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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

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Idea of Serbia, Kosovo-Metohija confederation devoid of sense

Belgrade, 31 July 2007

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said today that the idea that Serbia should form a confederation of sovereign states with its province Kosovo-Metohija is absolutely devoid of sense.

File photo of Vojislav Kostunica

Author: Fonet

In a statement to the news agency Beta, Kostunica said that the Serbian government is ready to begin real and meaningful negotiations on autonomy for the Albanian ethnic minority in Kosovo-Metohija on the basis of the UN SC Resolution 1244.

We can reach a solution if we put things in their proper context in the new negotiations, and that means if we open up the question of the position of the Albanian ethnic minority we could find the best form and degree of autonomy for the province, said Kostunica.

The Serbian Prime Minister said that this means that ideas which were heard in the recent period, such as Serbia forming a confederation with its own province, are absolutely senseless.

According to Kostunica, the question of all ethnic minorities in Europe and the rest of the world are resolved exclusively through various forms of autonomy, and that universal rule must also be held valid for the Albanian ethnic minority.

Kostunica added that the Albanian minority cannot be given special status and treated as the only minority to which universal rules of international law do not apply.

Similarly, Serbia cannot be treated as a special and only country on whose territory an ethnic minority is allowed to form its own state, said the Prime Minister.

Kostunica stressed that peace and stability in the world rest on respect of these rules and that is why they must be respected during new negotiations on establishing substantial autonomy for ethnic Albanians in Kosovo-Metohija.

That is the only path and the safe one which leads to lasting peace and a viable solution, a solution which guarantees peace and stability in the entire region, said Kostunica.

According to today’s edition of the daily “Vecernje Novosti”, during the upcoming negotiations on the future status of Kosovo-Metohija the EU might attempt to push ahead with the idea of creating a confederation of Serbia and the southern Serbian province Kosovo-Metohija.