Diplomatic Spat Over 'Attack' On Serbian Footballers

A diplomatic row erupted Thursday between Serbia and Albania after a teenager apparently threw a stone at a coach carrying the Serbian national football team to a match in Tirana, local media reported.



Albania and Serbia face each other in a crucial Euro 2016 qualifying game Thursday evening but the fixture has been overshadowed by a diplomatic spat between the regional rivals over a seemingly trivial incident.



According to Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, a teen boy threw a stone at the Serbian bus as it travelled from the airport to the team hotel in Tirana on Wednesday.



The stone caused a small chip in the windscreen but led to the Serbian foreign ministry summoning Albanian ambassador Ilir Bocka over the incident.



When Bocka declined the request on the grounds that "nothing had happened", Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said Bocka would be denied contact with Serbian officials for six months, Serbian news outlets said.



"My decision is for us to try and not spoil relations in this way, which is why he will not be able to reach me or other government officials over the next six months," news agency Tanjug "ed Vucic as saying.



Vucic added that he had talked to Rama and the countries would continue to cooperate in other ways.



In a statement responding to Belgrade's "disproportionate reaction", the Albanian foreign ministry said: "Such reactions, and the arbitrary reading of diplomat's immunities and privileges, go beyond all accepted rules of international law and remind us of outdated practices."



The statement added, perhaps optimistically:  "This is a day of sports and fair play."



According to Albanian media, a 14-year-old was later arrested over the stone-throwing incident.



The match is being held amid unprecedented security - 2,300 police officers are on duty despite Serbian fans being barred from attending.



Commenting on the incident, Rama said he was "sorry that yesterday a 14- to 15-year-old boy threw a stone toward the bus of Serbian national team."



Tensions are already high between the Balkan states. The Belgrade leg of the qualifier was marred by Serbian fans attacking Albanian players after a pro-Albanian flag was flown from an aerial drone above the pitch during the game.



Serbia cannot qualify for the championships in France next summer but Albania has a chance to enter a top-level international football competition for the first time in its history. - Ankara