Several thousand Kosovar Albanians protested Monday in Pristina against the European Union-brokered agreement with Serbia, saying it undermined the independence of Kosovo. The protest was called by the Vetevendosje, or self-determination, party, the third largest in the Kosovo parliament, which vehemently opposes any deals with Belgrade.
Kosovo, a predominantly ethnic Albanian former Serbian province, has been struggling to gain full international recognition since it declared independence in 2008. Kosovo on Friday agreed to be represented at international forums with a footnote referring its status to a United Nations resolution, which treats it as a province of Serbia, and an International Court of Justice ruling that its secession was legal.
Though the deal paved the way for the EU to formally recognise Serbia as a membership candidate at a summit on Friday, it was criticised by Serbian nationalists, who say it allowed Kosovo to take another step toward independence.