The Kosovo authorities decided to reject the request of the Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church Porfirije to visit the country.
Serbia continues to violate the Brussels Agreement, does not allow our state officials to visit Serbia, does not end its campaigns against the Republic of Kosovo in the international arena during the integration and recognition processes.
The Kosovo Foreign Ministry stated that Serbia continued “to use hate speech and threats against the Republic of Kosovo and its representatives.”
The authorities added that they would prohibit such visits as long as Serbia continued to obstruct Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe. Patriarch Porfirije reportedly wanted to visit Peć Patriarchate in the west of the country, according to the Orthodox Times.
The head of the Serbian Government’s Kosovo Office, Petar Petković, reported on calls for his country to act on the principle of reciprocity with regard to mutual visits.
The Serbian Patriarch, Mr. Porfirije, has always, on every occasion and in every place, with his messages, gentle words, and actions called for peace and the coexistence of Serbs and Albanians in the area of Kosovo and Metohija.
Meanwhile, the Serbian Orthodox Church condemned the prohibition of Porfirije from entering Kosovo. The statement also called on all those with influence over the Kosovo issue to “take action to stop the violation of the freedom of movement of the Serbian Patriarch, bishops and clergy and the human rights of the Serbian people in the country.”
In the EU-mediated talks, the Serbian Orthodox Church’s position is part of an agreement on normalisation of relations that was reached in 2023. The agreement states that the parties “will formalise the status of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and afford a strong level of protection of Serbian religious and cultural heritage under existing European models.”
