Serbia has withdrawn some of its troops from the Kosovo border following warning by the US that it could face punitive measures.
The Serbian president, Aleksandar Vučić, announced he had ordered troops to be pulled back.
A Kosovan government official confirmed a partial Serbian withdrawal on Saturday, with the removal of troops and equipment that had been moved into positions around the border in the past five days, leaving behind only the force that is permanently based in the area.
The withdrawal followed a public declaration of concern by the White House, a stern call to Vučić from the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, and the reinforcement of the Nato peacekeeping force in Kosovo, Kfor, with hundreds of British troops.
In his conversation with Vučić, Blinken called for “immediate de-escalation” and a return to his previous agreement to normalise relations with Kosovo.
On Saturday evening, Germany’s ambassador to the US, Andreas Michaelis, described the situation as “another powder keg in Europe” and a danger that should be taken seriously.
Michaelis said on social media there had been “very close cooperation between Germany and the US in the last days and hours” which had been “absolutely key to avoiding further escalation”.
“Serbia needs to act now,” Michaelis said.
The US warnings came at the end of a week of high tension, beginning with an ambush by well-armed Serb paramilitaries The armed group was led by Milan Radoičić, the deputy leader of Serb List, a Belgrade-backed party, on a Kosovan police patrol, in which a police officer was killed. Three Serb gunmen were killed in the ensuing battle, near the village of Banjska.
