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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

New resolution on Kosovo to set up framework for continuation of Kosovo talks

Belgrade, 24 July 2007

Serbian Minister for Kosovo-Metohija Slobodan Samardzic said today that it is very important that Serbian parliament brings a new resolution on Kosovo which will establish the guidelines and the general framework for continuation of talks on the province's future status.

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, left, and Slobodan Samardzic

Speaking at an extraordinary parliament session, at which deputies are examining the Draft resolution on the need for just resolution of the issue of the Autonomous Province of Kosovo, Samardzic said that Kosovo-Metohija is the crucial state issue and that should be reflected not only in the text of the resolution, but in the position of all party groups.

We do not ask for anything except for keeping the state unity of Serbia and its international sovereignty, we offer the maximum level of self-government in Kosovo-Metohija, with part of guarantees transferred to the international community, he said and added that the Serbian negotiating team will defend these goals in the future negotiations.

Samardzic submitted to Serbian parliament a report on the negotiations conducted in Vienna from February 21 to March 2, 2007 and said that the plan of UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari was an attempt to impose an unacceptable solution.

Minister Samardzic specified that the ultimate aim of that resolution regarded the transfer of the larger part of the jurisdiction of the civil mission to the interim Kosovo institutions.

All mentioned aims made negotiations redundant and that is why our side rejected these proposals, he said and recalled that the principal demand of the Serbian side was that negotiations are conducted without setting conditions.

Samardzic said that Ahtisaari’s plan was removed from the agenda of the Security Council a few days ago owing to Russia, and that consultations regarding further steps were transferred to the Contact Group which will act to form a plan for continuing negotiations on the future status of the province.

Speaking on the report by the negotiating team, he stressed that the report of the team contains the essence of Serbia’s stand on several issues which were being negotiated.

The Minister said that since parliament rejected Ahtisaari’s plan, the negotiating team used the last round of talks to present amendments to all parts of the plan which were not in accordance with Serbia’s policy and the position of the state negotiating team in 2006.

He also presented parts of the plan by Ahtisaari to which the team proposed amendments.

These are parts of the text of the plan which regard the question of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia, substantial autonomy for Kosovo-Metohija which is of great importance for the international community, then parts which have a bearing on constitutional decrees, decentralisation, judiciary, privatisation, international debt of Serbia and the question of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

After the speech by the Minister for Kosovo-Metohija the debate on the draft resolution and the report by the state negotiating team was opened.