Kosovo on Friday declared a Russian UN staffer as "persona non grata" after he became part of a diplomatic row when he was detained and injured in a police raid. Mikhail Krasnoshchekov, a civil affairs officer with the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), was arrested on Tuesday alongside others accused of helping obstruct a police crackdown on crime networks in Kosovo's Serb-dominated north.
He was later released and transferred to a hospital in Belgrade, where he was visited by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
Kosovo's Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj wrote on Facebook that Krasnoshchekov was expelled for acting "against the constitutional order of Kosovo, universal values, peace and stability."
In New York, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said UN personnel could not be declared "persona non grata" as they represent the United Nations and not a foreign country. He stressed that UN staff enjoy diplomatic immunity from prosecution.
"I would like to note that the doctrine of 'persona non grata' does not apply to or in respect of United Nations personnel," Haq told reporters in New York. "We stand by the immunity of our personnel who are on duty." According to Kosovo police, the Russian and a local colleague were detained after they used a UNMIK vehicle to form a "barricade" with residents who tried to prevent police from entering the town of Zubin Potok on Tuesday, leading to clashes.
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