, "Malejeong-1", crashed in the West Korean Sea.
According to the official North Korean Central News Agency, "The state space development agency launched the rocket, but the operation failed due to an abnormal engine fault during the second stage of the launch."
Associated Press : In a reciprocal move Germany closes 4 Russian consulates on its soil
Germany asked Russia to close 4 consulates on its territory, in response to the decision taken by Moscow regarding reducing the number of employees of the German embassy and related bodies.
Germany said Wednesday that it had asked Russia to close 4 out of 5 consulates on its soil in a reciprocal move after Moscow cut the number of German embassy staff and related bodies that can operate in Russia.
A spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry, Christopher Berger, said in a press conference held in the German capital, Berlin, that "his country asked Russia to close 4 out of 5 consulates on its territory in a reciprocal step," according to the Associated Press.
"The new measure aims to create a state of parity in the number of employees and institutions between the two countries," Berger added.
The Russian government recently said that "a maximum of 350 German government officials, including those who work in cultural bodies and schools, can stay in Russia."
Commenting on the Russian decision, Berger said: "This means that Germany will have to close 3 consulates in Russia by next November."
The German spokesman indicated that "Russia will be allowed to continue operating the embassy in Berlin and another consulate after the end of the year."
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine, which was followed by international rejection and economic sanctions on Moscow, which requires Kiev to abandon plans to join military entities to end its operation, which the latter considers an "interference" in its sovereignty.
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