U.N. envoy discusses Kosovo situation with Belgrade leaders

Associated Press, Aug 22, 2005 4:58 AM

BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro-A U.N. envoy met leaders in Belgrade Monday to discuss conditions in Kosovo before he issues a progress report that could lead to negotiations on the contested province's future status.

Kai Eide, a Norwegian diplomat, was appointed by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in June to review Kosovo's progress in meeting U.N.-set targets on democracy and civil rights for the province's minority Serbs.

This is Eide's third visit to the region since his appointment. Before coming to Belgrade, he met ethnic Albanian and Serb officials in Kosovo.

In Belgrade, Eide met with Serbia-Montenegro's foreign minister, Vuk Draskovic. He will also hold talks with Serbia's President Boris Tadic later Monday.

Eide is expected to submit his recommendations on Kosovo by September. If the review is positive, it would be the first step toward possible negotiations on the disputed province's final status.

The province's majority ethnic Albanians want full independence, but the Serb minority and Belgrade insist that Kosovo remain part of Serbia-Montenegro, the union that replaced Yugoslavia.

Kosovo has been under U.N. and NATO administration since a 78-day NATO-led air war that halted a Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists in 1999.

But tensions in Kosovo remain high six years after the end of the conflict. About 100,000 minority Serbs mostly live in isolated enclaves, guarded by NATO troops and fearing attacks from ethnic Albanians extremists.

Belgrade officials insist the position of Serbs in Kosovo must improve before talks on the province's future can start. Belgrade also demands that some 200,000 Serbs who fled the province in the wake of the war be allowed to return to the region.