http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=aZb3SaaSXYpk&refer=europ e
Bloomberg News August 2, 2007 Kosovo `Political Limbo' Must Be Resolved Soon, NATO Chief Says By Ed Johnson -An independent Kosovo would be the latest country carved out of the former Yugoslavia after the civil wars of the 1990s. The breakup of the country led to independence for Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia. [Every one of the above six new nations is now either a full member of NATO or of its so-called Partnership for Peace 'apprenticeship' program. All except Serbia and newly independent Montenegro have troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.] The ``political limbo'' in Kosovo must be resolved soon, NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said, warning of potential instability in Europe if the disputed Serbian province's status isn't settled. ``Europe, in particular the Balkans, needs some resolution to this issue,'' Scheffer said yesterday. ``The unfinished business of Kosovo must be settled sooner rather than later.'' The province has been under United Nations control since 1999, when the North Atlantic Treaty Organization bombed Serbia....NATO has about 16,000 soldiers in the province to maintain security. Diplomats from the U.S., European Union and Russia will oversee negotiations between leaders of Serbia and Kosovo in an effort to settle the province's future. The U.S. and its European allies back Kosovo's independence. Serbia, supported by Russia, opposes it and has offered broad autonomy instead. Thirteen months of UN-brokered talks between Serbian and Kosovo leaders collapsed in March without a settlement. ``The status quo cannot hold indefinitely,'' Scheffer said in a statement on NATO's Web site. ``We cannot afford to have a political limbo in the middle of this continent. We have seen before what that can bring.'' .... UN Plan UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari, a former president of Finland, has proposed a phased process of independence for the province of 2 million people, where ethnic Albanians outnumber Serbs and others by nine to one. A draft resolution endorsing the plan was withdrawn from the UN Security Council last month after Russian opposed it. The EU, Russia and U.S. will guide negotiations in coming months and the wider ``Contact Group,'' which includes the U.K., Germany, France and Italy, will report to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on any progress by Dec. 10, the UN said. Ban supports the arrangement and said yesterday he wants the ``new period of engagement'' to lead to an agreement on the province's status. ``The international community must find a solution that is timely, addresses the key concerns of all communities living in Kosovo and provides clarity,'' he said in a statement. Serbs live mainly in the north of Kosovo. One option to settle the issue may be to redraw the province's northern border to incorporate ethnic Serbs into Serbia. An independent Kosovo would be the latest country carved out of the former Yugoslavia after the civil wars of the 1990s. The breakup of the country led to independence for Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia. =============== Group Moderator: [Е-ПОШТА ЗАШТИЋЕНА] page at http://magazine.sorabia.net for more informations about current situation in Serbia http://www.sorabia.net Slusajte GLAS SORABIJE nas talk internet-radio (Serbian Only) http://radio.sorabia.net Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sorabia/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sorabia/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[Е-ПОШТА ЗАШТИЋЕНА] mailto:[Е-ПОШТА ЗАШТИЋЕНА] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [Е-ПОШТА ЗАШТИЋЕНА] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
