Provocative Message After Vučić’s Threats Over Ujman: Graffiti Reading “When the Army Returns to Kosovo” Appears in Serbia

Another threatening message targeting Kosovo has emerged from Serbia, this time in the form of graffiti reading “When the army returns to Kosovo,” painted in Perućac, in the Bajina Bašta area. The inscription was painted in large letters and in the colors of the Serbian flag on a wall along the road to Mitrovac on Tara.

According to Serbian media, the graffiti appeared on August 9, the same day Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić issued threats against Kosovo involving one of its most strategic water resources, Ujman Lake, mentioning “changing the course of the Iber River.”

On Sunday, Vučić said Serbia was engaging construction and engineering experts to examine the possibility of diverting the course of the Iber, linking this to what he falsely described as the “mistreatment of the Serbian people.” “Since they are mistreating our people so much, let us see—we have various reasons for changing the course of the Iber, and then we will see what the Albanians will do and how they will behave,” Vučić said, attempting to present a distorted picture of the situation in Kosovo.

Graffiti bearing the message “When the army returns to Kosovo” is not new. For years, such messages have appeared in various locations across Serbia, including Belgrade. In 2023, they were painted on the fence surrounding the Serbian Army General Staff building and in several other parts of the Serbian capital. These inscriptions have also occasionally appeared in northern Kosovo.

Crvena Zvezda’s best-known supporters’ group has claimed responsibility for most of the graffiti, saying it financed the work itself, and added that the first example of this kind was created by Partizan supporters.