Experts: Serbia is using KSF weapons for psycho-strategic operations

After the extraordinary meeting of the National Security Council in Serbia, held on January 4, 2026, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić claimed that the Kosovo Security Force is arming itself in violation of international law and that the Croatia-Albania-Kosovo alliance, according to him, directly violates Serbia's interests and security.

Vučić has described this situation as a threat to his country, emphasizing that Serbia is already preparing to defend itself.

These statements have only enriched what security and fake news experts see as Serbian propaganda.

Researcher from the "Octopus" institute, Gurakuç Kuçi, told KosovaPress that the Serbian president's complaints are part of a psycho-propaganda strategy.

Although Vučić, according to Kuči, knows that Kosovo is strengthening its army within NATO, he presents it as a threat to Serbia.

"Aleksandar Vučić is one of those people who, together with Serbian propaganda, leaves no stone unturned in using it against Kosovo. He knows very well that Kosovo is strengthening its army within NATO and he himself has had statements from NATO and the US that the arming of Kosovo is being done in accordance with the rules and by 2028, which is also the planned transformation into an operational army. But nevertheless, they use this issue, including other elements that have been happening recently, as a kind of strategy, as a kind of psycho-strategic operation that Vučić is conducting," said Kuči.

Kuçi emphasized that Kosovo's institutions must be prepared to deal with this type of strategic communication from Serbia.

As an immediate need to intervene, Kuçi has seen the issue of social networks and media, where the public is being manipulated.

"The security bodies in Kosovo, together with all other institutions, must have a strategy that takes into account how STRATCOM or Serbia's communication strategy works, and thus, taking into account their strategy, then create a kind of counter-strategy that, in cooperation with civil society, the media, and also actors who have an interest in Kosovo, keeps the masses untouched by this kind of propaganda and this kind of hybrid war that is taking place. Perhaps the immediate need to intervene is the issue of social networks and the issue of the media, where many unidentified or ownerless media and also various social networks are manipulating the public, and we have noticed that there are an extremely high number of shares, likes, and comments that are dividing the masses and pushing forward Serbia's interests towards Kosovo," he added.

Even the researcher at Hibrid Info, Festim Rizanaj, has assessed that Vučić's statements have influenced the spread of dangerous narratives.

These statements, according to him, create panic among the Serbian community in Kosovo, who Rizanaj advises to verify these narratives and use more reliable sources of information.

"At the moment when Vučić declared that Kosovo is arming itself to attack Serbia, these narratives have been amplified by other personalities, as well as other media, with the aim that in some way this affects domestic consumption, creating a kind of victimization that Kosovo is arming itself on purpose. At the same time, narratives have also been circulating that this also damages the security of Serbs in Kosovo... 1:25 These are dangerous because they create panic, mainly among the Serbian community in Kosovo because, based on the information we have, they are mainly informed by the media in Serbia and do not use the credible media that are in Kosovo. This can create a kind of panic among them, and at the same time it can misinform Serbs in Serbia regarding developments in Kosovo... 2:02 They need to verify these narratives, at the same time they need to use more sources of information related to such security topics," said Rizanaj.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defense has described the Serbian president's statements as untrue and tendentious.

The spokesperson for this ministry, Liridona Gashi, in a response to KosovaPress, emphasized that the development of the KSF has no threatening plans.

"The Kosovo Security Force is developing its capacities for defensive purposes, in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo and NATO standards, as well as in full coordination with our international partners. The KSF is not and will not be oriented towards threatening or attacking any state. Our commitment to Western values ​​and peace is also evidenced by the fact that all military procurements are carried out transparently with NATO member states, unlike Serbia," she said.

At the National Security Council in Serbia, President Vučić said that the KSF transformation process is being carried out with the support of major Western powers and Turkey, according to him in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

"We are particularly concerned about the further arming of Pristina, in violation of the UN Charter, Resolution 1244 has been suspended de facto, although not de jure; de ​​facto it has been suspended by the major Western powers and by some regional actors such as Turkey. They are rapidly arming Pristina, while a particular threat to the security, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Serbia is the newly created alliance or coalition of Pristina, Tirana and Zagreb, which also includes the joint production of complex combat systems, from active four-wheeled vehicles to ideas for more powerful means and weapons in the future," Vučić said.

Kosovo institutions emphasize that Resolution 1244 does not prohibit the creation or development of the Kosovo Security Force, while its development is being carried out in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo and in coordination with international partners, including NATO.

On the other hand, Serbia continues to consider the Security Council Resolution as a legal document still in force, using it as a basis to oppose Kosovo's statehood and to argue that the transformation of the Kosovo Security Force into an army contradicts this resolution.