‘Serbian nationalists’ propaganda’: Kosovo slams Djokovic comment | Tennis News

Djokovic’s comments ‘may result in raising the level of tension and violence between Serbia and Kosovo’, official says.

Kosovo’s Olympic authorities have asked the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to open disciplinary proceedings against Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic, accusing him of stirring up political tension at the French Open.

The 36-year-old scrawled “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence” on a camera lens after his first-round match at Roland Garros on Monday, and later defended himself, saying, “Kosovo is our cradle, our stronghold, centre of the most important things for our country”.

He was accused of promoting “Serbian nationalists’ propaganda” by the Kosovo Olympic Committee (KOK) on Wednesday.

“Novak Djokovic has yet again promoted the Serbian nationalists’ propaganda and used the sport platform to do so,” KOK President Ismet Krasniqi wrote in a letter to International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

The letter accused Djokovic of violating principles of sport and the Olympic Charter on “political neutrality”.

“The further post-match statements, made by such a public figure without any feeling of remorse, directly result in raising the level of tension and violence between the two countries, Serbia and Kosovo,” the Kosovan statement said.

KOK’s Krasniqi said Djokovic’s messages and actions were “dangerous for the future of sport if unpunished”.

@NOCKOSOVO has reacted today to the @Olympics & @ITFTennis,regarding the incident of the Serbian ? player, Novak Djokovic, who once again promoted the Serbian nationalists propaganda “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia, stop violence”.We truly hope that the IOC will raise its voice. pic.twitter.com/71qqCvBdiC

— NOC KOSOVO ??? (@NOCKOSOVO) May 30, 2023

Kosovo is a mainly ethnic Albanian-populated territory that was formerly a province of Serbia.

It declared independence in 2008 which has been recognised by about 100 countries, except for Serbia, Russia, China and five other European Union nations.

Thirty peacekeepers from a NATO-led force in Kosovo were injured in clashes with ethnic Serb demonstrators on Monday during protests about the installation of ethnic Albanian mayors in northern Kosovo.

NATO’s spokesperson issued a statement condemning the attack and “called on all sides to refrain from actions that further inflame tensions, and to engage in dialogue”.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said 52 Serbs were injured as Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani accused Vucic of trying to destabilise the self-declared republic.

‘Not appropriate’

Djokovic was also criticised by France’s Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera, who told broadcaster France 2 that the 22-time Grand Slam winner’s message was “not appropriate, clearly”.

“There’s a principle of neutrality for the field of play. When you carry messages about defending human rights, messages that bring peoples…