Protest against Kosovo's Serbian license plate ban
2021 North Kosovo crisis
Part of the Kosovo dispute
Jarinje
Brnjak
Zubin Potok
Zvečan
Pristina
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Locations of barricades and traffic blocks are shown as and bolded, while locations of attacked offices are shown as and italicised. Pristina is the capital city of Kosovo. North Kosovo is highlighted in red
Date
20 September – 2 October 2021 (1 week and 5 days)
Location
North Kosovo
Caused by
Opposition to the Kosovan government's decision to ban Serbian license plates
Goals
Legalisation of Serbian license plates
Methods
Border crossing blockades
Protests
Riots
Resulted in
Interim agreement in Brussels:
Withdrawal of Kosovo Police from Jarinje and Brnjak
KFOR started patrolling North Kosovo
Agreement on sticker regime
Serbian plates again legal in Kosovo, Kosovar plates legal in Serbia, as long as the national symbols are covered with a sticker
End of protests
Parties
Kosovo Serbs
Serb List[1]
Supported by:
Serbia
Diplomatic support:
Russia
Kosovo
Kosovo Police
Diplomatic support:
Albania
Lead figures
Milan Radoičić
Goran Rakić
Igor Simić
Supported by:
Aleksandar Vučić
Nebojša Stefanović
Albin Kurti
Xhelal Sveçla
Diplomatic support:
Edi Rama[2]
Number
Hundreds of civilian protesters
Triggered by the Government of Kosovo's decision to reciprocally ban Serbian license plates, a series of protests by Serbs in North Kosovo—consisting mostly of blocking traffic near border crossings— began on 20 September 2021. The ban meant that individuals who owned vehicles with Serbian license plates in Kosovo would have had to switch for Kosovar license plates at a government vehicle registration center. The ban was intended to mirror a prohibition against Kosovar license plates that had been imposed by Serbia since 2008. The Government of Serbia does not recognise Kosovo's independence and considers the Kosovo–Serbia border to be temporary.
During the crisis, two government vehicle registration centers in Zvečan and Zubin Potok were targeted by arsonists. The protests caused relations between Serbia and Kosovo—which had been improving— to worsen, and led to the Serbian Armed Forces being placed on heightened alert. Both sides accused the other of great overreach. International powers, particularly the European Union and NATO, called for de-escalation, while Russia criticised Kosovo.
On 30 September, an agreement was reached to end the license plate ban, taking effect on 4 October. In return, the protesters agreed to disperse. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, Kosovar license plates in Serbia and Serbian license plates in Kosovo now have their national symbols and country codes covered with a temporary sticker.
^"Srpska lista: Odbijeno da se sklone specijalci, a da ostane odluka o tablicama". www.slobodnaevropa.org (in Serbian (Latin script)). Radio Free Europe. 28 September 2021. Archived from the original on 2 October 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
^"Albania Defends Kosovo's Sovereignty, Criticizes Serbia's Military Maneuvers". Exit News. 27 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
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Global Information
and bolded, while locations of attacked offices are shown as 
and italicised. Pristina is the capital city of Kosovo. North Kosovo is highlighted in red
