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China has expressed support for Serbia's efforts to "guarantee its sovereignty and territorial integrity" after renewed clashes between Kosovo Serbs and soldiers from NATO's peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, KFOR.

"We call on NATO to sincerely respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the countries concerned and truly do what favors regional peace," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said.

China's ruling Communist Party has long been a critic of NATO, due in part to the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade during NATO's 1999 air campaign to end the war in Kosovo.

China, along with Russia and Serbia, has not recognized Kosovo's independence since 2008 and today Mao blamed the violence on non-respect for Serbian political rights.

"We oppose the unilateral actions of Kosovo's interim institutions of self-government," Mao told a daily briefing, referring to the Kosovo government in Pristina.

Mao said Serbs should be given control of municipalities where they form a majority.

Serbs in northern Kosovo protest again, NATO soldiers guard town halls

Last Friday, Kosovo Serbs in northern Kosovo, who are a majority in that part of the country, tried to prevent recently elected Kosovo Albanian mayors from entering municipal buildings. On the same day, Serbian troops along the border with Kosovo were put on high alert.

Yesterday, in the municipalities of Zvecan, Zubin Potok and Leposavić in northern Kosovo, Kosovo Serbs protested in front of local government buildings because they do not want to allow newly elected mayors, who are Kosovo Albanians, to start performing their functions. Protesters clashed with police and NATO peacekeepers KFOR in the municipality of Zvecan. About 30 KFOR soldiers were injured, as were about 50 Serb protesters.

Serbs, who make up a majority in northern Kosovo, do not recognise Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence and still see Belgrade as their capital. Serbia also does not recognize Kosovo's independence. Serbs refused to take part in local elections in April, and candidates of Albanian origin won elections in four municipalities populated mainly by Serbs, with a turnout of 3.5 percent. Serbs have called on the Kosovo government to remove Albanian mayors from mayoralties and allow local administrations funded by Belgrade to return to their duties.

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