The protests caused relations between Serbia and Kosovo—which had been improving— to worsen, and led to the Serbian Armed Forces being placed on heightened alert.

International powers, particularly the European Union and NATO, called for de-escalation, while Russia criticised Kosovo.

The previous government, led by the Democratic League of Kosovo, scrapped many reciprocity measures in June 2020, which Avdullah Hoti declared was to remove barriers to dialogue,[6] under pressure by the US and the EU.

The main policy that was scrapped and has not been brought back since, was a 100% tariff rate on products from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia.

[16] They were blocking the roads leading to the two border crossings with Serbia in North Kosovo, near Jarinje and Brnjak, with vehicles and barricades reinforced by gravel.

[11][19] However, on 25 September 2021, two government vehicle registration centers in Zvečan and Zubin Potok were attacked by arson, and reportedly with hand grenades that failed to explode.

[22][23] According to the agreement between Kosovo and Serbia mediated by the European Union (EU) Representative for the Balkan–Pristina Dialogue Miroslav Lajčák in Brussels, reached on 30 September 2021, the Kosovar special police withdrew by 16:00 local time on 2 October 2021.

[19] The army started transporting military equipment to the border area, including its fighter jets, helicopters, and tanks, on 26 September 2021.

[27] He made the withdrawal of Kosovar special police a condition for starting EU-mediated negotiations to resolve the dispute.

[27] The Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti has accused Serbia of "inciting and supporting" the attacks on government buildings.

[24][25] On 30 September 2021, an agreement was reached in Brussels that effectively ended the ban on Serbian license plates, starting 08:00 local time, 4 October 2021.

The solution is to cover the national symbols of Kosovo on Kosovar RKS license plates in Serbia, as well as to cover the national symbols of Serbia on Serbian license plates in Kosovo and their country codes RKS and SRB with a sticker.

A working group was formed and met on 21 October 2021 in Brussels for the first time, to try and find a permanent solution in accordance with EU standards.

[34] In October, Russia deployed air defense forces to Serbia for a joint military exercise called "Slavic Shield 2021" to practise anti-aircraft actions.

The increase was most notable near the border crossings, where armored vehicles moved close to protesters' blockades.

She has called for NATO and the EU mission to pressure Kosovo into retreating its security personnel as to "prevent escalation".