<http://www.iht.com/> International Herald Tribune
NATO argues with Russia over Kosovo's status, agrees to keep strong military force in province The Associated Press Friday, December 7, 2007 BRUSSELS, Belgium: NATO and Russia clashed Friday over the future of Kosovo as the territory looked poised to move to independence from Serbia following the failure of international negotiations. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said nations that supported Kosovo's breaking away without agreement from the Serbs would be on "a very slippery downward slope" by setting a precedent for other separatist regions. "It certainly won't help the stability of Europe," Lavrov said at a news conference after talks with his NATO counterparts. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said failure to move ahead on Kosovo's status was ignoring the reality in the province, where the ethnic Albanian majority has pledged to declare independence with or without an international agreement. "We have to move on to the next step," Rice said after the talks. "It is not going to produce stability in the Balkans to ignore the reality of the situation." Rice was heartened that NATO allies agreed to maintain a strong peacekeeping force in Kosovo to deter any renewal of violence in the province, which has been ruled by the United Nations since a 1999 NATO bombing campaign ended a crackdown on Albanian separatists by the late Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. "NATO will respond resolutely to any attempts to disrupt the safety and security of any of the people of Kosovo," the foreign ministers of the alliance's 26 nations said. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday received a report from the mediators saying they failed to break the deadlock over whether Kosovo should remain part of Serbia or become independent, U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said. She said the report would be passed on to U.N. Security Council members Sunday. The United States, the European Union and Russia reported to the secretary-general that negotiations failed because "neither party was willing to cede its position on the fundamental question of sovereignty," according to a copy obtained by The Associated Press. The report sets the stage for a difficult period, both at the United Nations and in Europe, because Kosovo, backed by the United States and most European countries, is expected to declare independence from Serbia in the coming months — a move Russia and Serbia vehemently oppose. Russia's U.N. ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, rejected the word "failure" to describe the 120 days of negotiations. He called the talks "a very worthwhile exercise ... that produced some serious results" because for the first time in years the two sides engaged in "substantive dialogue." "We believe that this outcome is quite encouraging," Churkin said. In light of that, Churkin said Russia wanted further negotiations and planned to circulate wording for a Security Council statement later Friday aimed at encouraging more talks. The council is scheduled to discuss the Kosovo report Dec. 19. Rice made clear the United States would not support more negotiations. "I think that process is at an end," she told reporters in Brussels. NATO spokesman James Appathurai urged a "managed and controlled" transition to decide the final status of the province. The NATO statement urged "both parties to refrain from making acts or statements that could undermine the security situation." In Kosovo, ethnic Serbs scuffled with NATO troops Friday when the peacekeeping commander and the province's U.N. administrator visited a village to assure Serbs they will be protected. U.N. officials said the clash was an attempt by Serbia to intimidate Kosovo's international administration. While Russia was pressing for more talks, the United States and European countries said they wanted a period of consultations with Kosovo's leaders on how to move forward. "It's not going to help stability to put off decisions that — difficult though they might be — are decisions that are going to have to be taken," Rice said. The United States and leading European allies are hoping to revive a plan, which was rejected by Serbia and Russia, for a gradual, supervised move to statehood for Kosovo. Others, notably Spain, Romania, Slovakia and Greece, are more cautious, sharing fears that Kosovo independence without agreement from Serbia could encourage separatist movements elsewhere. However all the allies agreed the 16,450 NATO soldiers in Kosovo should continue their peacekeeping mission under the current U.N. mandate even if the territory's status changed. A battalion of German troops has been sent to Kosovo to strengthen the force, while British, Italian and French units are ready to move in if violence flares up. Kosovo Albanians say they may declare independence early in 2008. The U.S. and leading allies would prefer proceeding under the supervised statehood plan, even without a U.N. agreement. Several want any decision on Kosovo's status delayed until after Serbia's presidential election, tentatively scheduled for Jan. 20. ___ Associated Press writers Matthew Lee in Brussels, Belgium, and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report. _____ <http://www.iht.com/> International Herald TribuneCopyright © 2007 The International Herald Tribune | www.iht.com http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/07/america/NATO-Kosovo.php http://statse.webtrendslive.com/dcsvgnood10000w0atsza69tn_3m9q/njs.gif?dcsuri=/nojavascript&WT.js=No&WT.tv=1.0.7
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