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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

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Serbia to lobby African countries on Kosovo

Sharm el Sheikh, 30 June 2008

Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vuk Jeremic stated that at today’s meetings with twenty African statesmen at the African Union Summit in Sharm el Sheikh, Serbian representatives will lobby as many African countries as possible not to recognise the unilaterally declared independence of Kosovo-Metohija.

Boris Tadic

Author: Fonet

Jeremic, who is attending the African Union Summit in Egypt with President Boris Tadic, said in a statement to the BBC that only three African countries have recognised Kosovo’s independence so far.

He noted that Belgrade will try to make sure that the number does not increase or at least not considerably despite the fact that huge pressure is being exerted on African countries to recognise the province’s independence.

The Minister stressed that African countries are aware that if Kosovo’s independence is recognised by a majority of countries in the international community they may also feel the consequences of that because it would create a precedent that may endanger the integrity of other countries.

According to him, this issue is a great concern to African countries because there are many ethnic movements there demanding a higher degree of autonomy, and in some cases independence.

African countries have so far been adamantly opposed to the recognition of Kosovo’s independence and we will try to strengthen their stance further, said the Minister and announced that Serbian representatives will also ask for their support for the next step in the diplomatic struggle for Kosovo.

He recalled that at the UN General Assembly in September Serbia intends to propose a resolution asking the International Court of Justice to determine whether the declaration of independence was in accordance with international law.

According to him, for Belgrade’s proposal to be adopted, it will be necessary that the majority of the UN’s 192 member countries vote, and votes of African states could be very important.

The African Union has 53 members and one of the largest voting blocks in the UN General Assembly. If we want our resolution to be adopted, we must have the majority of the vote, explained Jeremic.

Africa’s 53 votes are the reason why this Serbian delegation is so high level, he explained and added that Serbia has observer status in the African Union and the foreign minister usually represents it at summits.

He announced that he will continue travelling, lobbying and trying to convince governments all over the world to vote for the resolution which Serbia will propose at the UN general Assembly.

In his speech at the summit, Tadic invited members of the African Union to endorse the resolution which Serbia will submit to the UN General Assembly in September.

In the name of a better and more democratic future for all those living in our province of Kosovo, the rest of Serbia and the region, I ask for your support to the resolution which we will submit to the UN General Assembly in September, said Tadic.

He thanked African states which did not recognise Kosovo’s independence adding that they thus showed their commitment to the principles of international law.

We know that you were advised to recognise the independence of Kosovo-Metohija and on behalf of Serbia and myself, I want to thank the large majority of you for your principled stance, said Tadic and voiced that their support to Serbia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity indeed deserves gratitude.

Motivated by a profound respect for the principles of international law, you saw the consequences of unilateral proclamation of independence by Kosovo to the UN system. You realised that the case of Kosovo would be a precedent and noted its potential problems – that existing conflicts may escalate, frozen ones reactivate and new ones break out, he said.

Tadic warned that the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo-Metohija is a serious obstacle on Serbia’s path to the EU, as well as the entire region’s and added that unless the problem is solved properly, it may slow down or degrade the progress which has been achieved in the entire Balkans.

According to him, Serbia rejects the use of force of any kind, in line with its commitment to the search for a peaceful solution to Kosovo-Metohija’s future status and the EU values towards which it strives.

Instead, we will continue using all the diplomatic, political and legal means stressed Tadic and recalled that the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had very friendly relations with African countries, adding that Serbia is ready to re-establish these relations.