MOSCOW, August 1. /TASS/. The issue of Serbia’s possible membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has not yet been included on the agenda, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Monday.
"Frankly speaking, such an issue has not been on the agenda," the Kremlin official said replying to a question on the matter.
That said, Putin’s press secretary could not answer a question whether an agreement with Serbia, similar to agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual aid with the Donbass republics, was possible. "You know that we have allied, very sincere and very profound relations with Serbia. So, undoubtedly, our relations should continue to develop and the legal base will develop but I cannot say at the moment whether there will be such elements," he explained.
On Sunday night, the situation in Kosovo and Metohija sharply escalated after Kosovo’s police had closed a checkpoint on the border with Serbia, intending to introduce a ban on Serbian documents on Monday. In response, Serbs in the north of Kosovo took to the streets and blocked key highways. The police and the Kosovo Force (KFOR), a NATO-led international peacekeeping force in Kosovo, were pulled to the bridge across the Ibar River, which links Kosovska Mitrovica’s northern and southern parts.
As a result of international efforts, Pristina decided to postpone the procedure of banning Serbian documents until September 1.