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Kosovo vs. Serbia

Transnational Issues

KosovoSerbia
Disputes - international

Serbia with several other states protest the US and other states' recognition of Kosovo's declaration of its status as a sovereign and independent state in February 2008; ethnic Serbian municipalities along Kosovo's northern border challenge final status of Kosovo-Serbia boundary; NATO-led Kosovo Force peacekeepers under UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo authority continue to ensure a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all Kosovo citizens; Kosovo and North Macedonia completed demarcation of their boundary in September 2008; Kosovo ratified the border demarcation agreement with Montenegro in March 2018, but the actual demarcation has not been completed

Serbia with several other states protest the US and other states' recognition of Kosovo's declaration of its status as a sovereign and independent state in February 2008; ethnic Serbian municipalities along Kosovo's northern border challenge final status of Kosovo-Serbia boundary; several thousand NATO-led Kosovo Force peacekeepers under UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo authority continue to keep the peace within Kosovo between the ethnic Albanian majority and the Serb minority in Kosovo; Serbia delimited about half of the boundary with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but sections along the Drina River remain in dispute

Refugees and internally displaced personsIDPs: 16,000 (primarily ethnic Serbs displaced during the 1998-1999 war fearing reprisals from the majority ethnic-Albanian population; a smaller number of ethnic Serbs, Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptians fled their homes in 2,004 as a result of violence) (2020)

note: 6,761 estimated refugee and migrant arrivals (January 2015-July 2021)
refugees (country of origin): 17,972 (Croatia), 8,198 (Bosnia and Herzegovina) (2019)

IDPs: 196,995 (most are Kosovar Serbs, some are Roma, Ashkalis, and Egyptian (RAE); some RAE IDPs are unregistered) (2021)

stateless persons: 2,144 (includes stateless persons in Kosovo) (2020)

note: 779,905 estimated refugee and migrant arrivals (January 2015-August 2021); Serbia is predominantly a transit country and hosts an estimated 6,165 migrants and refugees as of April 2021

Source: CIA Factbook