Serbian Parliament to vote on new draft Resolution on Kosovo on Monday

KIM Info-service, November 17, 2005

The Serbian government on Tuesday (Nov 15) unanimously adopted a draft of the resolution rejecting independence for Kosovo in U.N.-mediated talks on the future of the breakaway province that begin next month.

The text of the platform, drafted as a 10-point resolution, calls for unequivocal support for a compromise on Kosovo's future status yet warns that the province's "territory is an inalienable part" of Serbia and that "any imposed solution will be considered illegitimate and unacceptable" by Belgrade.

The draft, expected to be approved by the Serbian Parliament next Monday (Nov 21), enjoys bipartisan support.

The full text of the Draft Resolution follows:

Draft Resolution of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia on a Mandate for Political Talks on the Future Status of Kosovo and Metohija

Proceeding from the Constitutional Charter of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, principally the provisions providing constitutional guarantees for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia within its framework, and the provisions stipulating that the territory of Serbia and Montenegro consists of the territories of its member states, and that its borders are inviolable, Having in mind that sovereignty is vested in all the citizens of the Republic of Serbia and that its territory is a single whole, no part of which can be alienated (Article 5 of the Constitutional Charter of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Articles 2 and 4 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia),

Proceeding also from the basic principles and norms of the United Nations and other international organisations, defining state sovereignty and territorial integrity as fundamentals of the modern international order,

Having in mind the Resolutions of the Parliament of Serbia and Montenegro dated April 2, 2004 and September 1, 2003, the Resolutions of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia dated March 26, 2004 and May 4, 2001, the Declarations on Kosovo and Metohija passed by the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia on August 27, 2003 and May 31, 2001, as well as the Decision Approving the Plan for a Political Solution to the Current Situation in Kosovo and Metohija, dated April 29, 2004,

Confident that in democratic states, all disputes, including the gravest of conflicts, can and must be solved on the basis of these fundamental principles and norms, aspiring to a peaceful, comprehensive and permanent solution as a source of prosperity and reconciliation in the future,

Recalling that substantial autonomy and meaningful self-administration of Kosovo and Metohija were suggested as a political solution to the crisis in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1160 (1998), the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 dated June 10, 1999, the Conclusions of G8 Foreign Ministers dated May 6, 1999, that is, a settlement that ended hostilities between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia,  known as the Chernomyrdin-Ahtisaari agreement.

Based on Article 73, Point 2 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and Article 160 of the Standing Orders of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia (Official Gazette No. 55/05 – refined text),

The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, at the session held on….., passed the following

Resolution of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia on a Mandate for Political Talks on the Future Status
of Kosovo and Metohija

The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia approves the beginning of political talks on the future status of Kosovo and Metohija, which, under the U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244 of June 10, 1999, has been under an interim civilian and military administration of the United Nations. Having given its consent, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia defines by this Resolution the principles, framework and mandate binding for all state bodies authorised by the Resolution to participate in the process on behalf of the Republic of Serbia, as a member state of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro.

1.The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and all state bodies express their full readiness to accept their share of responsibility in the process of finding a political solution to the issue of Kosovo and Metohija, based on the international law and in accordance with the democratic values of the modern world. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, in line with the most universal principle of the United Nations prescribing the inviolability of sovereignty and territorial integrity of democratic states, defines by this Resolution the framework and mandate of political talks on the future status of Kosovo and Metohija.

Serbia and Montenegro is an internationally recognised state and, as such, a member of the United Nations and other international organisations. Just like to any other state, all the principles and norms endorsed by these organisations apply to Serbia and Montenegro, particularly those establishing the sovereignty and territorial integrity of member states. These primarily include the United Nations Charter and the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (today’s OSCE), signed in Helsinki, in 1975. Apart from these and other universally binding international-law documents in force, the U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244 and the other relevant U.N. resolutions (1160, 1199, 1203, all passed in 1998, and 1239, passed in 1999) have confirmed explicitly the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia and Montenegro (the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia at the time). Together with the basic sources of international law, the borders and territorial integrity of the states formed after the forcible breakup of the former Yugoslavia have been additionally guaranteed by special international legal documents and agreements, including Opinions by the Arbitration Commission of the Conference of Yugoslavia (Opinion No. 3 of January 11, 1992) and the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Dayton-Paris Peace Accords).

2. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia expresses a firm belief that the U.N. Security Council is a reliable guarantor of respect for the international law and the entire world order based on peace, respect for freedom as the ultimate political value and human rights as a measure of it. Accordingly, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia expects the U.N. Security Council to use the power of its authority to ensure that the inviolable principle of respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity is not violated in the case of Serbia and Montenegro either. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia voices a unanimous belief that entire international community shares the view that it is unacceptable to change the internationally recognised borders of a democratic state against its will. Any attempt at imposing a solution towards de facto legalisation of partition of the Republic of Serbia by a unilateral secession of part of its territory would be not only legal violence against a democratic state, but violence against the international law itself. It goes without saying that it would be an unparalleled case in international law and the practice of the world organisation, as well as a dangerous precedent with unforeseeable long-term consequences for the international order in general.

3.Having in mind the legal rationale, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia would declare any imposed solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija illegitimate, illegal and invalid.

4.The future status of Kosovo and Metohija can be defined only within the framework of relevant principles and norms of the United Nations and other international organisations, with full respect to the constitutional system of Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Serbia. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, within this broad framework, remains unconditionally committed to a compromise, expressing its full readiness for Kosovo and Metohija to be granted a status modelled after European solutions, which would be in full conformity with the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Serbia and Montenegro as a recognised and equal international-law subject. The form and content of that solution should suit not only the national interests of the Republic of Serbia and the state union, but also the interests of the Albanian community in Kosovo and Metohija, the Serbs in the Province and all other inhabitants of Kosovo and Metohija. This universal goal is possible to attain only by a mutual, consensual solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija. In this respect, there is full political will to seek a tangible and feasible form of a stable and durable solution for Kosovo and Metohija, taking into full account the legitimate interests of Albanians in the Province.

The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia authorises the Government to advocate modalities of a sustainable political, institutional and legal solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia is aware of the fact that there can be different modalities of the future status of Kosovo and Metohija that do not question the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state.

5.Over the past six years in particular, Serbs and other non-Albanians in the Province have been deprived of fundamental human rights and exposed to massive terror by Albanian extremists, targeted at changing the ethnic structure of the Province. Some elements of the Albanian extremist policy were set out in A Comprehensive Review of the Situation in Kosovo and Metohija by U.N. special envoy for standards implementation review Kai Eide.

The future status of Kosovo and Metohija must ensure respect for human rights of all national communities, be they a majority population or a minority population in the Province. These include the right to safe life, personal and property safety, fair and efficient judiciary, free exercise of property and property-related rights, freedom of movement and settlement, free expression of political, religious, cultural and other personal beliefs, the right to return and integration of internally displaced persons (IDPs), the right to equal employment opportunities and equal treatment in exercising public offices, as well as all other rights listed in the Council of Europe charters signed and ratified by Serbia and Montenegro.
All these rights are an integral part of a set of standards Kosovo and Metohija has to reach simultaneously with the future-status talks, which is also the opinion of the U.N. Security Council, based on special envoy Kai Eide’s report.

6. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia expresses readiness for a peaceful and consensual solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija, which would be a significant step towards European integration, not only by our state, but all the states of the region. As a democratically organised state, and a member of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, the Republic of Serbia bears a great responsibility for peace and good cooperation in the neighbourhood. Having this in mind, Serbia, participating in the future-status talks thorough its authorised representatives, cannot allow for any solution that might threaten regional peace and good neighbourly relations in this part of Europe. This is Serbia’s principal goal and also its duty within the EU Stabilisation and Association Process. Such a strategic, developmental and democratic orientation of Serbia and Montenegro is supposed to ensure, among other things, much needed regional stability.

7. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia welcomes the mediating role of the United Nations in the process of defining the future status of Kosovo and Metohija, confident that representatives of the world organisation, headed by the U.N. Secretary-General’s special envoy, will be guided by the basic principles and norms of the United Nations and work towards a consensual solution in good faith. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia also expresses a belief that mediators in this process will provide for the necessary form of direct talks between representatives of Serbia and Montenegro and Kosovo Albanians.

8. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia authorises the Government to discuss the future status of Kosovo and Metohija, in collaboration with competent state bodies and in conformity with the mandate defined by this Resolution. This is the sole mandate the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, as a representative body of all citizens of the Republic Serbia, has given for participation in the political process of seeking a solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija.

9. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia will receive regular reports in the course of the talks on a political solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija.

10. The National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia will declare itself on the results of the talks on a political solution for the future status of Kosovo and Metohija, having also in mind a constitutional provision that allows the citizens of the Republic of Serbia to declare themselves on important matters of state in a referendum.

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