Croatia called for calming tensions and avoiding inflammatory rhetoric between Serbia and Kosovo, and for the continuation of dialogue, the foreign ministry said on Friday.

“It is up to Serbia and Kosovo to continue their dialogue and work responsibly, in good faith, and with the mediation of the EU, on normalising their relations, thus showing that they can cooperate in the European spirit,” the ministry said when asked about the situation in Kosovo by Hina news agency.

Kosovo authorities on Monday had arrested the head of the Serbian government’s Office for Kosovo, Marko Djuric, and expelled him from Kosovo. Following the incident, the Serb List, a political group representing ethnic Serbs in Kosovo which is supported by Belgrade, decided to leave the Kosovo ruling coalition and rescind its support to Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj.

The group announced that in early April it would start forming an association of Serb municipalities in the north of Kosovo. The incident prompted the EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, to visit Belgrade. After talks with Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić, she said that such incidents must not happen again.

Vučić told Mogherini maintaining peace and stability in Kosovo was in Serbia’s interest, but that this was possible only if the safety of Kosovo Serbs was not threatened.

“Croatia supports the efforts by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini to have the dialogue continue. Any other option, including attempts to unilaterally involve third countries, does not contribute to finding the right solution,” the Croatian ministry said.

It noted that readiness to resume dialogue, indicated by the latest reports, was encouraging, and reiterated that for Serbia and Kosovo, as well as for the entire region, preserving peace and stability was an absolute priority.