EU fears Kosovo violence
Ministers meet as Kosovo Albanians edge towards declaration of independence.
“From today, Kosovo is starting intense consultations with its international partners with the aim of co-ordinating steps for declaring independence“ Skendi Hyseni, member of Kosovo’s negotiating team |
As the deadline for an agreement on Kosovo’s future expires, Kosovo Albanian leaders will begin talks with international mediators on steps towards a declaration of independence.
In previous talks, EU nations and the United States advocated a gradual and supervised move toward statehood for Kosovo, a proposal that was rejected by Serbia and its ally Russia.
Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, warned on Monday against Kosovan independence, saying it was not in Russia’s interests.
“In that case those countries would be violating international law and we will not support the violation of international law,” Lavrov told journalists during a two-day visit to Cyprus.
“This will cause a chain reaction in the Balkans and other areas of the world and those making such plans must think very carefully about the consequences.”
EU concerns
Mediators are to debrief Ban Ki-moon, UN secretary-general, in Monday in New York on the failed talks.
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In a separate development, Washington and its EU allies have agreed to keep Nato peacekeepers in Kosovo.
The province has been a UN protectorate since 1999, when Nato led a bombing campaign against a Serbian crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.
EU member countries are divided over whether to recognise a Kosovan declaration of independence if Serbia disagrees.
Countries with autonomous regions of their own, such as Spain, are concerned that recognition of Kosovo’s independence from Serbia could boost separatist movements in their own territories.