Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have remained fraught since the end of the war, which killed around 13,000 people, and Belgrade has never recognised Pristina since it declared independence in 2008.

An alleged former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army, the man is suspected of having "participated in terrorist attacks" against Serbian police officers and soldiers, notably a "kidnapping and massacre of police officers", Serbian interior minister Ivica Dacic said in a statement.

War crimes investigators and intelligence services arrested the man, identified as "M.L.", at the Serbia-Croatia border crossing at Batrovci, he said.

The suspect, who was born in 1980 and living in the Kosovan city of Pec, was placed in custody and will be handed over to the war crimes prosecutor's office, Dacic added.

The 1998-1999 Kosovo war between independence-seeking guerrillas and Serbian armed forces ended after a NATO air campaign ousted Serbian military and police from the territory.

Nearly 27 years on, around 1,600 people are still missing, according to the official in charge of Serbia's office for Kosovo affairs, Petar Petkovic.