A Spy Case, A Warning

A Croatian pilot’s alleged leaks to Serbia’s List expose a network. While Washington and Brussels appease Belgrade, Kosovo faces orchestrated hybrid attacks. Accountability, not ‘de-escalation.’

I’ve covered this region long enough to know that when the story breaks in the margins, an island off Dalmatia, an anonymous court in Split, you should pay close attention. This week, Croatian outlets reported that a helicopter pilot with the Croatian Air Force, who had served with KFOR in Kosovo, and his long-time partner from north Mitrovica were arrested on the island of Vis on suspicion of espionage. According to Index.hr¹, investigators believe the pilot passed confidential information to his partner, who then relayed it to the Serbian List, the Belgrade-aligned party that has dominated Kosovo’s Serb politics for a decade. Europol is said to be assisting; both suspects have been questioned; pre-trial detention has been ordered; the case now straddles Croatia’s civilian and military jurisdictions².

Vecernji list went further, reporting that the woman identified by initials, a sociologist known in Mitrovica’s media circles had worked around international missions, including EULEX and …