The Kosovo Observer: Russian Diplomatic Warfare and Media Disinformation is a quarterly report that aims to analyse public statements, press briefings, articles, and other documents, published on the web-sites of Kremlin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Russian Permanent Mission to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of Russia to OSCE, the Permanent Russian Representation to the Council of Europe, the Russian Permanent Mission to the EU, and the Russian Embassy to Serbia, which are the key exponents of the Russian diplomatic war against Kosovo. In addition, this Observer analyses the patterns of the news containing disinformation on Kosovo, published by the preselected media, namely Russia Today, Sputnik International, Sputnik Serbia, Meduza, Russia Insider, TASS, The Moscow Times, Newsfront, Unz, The Duran and Pravda Report, which are an extended hand of the Russian Foreign Policy establishment in its diplomatic warfare against Kosovo.
In this regard, the analyses of the statements, briefings, articles, and other documents of the Russian foreign policy establishment, issued from November 1st 2021 to January 15th, 2022, show that during this period that coincides with preparations for the invasion in Ukraine, the Moscow’s foreign policy establishment has elevated the level of the misuse of Kosovo in its diplomatic warfare against the West. In addition to Crimea, Moscow is now comparing the behaviour of the Government of Kosovo with that of Ukraine, and that of the northern part of Kosovo with the separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, at the same time when it is victimizing ethnic Russians in Ukraine and ethnic Serbs in Kosovo. Against this backdrop, it has continued to manipulate the narratives of NATO intervention in former Yugoslavia, undermining the statehood and sovereignty of Kosovo, undermining the credibility of the EU engagement in the Prishtina – Belgrade dialogue in parallel with the Brussels’ role in the implementation of the Minsk Agreement, accuse Kosovo and the West that their aim is to have the “Balkans powder keg” explode, by specifically targeting the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Kosovo and the Head of the OSCE Mission, the British Ambassador Davenport, and to portray the Serbian community and Orthodox Church in Kosovo as threatened and oppressed. Most interesting, it is almost obvious that in the meeting between President Putin and Vučić of November 25th, 2021, has been discussed the upcoming Russian military buildup on the Ukrainian border, and possible Russian – Serbian coordination on their aims in the Western Balkans in the light of the upcoming Putin’s aggression in Ukraine.
3
The news containing disinformation and misinformation of malign character on Kosovo, published during this period by the media mentioned above, were mainly focused on undermining the credibility of the Western engagement in the state building of Kosovo and in the Prishtina – Belgrade dialogue, followed by those whose focus was on undermining the legality of the statehood and sovereignty of Kosovo, on portraying the Serbian Community and Orthodox Church in Kosovo as oppressed and threatened, and on changing the narratives of war and war crimes in Former Yugoslavia.
