MOSCOW.  Nov  30  (Interfax)  

Members of the Russian State Duma's Foreign  Affairs  Committee said at a meeting with Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku  that  the  issue  of Kosovo's status should be solved through talks between Belgrade and Pristina.     

"We  are again calling on Pristina to talk with Belgrade. As far as we know,  Serbia  is  ready  to  grant  the  broadest possible status to Kosovo,  given Serbia's territorial integrity is maintained," said State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Konstantin Kosachyov.     

Meanwhile,  Ceku  "once  again  resolutely stated that Kosovo would pursue independence  and  its recognition by the United Nations' General Assembly,"  the  Russian  MP said, adding that the Kosovo prime minister came to Moscow "on a brief informal visit at the invitation of the State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee."     

"Given  that  there  is  no  direct  dialogue  between Pristina and Belgrade, Russia could assist in organizing such a dialogue to negotiate compromises acceptable for both parties," the committee chairman said.     

The  meeting  focused  on  two  issues:  Kosovo's  status  and  the situation  with  Serbian minorities in the province, he said. "We stated that Russia  is  convinced  that the definition of Kosovo's status, when international  human  rights standards are not observed in the province, when the nation-building process is unilateral, rather than discussed at talks between  Belgrade and Pristina, creates a dangerous precedent that directly  contradicts  principles of the post-war European order defined in the Helsinki Final Act of 1975," Kosachyov said.     

It  is  important that Ceku assured Russia that "Kosovo authorities are ready  to take the path of 'assimilated disintegration,' which gives the Serbian  language  the  status  of  second state language," he said. "Another  guarantee  is to set aside a number of parliamentary seats for Serbians,  as  well as a broad autonomous status with the right to solve the issues  of Serbian communities in Kosovo at the municipal level," he said.     

"Ceku stated many times that the province is interested in open and constructive  relations  with  Serbia,  if the these are two independent states," he said.     

Ceku's  informal  visit  to  Moscow was organized in a "transparent manner -  Serbia  was  informed  in  advance  and  did not object to the meeting," Kosachyov said.

Stratfor: Possible New Conflicts In Balkans

Houston, 29 Nov. (Beta)

The impatience of the Kosovo Albanians concerning independence most probably will cause new conflicts in Balkans, and when the independence is granted to the Kosovo by the UN, things will become "interesting and most probably bloody", assesses the Texas agency for strategic research – "Stratfor".

UN Special Emissary for Kosovo Marrti Ahtisaari, will present his proposition of the status solution after the Serbian elections on January 21. It is estimated for the (relatively) pro-western coalition to loose to the nationalistic Serbian Radical Party, who used to be in a partnership with a Milosevic Party, says the American agency.

"The UN are hoping that, if the decision on Kosovo is postponed from the end of the 2006 to the beginning of the 2007, Serbs will chose anybody but not Radicals. That is, in the best case scenario, under question mark, but for the international community that is the only option", states "Stratfor".

NATO: Solution For Kosovo Must Improve Regional Stability

Riga, 29 Nov (RTS)

In their final declaration, which was adopted at the end of the Riga summit, NATO chiefs have emphasized that the solution for Kosovo and Metohija future status needs to improve stability in Southeastern Europe, strengthen the perspective of the entire region for integrating into Euro-Atlantic structures, and be acceptable for the people of Kosovo.

"We fully support the efforts of Martti Ahtisaari, to bring this process to the end, and are calling on all sides to make constructive efforts, show flexibility, fulfill international standards, and participate in local civilian structures", states the declaration. The 11 page document with 46 conclusions among which the invitation for Serbia to join the Partnership for peace program, emphasizes that NATO will "remain ready to quickly and effectively answer any kind of security threat to the region". "We will continue playing our role in implementing the safety conclusions which are part of the solution, and will have a close cooperation with the citizens of Kosovo, the European Union and other international partners, with the goal of promoting stability, and help in creating Kosovo security systems which are democratically controlled, ethnically representative, and which enjoy legitimacy over the entire territory of Kosovo," states the conclusion.

"We pay great importance to the implemention of standards, especially when it comes to protecting the of rights of minorities and ethnic communities, protection of historical and religious monuments, and the fight against corruption and organized crime," states the document.

Chief of NATO member states emphasized that "just like in Afghanistan, success in Kosovo will depend on the joint effort", and underlined that the Alliance will continue working together with the OSCE, UN, and EU, on creating a safe and secure environment.

Fresh Delays Likely to Kosovo's Independence

29 Nov (Birn.eu.com) – By Tim Judah

Kosovo Albanians are still reeling from the discovery that the "final status" of Kosovo will not be decided by the end of this year as their leaders promised and as members of the Contact Group countries dealing with the issue had hoped.

Now they face what some diplomats are calling the "the double disappointment" of additional delays that could push recognition of their new state back to late next summer or beyond.

In addition, the price of independence is expected to include many elements that they do not like. In a series of interviews with senior European diplomats based in Pristina or dealing with Kosovo on a daily basis, they have made it clear that extended delays to the status question are now inevitable.

These reflect the need to find a consensus among the members of the Contact Group, especially Russia, and also the need to establish a "transition period" between a new UN resolution and what they call "status day".

Last February, the UN asked Marti Ahtisari, the former Finnish president, to work on finding a negotiated solution for Kosovo, which has been under UN jurisdiction since 1999.

Technically, Kosovo remains part of Serbia. However, at least 90 per cent of the 2 million populations are made up of Albanians who demand independence. It has long been expected that, as Serbian and Kosovo Albanians cannot agree on final status, Ahtisari would recommend a package to the UN Security Council leading eventually to independence, albeit with conditions.

Ahtisari had earlier indicated that he had planned to present his plan by now, while western diplomats had said they wanted Kosovo dealt with by the end of the year. But in the wake of a referendum in Serbia on a new constitution reinforcing claims to Kosovo, and after the announcement of new elections in Serbia, Ahtisari and the diplomats agreed to Serbian requests to delay Kosovo's resolution until after the poll.

This was mainly because no one wanted to give any extra ammunition in the election campaign to the extreme nationalist Serbian Radical Party. At this point it looked likely that Ahtisaari would present his plan in late January or early February 2007. But with Russia chairing the presidency of the UN Security Council in January and Slovakia in February, hopes now lie with Britain securing a new UN resolution to replace the existing 1999 Resolution 1244 during the UK tenure in March 2007.

The resolution is unlikely to mention the word "independence" but will instead open the way for individual countries to recognize the new state.

However, while Kosovo Albanians had assumed earlier that recognition would flow immediately after a new UN resolution, diplomatic sources are now indicating this may not happen. They say they now expect a gap of several months between the new resolution and status day.

One reason for this transition period is that the resolution based on Ahtisaari's recommendations will oblige Kosovo to make various changes before it can be recognized. These will include incorporating minority rights clauses into a new constitution and decentralizing local government, which may involve granting different rights to Kosovo Serb and Albanian dominated municipalities.

A second issue has already become the subject of a dispute between UN planners in New York and their EU counterparts. The EU is to play a lead role the international body that will succeed the current UN mission UNMIK. But while the UN argues for a delay of up to six months between a new resolution and full handover to the planned International Civilian Office, ICO, and status day, the EU argues for a shorter transitional phase of three months.

If the UN prevails, and a new resolution is passed next March, recognition may not come before next September at the earliest. It is also not a foregone conclusion that there will be a resolution in March, given the continuing strength of Russian opposition to Kosovo's independence. One diplomat said, "It could take weeks but it could also take months."
For now, no country wants to recognize an independent Kosovo outside the framework of a UN resolution, and if a resolution is not forthcoming, as one diplomat said, "There is no Plan B".

Countries are unlikely to recognize Kosovo before status day, even if Kosovo's parliament declares independence because the current UN Resolution 1244 will still apply. The realization that more delays are in the pipeline has given rise to concern from the most unexpected quarters. One senior Serbian official expressed fears now emerging that although Serbia had fought to get Russia to block Kosovo's independence, the consequences of success could in fact be negative for Serbia.

This official noted that if Russia blocked a UN resolution, or traded a resolution on Kosovo for other interests, fresh violence could well break out in the territory, sparking a new Serbian exodus from Kosovo and damaging foreign confidence and investment in Serbia.
This latter is a major calculation, as this year alone Serbia expects to receive four billion dollars worth of foreign direct investment. In other words, no side is likely to end up happy with whatever happens in Kosovo.

In another blow to the Albanians, it also appears that the powers handed by the UN resolution to the ICO may be much greater than Kosovo Albanians now realize.
Those planning the ICO are drawing heavily on the model of the Office of the High Representative, OHR, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. So, says one diplomat, the International Civilian Representative, ICR, in Kosovo can be expected to enjoy "far reaching correctional powers".

Although the international presence in Kosovo will have a different legal basis from UN Resolution 1244, in practical terms, he added, "People will virtually not see any difference". 

Zavales: If EU Takes Over The Responsibility In Kosovo, There Could Be A Plan For The Future Status Of Kosovo

Washington, 29 Nov, (balkanweb.com)

According to the United States political analyst, John Zavales, if the European Union takes over the formal responsibility in Kosovo, then we should not exclude the possibility for Brussels to have its own plan for the future status of Kosovo. "If the European Union takes over the formal responsibility in Kosovo, we should not exclude the possibility for Brussels to have its own plan for the future status of Kosovo", the US political analyst, John Zavales said to ‘Voice of America' news agency.

Zavales added that "Kosovo status today is much more complicated than it was 6 months or a year earlier". Zavales said that Ahtisaari's report may include the proposal for a conditioned independence, which will include the control over the economic and internal issues, but not the control over the army. It will also have limited activity in the foreign politics and will not have a seat in the United Nations Organization.

According to him, there is the possibility for a United Nations new resolution for Kosovo, through which would be recognized Kosovo's independence on condition that Albanians fulfill a series of conditions.

Zavales said that the third option is the possibility for a reciprocal recognition of Kosovo's independence, even though; Pristina and Belgrade do not accept this option. Kosovo Albanians insist for a full independence, but for Belgrade even the conditioned independence would be interpreted as an end to any kind of sovereignty over Kosovo or any connection with it.

More News Available on our:
Kosovo Daily News list (KDN)
KDN Archive

Earlier Newsletters can be found at: http://www.kosovo.net/erpkiminfo.html 
Photo Galleries of the March pogrom are available at: http://www.kosovo.net/pogrom.html

Our Information Service is distributing news on Kosovo related issues. The main focus of the Info-Service is the life of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian community in the Province of Kosovo and Metohija.

Disclaimer:
The views expressed by the authors of newspaper articles or other texts which are not official communiqués or news reports by the KIM Info-Service are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Translations from local media, reflect personal opinions of individual authors, or opinions of organizations that released the text(s). Please contact the copyright holders for reprinting rights and objections. KIM Info-service is not responsible for accuracy of translated texts, except in case of its own statements and news.

This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material.

Additional information on the Church and the life of the Kosovo Serb Community may be found at: http://www.kosovo.net

If you want to unsubscribe go to the page: http://www.kosovo.net/erpkiminfo.html

Copyright 2006, KIM Info-Service