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Kosovo authorities are conducting an action regarding suspicions of espionage, intensifying the fight against the espionage network, the Kosovo Special Prosecution announced on Thursday.
The prosecution said that the action is being carried out in cooperation with the Kosovo Police Inspectorate and the Kosovo Intelligence Agency.
She said she could not provide details, due to the sensitivity of the investigation and since the operation is still ongoing.
The action comes at a time when authorities have arrested, charged and tried Serbs and Albanians on suspicion of spying for Serbia's intelligence services.
In June, the court in Pristina sentenced Aleksandar Vllajic to five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges of being involved in espionage as a member of the Serbian Intelligence and Security Agency (BIA).
Currently, two suspects, Bedri Shabani and Muharrem Qerimi, are being tried for espionage for Serbia at the Basic Court in Pristina.
They have pleaded not guilty to charges that they had provided information to the Serbian BIA about several security institutions in Kosovo, the KLA and the Recak massacre.
In Kosovo, espionage is defined as the secret activities of collecting, transmitting, or distributing sensitive information to another state, organization, or group.
According to the Criminal Code of Kosovo, espionage is considered a serious crime and is punishable by at least five years in prison, if the suspect is found guilty.
Experts have said that espionage is a serious threat to Kosovo's security, and the recent arrests only highlight the ongoing danger.
According to them, this activity not only destabilizes the country internally, but also damages its international standing.
The former chief inspector of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency (KIA), Burim Ramadani, considers espionage as one of the main threats to national security in the country.
The recent arrests, but also other criminal proceedings against several suspects, show, according to him, how vulnerable Kosovo is to such foreign intelligence activities.
"The damage that is intended to be caused is what makes Kosovo look bad externally and puts it under tension internally," Ramadani told Radio Free Europe in March.
For the former Deputy Minister of Interior of Kosovo, Valdet Hoxha, it is mainly Serbia and Russia that have the appetite to portray Kosovo as a "failed project of the West."
Valdet Hoxha, former Deputy Minister of Interior of Kosovo, said that mainly Serbia and Russia have the appetite to portray Kosovo as a "failed project of the West."
"In this context, naturally, they have aimed to infiltrate their people into the security mechanisms, into other political mechanisms," said Hoxha./ REL
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