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Jeremic seeks support from Non-Aligned Movement for defence of Kosovo

Belgrade/Tehran, 30 July 2008

Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vuk Jeremic called on member states of the Non-Aligned Movement to back Serbia’s initiative to seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on whether the declaration of Kosovo’s independence is in line with international law.

Author: Fonet

Speaking at the ministerial conference of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran, Jeremic said that Serbia intends to submit a resolution to the UN General Assembly in September, seeking the Court’s opinion on Kosovo’s secession.

According to him, the Court’s opinion could help tone down the tensions and avert negative developments in the region, and could also facilitate efforts for reconciliation among all parties affected.

Serbia, although only an observer in the Non-Aligned Movement, is also a successor country of the movement’s co-founder – the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, whose president Josip Broz Tito was the movement’s first secretary-general, the minister recalled.

He said that Tito’s contribution to the Non-Aligned Movement will always be remembered, and for its important role in keeping world order and developing multilateral relations.

Although now my country is not a full member of the Non-Aligned Movement, I hope that its members will recognise the complete harmony between Serbia’s position on Kosovo and the movement’s principles, and that you will support our initiative as if we were still your full member, Jeremic said.

This demand by Serbia, he explained, is in line with paragraph 16 of the draft of the final document of the NAM ministerial meeting in Tehran which states that NAM calls on the UN General Assembly to seek the opinion of the ICJ on legal questions which are related to their activities.

The Foreign Minister said that the opinion of the court will contribute to easing tensions, help avoid negative development of events in the region and beyond, and strengthen reconciliation efforts.

Jeremic said that Kosovo’s declaration of independence on February 17 was a blatant violation of the UN Charter and Resolution 1244, according to which all UN member countries are obliged to respect Serbia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

A large number of UN member countries, as well as NAM members, still respect this principle and have not recognised this attempt at secession. I express deep gratitude to them on behalf of the Serbian government for abiding by the principles of international law, said Jeremic.

He warned that bringing the concept of sovereignty into doubt any where in the world can be a dangerous game, full of precedents and political consequences which threaten to undermine international legal order.

By supporting Serbia you are strengthening our joint dedication to a just peace and cooperation, and you are upholding the right of everyone to international justice, concluded Jeremic.