State Department spokesman Matthew Miller implored Serbia "to immediately and unconditionally release the three Kosovo police detained on June 14” Tensions between Belgrade and Pristina escalated after Serbia arrested three Kosovo police officers earlier this week WASHINGTON: The US State Department on Saturday accused Serbia of inflaming tensions with the arrest of three Kosovo police officers this week and demanded their immediate release. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller implored Serbia “to immediately and unconditionally release the three Kosovo police detained on June 14.” “Their arrest and ongoing detention on spurious charges has exacerbated an already tense situation,” he added. Tensions between Belgrade and Pristina escalated after Serbia arrested three Kosovo police officers earlier this week. Kosovo labelled the detentions as a kidnapping and, as a “security measure,” banned all Serbian trucks from entering its territory. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic played down the arrest and accused Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti of “wanting to provoke a war.” The detained police belonged to a border patrol unit and had gone missing after they reported an incursion of masked and armed men in the area. Tensions between Belgrade and Pristina have soared since the police-backed installation in May of ethnic Albanian mayors in four northern Serb-majority Kosovo towns. The move led to rioting that left 30 NATO-led peacekeepers injured. France, Germany and the United States have urged both sides to de-escalate tensions, while the United States openly slammed the Kosovo government’s decision to install the mayors. The European Union called on Vucic and Kurti to meet in Brussels next week. Ethnic Albanian-majority Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Belgrade, backed by Russia and China, has never recognized it. Kosovo Serbs remain largely loyal to Belgrade and reject Pristina’s sovereignty.