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Ethnic composition of Kosovo in 2005 according to the OSCE showing Serb-populated North Kosovo

North Kosovo is an unofficial name for a Serb exclave in the ne northern part of Kosovo, Serbia's southern province under United Nations administration. The region consists of the province's three northernmost municipalities, Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok plus the northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica municipality, where its unofficial institutions' capital resides. It is the largest of the Serb enclaves within Kosovo, covering around 1,000 km² or approximately one tenth of Kosovo's land area and houses about 50,000 people. It's administered by the Serbian National Council of North Kosovo, presided by Milan Ivanovic. The President of its executive body is Nada Trajkovic. The communal union's head is Marko Jaksic.

Prior to the 1999 Kosovo War the area was predominately inhabited by Serbs, with a substantial Albanian minority and smaller populations of Bosniaks, Gorani, Roma and Turks. The Yugoslav census of 1991 recorded a population of some 35,000 people in the municipalities of Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok, of whom 84.9% were Serbs, 11.1% Albanians and 3.9% others, ^[1] though it should be noted that the Statistical Office of Kosovo regards the accuracy of this census as "questionable" given that most Albanians boycotted it.^[2] The population of Kosovska Mitrovica municipality was predominately Albanian, with the town itself and two of the nearby villages being ethnically mixed.^[3]

The war resulted in major population changes brought about by ethnic cleansing and refugees fleeing the fighting elsewhere in Kosovo. The number of Albanians fell considerably^{[citation needed]}, while the number of Serbs rose with the arrival of people displaced from Serbian communities elsewhere in Kosovo. In 2006 the OSCE estimated that the population of the municipalities of Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok had increased to around 46,000 people, of whom 95.5% were Serbs, 3% Albanians and 1.5% others.^[1] Kosovska Mitrovica was split between Serbs and Albanians at the end of the war, with the Ibar River marking the dividing line. The Serbian inhabitants of the south bank and the Albanian inhabitants of the north bank - who had been at least 50% of the population - moved or were expelled across the river in a mutual population exchange^{[citation needed]}. The north of Kosovska Mitrovica is now home to approximately 17,000 Serbs and 3,000 members of other minorities. Most of the Roma population was displaced to the north, while small numbers of Turks and Goranis continue to live on both sides of the river. The OSCE has, however, been unable to estimate accurately the population of the municipality.^[3]

The economy of the region was devastated by the war - by 2006, the unemployment rate had reached 77% in Kosovska Mitrovica municipality. The largest employer was the Trepča mining complex in Zvečan which employed 4,000 people at the height of its operations. However, it was shut down in August 2000 due to the severe pollution which it was producing. The economic situation has deteriorated significantly in recent years due to a lack of capital investment, exacerbated by the uncertainty caused by the political dispute over the region's future. The region uses the Serbian dinar rather than the euro used elsewhere in Kosovo.^[1][3]

Since 1999, the Serb-inhabited north of Kosovo has been governed as de facto independent from the Albanian-dominated government in Priština. It uses Serbian national symbols and participates in Serbian national elections, which are boycotted in the rest of Kosovo; and in turn, it boycotts Kosovo's elections. The municipalities of Leposavić, Zvečan and Zubin Potok are run by local Serbs, while the Kosovska Mitrovica municipality had rival Serb and Albanian governments until a compromise was agreed in November 2002. Local politics are dominated by the Serbian List for Kosovo and Metohija. The Serbian List is led by Oliver Ivanović, an engineer from Kosovska Mitrovica. The region has united into a community, the Union of Serbian Districts and District Units of Kosovo and Metohija established in February 2003 by Serbian delegates meeting in Kosovska Mitrovica. Its President is Marko Jakšić. There is also a central governing body, the Serbian National Council. The President of SNV North Kosovo is Dr Milan Ivanović, while the head of its Executive Council is Momir Kasalović.

The principal issue facing the region is its future relationship with Serbia and a likely independent Kosovo. The North Kosovo Serbs have taken a consistently hard line until relatively recently, refusing to cooperate with the Albanian-dominated government in Pristina or to take up their seats in the Assembly of Kosovo. Their stance has been encouraged by the Serbian government of Vojislav Koštunica. It has been reported that Serbian military intelligence has been active in North Kosovo since the end of the war, allegedly using intimidation to prevent Serbs from leaving Kosovo or participating in the province's 2004 elections.

However, Ivanović and other Kosovo Serb leaders have expressed increasing frustration at Belgrade's approach and have voiced their support for a more moderate stance, speaking openly of rejoining the Assembly of Kosovo and taking part in its government. This line has proved highly controversial, as many Kosovo Serbs reject any compromise; in February 2004, Ivanović's car was destroyed by a bomb explosion outside his home in Kosovska Mitrovica.^[4]

The Serbian government, the Serbian List, the Government of Kosovo and the United Nations all officially oppose the separation of North Kosovo from the rest of the province. However, many Serbs in the region are adamantly opposed to living under the rule of an Albanian-majority provincial government and reject an independent Kosovo. Ivanović has spoken out against partition, pointing out that more than 60,000 (55%) of the Serb population of Kosovo lives south of Ibar, and that all of the important cultural and economic assets are also in the south of Kosovo.^[5]

Most inhabitants of North Kosovo have boycotted the most recent elections for the provisional institutions upon advices from Belgrade, putting themselves in an awkward situation as ethnic Albanian parties are leading on all local elections in North Kosovo.

1. ^ ^{a b c} OSCE profiles of Leposavić, Zubin Potok and Zvečan, 1 May 2006
2. ^ Kosovo and its Population, Statistical Office of Kosovo, September 2003
3. ^ ^{a b c} OSCE profile of Kosovska Mitrovica, 1 May 2006
4. ^ "Kosovo", Jane's Sentinel, July 2006
5. ^ Oliver Ivanović interview, Danas, Belgrade, pp. 12-13. 9 December 2006

• Kosovo
• Kosovo Serb enclaves