30 November 2006

Kosovo police raid bankrupt bank, arrest 4

Associated Press, Monday, November 06, 2006 11:10 AM

PRISTINA, Serbia-Police raided several offices of a bankrupt bank in Kosovo on Monday and arrested four suspects as part of a corruption investigation targeting the province's banking system.

Earlier this year, an international prosecutor began an investigation on the dealings of Credit Bank after it was closed, declaring bankruptcy.

Police officers raided 14 locations in a dawn operation across the province. The force estimated the damages at €16 million (US$20 million) and said those arrested were members of the bank's main board, according to a statement.

"Kosovo will not be a haven for crime," said U.N. police chief Stephen Curtis, following the operation. "This will not be a place for criminals to hide from justice."

Kosovo has been administered by a U.N. mission since the end an ethnic war in mid-1999. The province of 2 million is the poorest region in Europe.

Kosovo officials in embezzlement charges

Beta news agency, Belgrade, 5 November 2006 14:20

PRISTINA -- Kosovo's international prosecutor has indicted four officials for the embezzlement of 300,000 euros.

The officials suspected of abuse of office and money laundering are former Kosovo Post Office and Telecommunications (PTK) director, two former Creditor Agency officials and a Norwegian company manager. The international prosecutor has charged the four with abuse of office and embezzlement of 300,000 euros.

Former PTK director Leme Dzema, former Creditor Agency officials Roger Reynolds and Ronen Sorensen are suspected of abuse of office and signing of detrimental contract. Former Norjev Invest director Mustafa Neziri is accused of money laundering.

The trial date will be set after the confirmation of the indictment.

Russia insists on all-party agreed solution to Kosovo

XINHUA (CHINA), 2006-11-04 04:25:32

 

BRUSSELS, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- Any decision on Kosovo's final status must be acceptable to all parties, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday, casting aside an imposed solution.

 

"It can only be a compromise, it has to be a decision which is acceptable to all parties," Lavrov told a news conference in Brussels after talks with Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, representing the European Union presidency.

 

Lavrov warned that a decision made "from the top down" would "just simply fall apart".

 

The UN-sponsored talks on Kosovo's final status were launched at the end of 2005. Although the deadline was set at the end of this year, the negotiations are dragging on, raising the likelihood that a solution will be imposed.

 

The UN mediator for Kosovo Martti Ahtisaari has recently produced a draft proposal, which reportedly grants Kosovo certain rights normally enjoyed by sovereign states.

 

Lavrov said the proposal could be submitted to all parties with a view to future talks, but not necessarily as an ultimatum on any party.

 

Although technically still part of Serbia, Kosovo has been run by the UN and NATO since a NATO bombing campaign in 1999.

Two persons detained for inciting public disorder in Novi Pazar

Radio Television Serbia, Belgrade, Saturday, November 4, 2006 13:48

 

Izet Fijuljanin (37) was detained on suspicion of committing the crimes of attempted murder and illegal possession of firearms, while Habib Fijuljanin (33) was detained on suspicion of committing the crime of causing public danger and illegal possession of firearms, advised the Novi Pazar police.

 

Police said in a written statement that criminal charges have also been brought against 16 persons who took part on Friday in a public disturbance in Novi Pazar, and that they have been detained by criminal courts with the request to initiate criminal proceedings.

 

On Friday Izet Fijuljanin stopped his vehicle in Prvomajska Street in immediate proximity to the Arap Mosque, where a group of Wahabis was present. Ismail Gicic, Jasmin and Erhan Smailovic approached the vehicle and began to strike it with a wooden pole and with their feet.

 

Izet then fired multiple shots in their direction, the statement says. Two hours earlier in the Arap Mosque, during religious services, "a verbal and physical attack on the mosque imam and a public disturbance occurred initiated by the Wahabis who were present; at that time, Habib Fijuljanin, who was present among the faithful, shot two bullets from a gun into the ceiling," the statement says.

 

In the Arap Mosque during prayers radical Islamists belonging to the Wahabi school physically attacked the imam and muezzin of the Arap Mosque in order to impose their own rituals for religious service, resulting in the injury of several of the faithful who attempted to protect the religious servants.

 

Wahabis are considered to be Islamic extremists and can be recognized by their long beards and pants with shortened legs. Some ten of them interrupted a concert by the group Balkanika in the center of Novi Pazar in April. [...]

Some 1,200 displaced persons from Kosovo visit Orthodox graves, barricades near Suva Reka

Radio Television Serbia, Belgrade, Saturday, November 4, 2006 18:54

 

The Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija organized the visit of approximately 1,200 displaced persons to the southern Serbian province on the occasion of Memorial Saturday so they could visit the graves (of their loved ones) in safety.

 

Several hundred Serbs from the northern part of Kosovska Mitrovica visited the Orthodox cemetery in the southern part of the city escorted by members of the Kosovo Police Service.

 

The visit to the cemetery in the southern part of Kosovska Mitrovica unfolded without incident but visitors established that many tombstones had been broken, fences destroyed and graves neglected.

 

More than 70 percent of tombstones in the Orthodox cemetery in the southern part of Kosovska Mitrovica have been desecrated and destroyed during the past seven years.

 

The greatest numbers of destroyed Serbian graves are in Metohija in the municipalities of Klina, Djakovica, Pec and Istok, followed by Srbica, Vucitrn, Podujevo and Kosovo Polje. In numerous cemeteries in central Kosovo vandals have opened the graves and human remains have been removed from some.

 

A memorial service for the deceased was served in Gracanica Monastery. After the service, a short memorial service was served in the monastery cemetery.

 

In Visoki Decani Monastery a memorial service was served by Metropolitan Nikolaj of Dabro-Bosnia and Bishop Teodosije (of Lipljan). Memorial Saturday on the eve of the feast of St. Demetrios (Nov. 8) was commemorated in all other monasteries of the Diocese of Raska and Prizren, as well as in all parish churches and cemeteries throughout Kosovo and Metohija.

 

Albanians put up barricades to stop Serb bus

 

However, several dozen Albanians used vehicles and logs to obstruct the road close to the cemetery in the village of Lesane near Suva Reka and prevented Serb refugees and internally displaced persons from visiting the graves of their family on Memorial Saturday.

 

After the bus was brought to a stop by the barricades, one extremist at the wheel of a tractor rammed the bus head on, advised the Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija.

 

Since the bus was escorted by police, the police arrested the tractor driver but several dozen Albanians attacked both the police and the Serbs in the bus and the police then released him. The driver of the bus managed turn the bus around and leave the location of the attack.

 

No one was hurt in the attack.

 

The frightened Serbs were unable to visit the cemetery in Lesane for the first time in seven and a half years.

 

The Republic of Serbia's Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija sharply condemned the actions of the Albanian extremists and appealed to the international community to note that the facts clearly indicate that even UNMIK and KFOR do not have control of the situation in Kosovo and Metohija, the Coordinating Center said in a written statement.

 

Serbs prevented from visiting ruins of destroyed church in Djakovica

 

Serbs from Djakovica were prevented from visiting the ruins of the destroyed church in Srpska Street on the occasion of Memorial Saturday, the KIM Info Service advised.

 

After a memorial service, lighting of candles and placing of flowers on the graves of their loved ones, the pilgrims intended to visit the destroyed church located in the center of Djakovica in Srpska Street. However, they were prevented from doing so by members of the Kosovo Police Service, allegedly because they were unable to ensure their safety, the KIM Info Service said in a written statement.

 

The group of faithful visiting the cemetery in Djakovica first attended a memorial service held in the location of the now destroyed cemetery chapel dedicated to the Holy Prince Lazarus and served by Protosingel Petar, abbot of Djurdjevi Stupovi (Pillars of St. George) Monastery and acting elder of Zociste Monastery.

16 November 2006

Ambassador Bissett: Ahtisaari is not negotiating, he is imposing a solution for Kosovo independence

Radio Television Serbia, Belgrade, Saturday, November 4, 2006 14:58

 

Member of the American Council for Kosovo and former Canadian ambassador to Yugoslavia James Bissett has stated that the UN facilitator for Kosovo Martti Ahtisaari is not conducting negotiations but merely imposing a solution for Kosovo independence.

 

In a statement for Radio Free Europe, Bissett emphasized that he is very disappointed with Ahtisaari's work because, in his words, the Finnish diplomat "has guided negotiations from the very beginning in such a way that there is no other solution except independence for Kosovo".

 

"I believe this would represent a violation of the United Nations Charter and current international norms with respect to the preservation of the territorial integrity of countries. Borders can be changed only with the mutual acquiescence of both sides, not on the basis of a diktat by the former Finnish president, the International Crisis Group or the USA," underscored Bissett.

 

"I assume that the USA will insist on Kosovo receiving independence and that is is probably unavoidable but the consequences will be very serious and they will undermine the stability of the Balkans," assessed the (former) ambassador of Canada to Yugoslavia during the 1990s. Bissett warned that the evenutal independence of Kosovo and Metohija will result in similar demands "by Albanians in the Presevo Valley and in Macedonia".

 

"This can cause problems in the Balkans because if Kosovo gets independence, why then should Serbs in Bosnia be prevented from annexation to Serbia? The way matters stand it appears that the international community is allowing border changes everywhere except in cases where this would benefit the Serbs," said Bissett.

 

Translator's note: Mr. Bissett's statements were translated from Serbian.

Annan says Kosovo status decision may be delayed

Reuters, Sat Nov 4, 2006 3:18 PM GMT

 

ZAGREB (Reuters) - A decision on Kosovo's bid for independence from Serbia could be delayed until next year following Serbia's general elections, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan was quoted on Saturday as saying.

 

Annan made the comments in an interview with the Croatian daily Vjesnik, in which he spoke of his talks with the U.N. special envoy on Kosovo, Martti Ahtisaari, about Serbia's October constitutional referendum.

 

"Considering the referendum, and the fact that they want elections in Serbia, we have to be cautious. Ahtisaari also has to be cautious so that the issue of the final status of Kosovo is not used for pre-electoral purposes," Annan told the paper.

 

"A proposal on Kosovo must be presented at a right time, that's the key. So we may not stick to the deadlines we had originally planned."

 

The Contact Group on Kosovo -- comprising the United States, Russia, France, Britain, Germany and Italy -- has insisted its aim is to resolve the issue by the end of this year, although Russia says it should not be bound by "artificial deadlines".

 

Kosovo has been a U.N. protectorate for the past seven years. NATO bombed Serbia for nearly three months in 1999 to force the late strongman Slobodan Milosevic to pull his troops out of the southern province where 10,000 ethnic Albanians had been killed in a counter-insurgency war.

 

NO COMPROMISE

 

Serbia strongly opposes demands by Kosovo's 90 percent ethnic Albanian majority for independence, insisting international law backs maintaining its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

 

The Albanians say Serbia wants the land, but not its people, and Western powers sympathise with their demand for self-determination within their own borders.

 

Annan, whose term is close to its end, expressed his confidence in Ahtisaari, who has been criticised by Belgrade for alleged anti-Serb bias, and said the process could extend into next year.

 

"I expect Ahtisaari will remain U.N. special envoy. As for the (Kosovo) negotiations, it is not excluded that they are extended into 2007," Vjesnik quoted him as saying.

 

The envoy has mediated face-to-face talks between Serb and Kosovo Albanian leaders since February, with no hint of compromise on the central issue of the province's future status.

 

The West is wary of giving ultranationalist Serbs a boost over pro-Western parties by imposing a Kosovo solution before an election is held, probably in December. Leaks of Ahtisaari's proposals indicate Kosovo would get a path to eventual statehood, after a period in the tutelage of the European Union.

 

But the West also fears delaying a decision may incite violence by Kosovo Albanian extremists who suspect they people may be cheated of independence by a big power decision to appease Serbia.

Kosovo to seek representation abroad

Deutsche Presse Agentur, Saturday November 4, 2006

 

Pristina- The Serbian-province of Kosovo will soon open "diplomatic" missions in Washington and Brussels, the Pristina-based Koha Ditore newspaper reported Saturday. According to the report, the United Nations-administration that has overseen the province since 1999 has given its approval to the opening of the missions.

 

The approval however has nothing to do with ongoing negotations on the future status of the province, the report said, adding that missions are also to be opened in European Union states, including Germany and Austria.

 

The actual official designation of the missions has not be agreed upon as the Kosovo is governed by the United Nations mission UNMIK.

 

Serbia has refused to consider independence for Kosovo, while the province's ethnic Albanian majority favours secession.

Economist: Kosovo will declare independence unilaterally

Makfax news agency, Skoplje, 3.11.2006 11:29

 

London - Kosovo will unilaterally proclaim independence once the UN Security Council adopts a new resolution that avoids using the word 'independence', British weekly newspaper Economist said.

 

The paper says the UN special envoy to the Kosovo status talks Martti Ahtisaari will present his plan on Kosovo's future status after elections in Serbia.

 

Ahtisaari's plan will suggest that Kosovo becomes independent but with limits placed on its sovereignty for some years to come. Furthermore, an international civilain respresentative will be appointed, who will at the same time represent the European Union. The job will come with considerable powers to intervene in the running of Kosovo. The NATO-led force now in place will remain, The Econimist said.

 

Meanwhile, Russia and the West need to agree on Kosovo resolution, subject to approval by the UN Security Council, which is unlikely to mention the word independence.

 

Once the resolution is passed, Kosovo's Assembly will declare independence unilaterally, Economist says, adding that some, perhaps most, countries will recognize the new state. /end/

Serbia offers just and sustainable solution for future status of Kosovo

RELIEF WEB (SWITZERLAND)

 

Source: Government of Serbia

Date: 02 Nov 2006

 

Belgrade, Nov 2, 2006 - Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said during today's talks with Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli that the people of Serbia voted for the new Constitution at the referendum, which clearly confirms that Kosovo-Metohija is an integral part of Serbia, in line with the UN Charter.

 

Kostunica underlined that Serbia proposed a just and sustainable solution for Kosovo's future status, based on fundamental principles of international law and the UN Charter, and that is substantial autonomy within Serbia.

 

Rutelli welcomed the adoption of the new Constitution of Serbia, adding that it is very important for Serbia.

 

The two officials agreed that Serbia and Italy have traditionally close and friendly relations. It was underlined that cultural cooperation between the two countries is at a very high level and that Italy has done a lot concerning visa relaxations for some categories of Serbian citizens.

 

Kostunica and Rutelli said that economic relations between the two countries are also very good and that they should be further improved. The first next step in that direction is the opening of the House of Italy in Belgrade in December, which will be opened by Italian Deputy Prime Minister Massimo d'Alema.

Montenegro: Kosovo premier visit triggers protests

ADN KRONOS INTERNATIONAL (ITALY), Nov-03-06 17:35

 

Podgorica, 3 Nov. (AKI) - Kosovo prime minister Agim Ceku's one-day visit to Montenegro on Friday has stirred unprecedented protests from the opposition ranks, from Kosovo Serbs and Belgrade officials. Ceku came to the capital, Podgorica, at the invitation of outgoing prime minister Milo Djukanovic. He said Ceku's visit was "in the interest of good neighbourly relations" and would not affect the decision on the future status of the breakaway southern Serbian province, most of whose overwhelmingly ethnic Albanian majority demands independence.

 

But Montenegro opposition parties said in a joint statement that Djukanovic, who decided to quit politics after 17 years in power and winning a September 10 general election, had humiliated Montenegro and 'poured oil on the fire of Serbia's problems' while it is trying to prevent Kosovo's independence.

 

Montenegro opposition leaders pointed out that Ceku, who earned a rank of general of the Croatian army during its war of secession from the former Yugoslavia, has been accused by Serbs of war crimes, and that Djukanovic's invitation equalled the approval of such acts.

 

"It's a shame," said Predrag Popovic, leader of Montenegro people's party. Popovic accused Djukanovic, who in a 21 May referendum led Montenegro to independence from its state union with Serbia, of now siding with ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo in an effort to snatch the province away from Serbia.

 

Kosovo has been under United Nations control since 1999, when a NATO bombing campaign pushed Serbian forces out of the province, and the international community is expected to make a decision on its status by the end of this year.

 

At a joint press conference with Djukanovic, Ceku said that Kosovo was just a step away from independence, stressing that it was "the only tenable solution." He dimissed accusations about war crimes, saying he was a "professional soldier who took all his tasks in war and peace seriously and behaved responsibly and professionally."

 

Djukanovic said the complaints over Ceku's visit were the result of "a xenophobic and autistic mindset." He said any solution that Belgrade and Pristina work out with the international community would be acceptable to Montenegro, which sees Kosovo and Serbia as its neighbours. "By talking to other neighbours, we do no harm to Serbia," said Djukanovic.

 

Montenegro's Serbian Radical party said it was now clear that Djukanovic was working in collusion "with the Albanian mafia and war criminals" supporting "the greatest enemies of the Serbian people."

 

Kosovo's Serb National Council called on Montenegro's authorities and nominee for new prime minister Zeljko Sturanovic to distance themselves from Djukanovic's policies. Another opposition leader, Andrija Mandic, said Ceku's "arms are bloody up to his shoulders," adding that the visit was the biggest blow to Montenegro by the outgoing prime minister.

 

In Belgrade, Nebojsa Bakarec, a high official of premier Vojislav Kostunica's democratic party of Serbia, said Ceku should be tried for war crimes, "as a proven terrorist and murderer of Serbs in Croatia," and not parade on a state visit to Montenegro. He accused Djukanovic of "directly interfering in Serbia's internal affairs".  

Kosovo PM guarantees Serbs minority rights

UPI, November 3, 2006

 

PODGORICA, Montenegro, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- The prime minister of Serbia's mainly ethnic-Albanian Kosovo province says Serbs will be guaranteed full minority rights, Serbian media reported.

 

Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku told reporters in the Montenegrin capital of Podgorica Friday that Kosovo will be independent from the Serbian government in Belgrade in the very near future, Serbia's Beta news agency said.

 

After his talks with Milo Djukanovic, Montenegro's caretaker prime minister, Ceku said he expected Kosovo's future status will be resolved by the end of this year and the international community will keep on supervising the province.

 

Ceku said Serbs will govern the territories where they live and added, "Kosovo is their home, their country and I am their prime minister and therefore I feel responsible for them," Beta said.

 

Ceku and other leaders of ethnic-Albanians, who make up 90 percent of Kosovo's 1.8 million population, insist on independence from Belgrade, while the Serbian government in Belgrade says Kosovo will always be an integral part of Serbia.

 

U.N. administrators and NATO troops have been stationed in Kosovo to contain ethnic conflicts since 1999.

Kosovo PM shrugs off Serb charges, protests

Agence France Presse, Friday November 3, 04:31 PM By Bozo Milicic

 

PODGORICA (AFP) - Kosovo's Prime Minister Agim Ceku, whom Belgrade accuses of war crimes, on Friday brushed aside the charges during an official visit to Serbia's former partner Montenegro.

 

"My conscience is clear and I'm proud of my military career," Ceku said on the visit, which sparked protests by Montenegro's Serb minority.

 

"I say with full responsibility that I have never ordered any crime to be committed, that I have never seen or committed a crime, so there is no basis for me to be treated as a criminal," he told a press conference.

 

Ceku, a former military commander in wars against Serbs in Croatia in 1991-1995 and Kosovo in 1998-1999, made the comments on his first official visit to Montenegro since it broke away from a union with Serbia.

 

Belgrade, which accuses Ceku of committing war crimes against its people, declined to comment on the matter Friday.

 

But the Kosovo Albanian leader's visit to its former federation partner is likely to anger the government of moderate nationalist Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica.

 

The visit came just weeks ahead of a decision on the future status of Kosovo, whose ethnic-Albanian majority are also seeking independence from Serbia, a demand Belgrade staunchly opposes.

 

"I hope that the issue of Kosovo will be solved during this year," said Ceku, speaking in perfect Serbo-Croatian.

 

"I am sure that the outcome will be an independent Kosovo with all guarantees for national minorities, with the help of the international community," he said.

 

Kosovo formally remains under Serbian sovereignty but is expected to win a form of independence from Belgrade by the end of the year.

 

The disputed southern province has been run by the United Nations since mid-1999, following NATO bombing that drove out Serbian forces over a brutal crackdown against its independence-seeking ethnic Albanians.

 

The visit by Ceku was made at the invitation of Montenegro's outgoing Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic, who for his part described it as "very important for the region and bilateral cooperation between Montenegro and Kosovo".

 

Serbian analyst Zoran Stojilkovic told AFP that he found the lack of a reaction from Belgrade unsurprising.

 

"Ever since Montenegro proclaimed independence, Serbia has kept its eyes wide shut towards anything going on there. I suppose this is the same method it will use in regard to this visit," said Stojilkovic.

 

The visit sparked protests in the Montenegrin capital Podgorica by several dozen Serbs, who criticised their leader's decision to invite him.

 

"Djukanovic has delivered a blow not only to some 200,000 citizens of Montenegro who consider themselves Serbs, but also to the Serbian leadership and the people of Serbia after the adoption of the new constitution" that declares Kosovo an integral part of the country, Andrija Mandic, leader of the opposition Serbian People's Party, told the rally.

 

"It seems that Ceku is coming in a sort of pay-off for Montenegro's Albanians' support for Montenegrin independence," said Ranko Kadic of the opposition Democratic Serbian Party.

 

Djukanovic, who is soon due to step down after 17 years in power and after leading his former Yugoslav republic to independence in June, responded by saying the Serb protestors' reaction was that of "an old, autistic conscience".

 

"By holding these talks, we do not cause any harm to Serbia. Montenegro's most important interest is to build bridges of cooperation. Serbia remains our partner," he said.

 

Ceku was elected Kosovo's prime minister in March last year

 

Serbia then urged the United Nations mission in Kosovo to reject his nomination, saying it was "deeply concerned" about the issue.

 

"We have warned them and we expect that the election of Ceku would be prevented," Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said at the time.

 

Belgrade said in March that its justice authorities had launched an investigation into Ceku for alleged war crimes and issued an "international arrest warrant" against him.

 

He had previously been indicted by Serbia in 2002.

Draft solution for Kosovo-Metohija bound to fail if not based on UN Charter

RELIEF WEB (SWITZERLAND)

 

Source: Government of Serbia

Date: 01 Nov 2006

 

Belgrade, Nov 1, 2006 - Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said today that the draft solution for Kosovo-Metohija by Marti Ahtisaari is bound to fail if it is not in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and if it violates the territorial integrity of Serbia.

 

Kostunica pointed to the fact that the Serbian government has not received the document prepared by Ahtisaari regarding the solution for the future status of Kosovo-Metohija, neither has the government had an opportunity to talk with Ahtisaari on the matter.

 

The Serbian Prime Minister said that it is a worrying fact that Ahtisaari has held only one meeting with the Serbian and ethnic-Albanian sides thus far, and now he has a document which was never discussed. He added that during the past one year Ahtisaari did not succeed in organising serious talks.

 

One thing is certain - if Ahtisaari's document is not in accordance with the UN Charter and if it violates the territorial integrity of Serbia, then such a solution is doomed to failure in advance, because the Security Council will never allow that the UN Charter is violated and 15% of Serbia's territory is seized, stressed Kostunica.

 

Kostunica said that he believes Ahtisaari read the UN Charter before preparing this document and knows that three and a half million Serbian citizens have voted for the Constitution, which includes the decree of the UN Charter.

 

Kostunica said that Ahtisaari has no need to think when elections will be held in Serbia, because now the Constitution completely defines the position of every future government in Serbia regarding the southern province.

 

It is important that Ahtisaari concentrates on making sure that any document he prepares is in harmony with the UN Charter and in that case the doors to finding a just and compromise solution will be opened up, said the Serbian Prime Minister.

Expert sees "smouldering terrorism" in South Serbia, "terrorism" in Kosovo

BBC Monitoring Europe (Political) - November 1, 2006 Wednesday

 

Text of report by Dragana Bokan headlined: "Who goes hunting with a Zolja rocket launcher?" by Serbian newspaper Borba on 30 October

 

Four Albanians from southern Serbia were part of an international criminal gang suspected of smuggling at least 275 illegal immigrants from Kosovo into Western Europe over the past seven months. The gang was smashed recently in a joint operation of the Slovak, Serbian, Croatian, and B-H police forces.

 

The four Albanians, who live close to a border crossing with Kosovo, were identified by members of the Organized Crime Squad. A coordinated police operation was carried out after 10 months of surveillance kept on members of this criminal group in Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, and Austria; also, 39 apartments were searched and 36 people were arrested.

 

"In Kosmet [Kosovo-Metohija], there is systematic terrorism against Serb civilians, which UNMIK [UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo] records, while the provisional Kosovo institutions may perhaps note its existence, but they do nothing about it. The purpose of this is to show that the situation there has improved and that the territory should be given independence, while disrupting the territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia. The fact is that the Serbian MUP [Interior Ministry] and the Security Information Agency (BIA) are foiling more and more cases of people trafficking. These are Albanians moving across Serbia. Who is to say, for example, that these activities are not planned and that they are not meant to finance terrorism in Kosovo-Metohija," Milan Mijalkovski, professor at the Belgrade University Faculty of Security, explains for Borba.

 

According to Mijalkovski, terrorism is practiced in Kosovo-Metohija because perpetrators are not being arrested or, if they are, they are released within a very short time.

 

"A glaring example of this is the case of a 17-year-old youth that recently threw a grenade on the Dolce Vita cafe bar in Mitrovica. The reasons given for his release were that he was under age, mentally incompetent, and so on. This suggests that somebody manipulated him," Professor Mijalkovski says.

 

Senior police officials have recently said that the security situation in Serbia is stable and that security in our country is at the same level as security in the other countries in the region. The question that arises is whether there are organized terrorist groups in Serbia.

 

"We have already had a number of incidents where extremists took quite strong action. I will draw one parallel here: a trial is in progress of members of the National Formation [Nacionalni Stroj neo-nazi organization] in Novi Sad. On the other hand, however, inasmuch as we are making a comparison, an incident that occurred in Novi Pazar, where extremists smashed the musical instruments of the Balkanika band, was a much more serious one, in my opinion. Were any measures taken in that case? People have no information about this. They were both of them incidents. On the one hand, consistent action is being taken against people from the National Formation, who are answering charges of fanning racial and religious hatred. As for the situation in Presevo, Bujanovac, and Medvedja, it is true that there are no terrorist incidents there, but two weeks ago, a grenade was fired on army members at their base in the south and this grenade had come not from the territory of Kosovo, but from our own territory [sic]. Media did not say much about this. Why is this being hushed up? The grenade was fired on a hunting day. Was this a coincidence and who fired the grenade? Did they go hunting with a Zolja [Wasp rocket launcher] and what were they hunting? Obviously, this was a deliberate act and one which was not the work of a lone individual. There is no terrorism there in the conventional sense that has a violent expression, but there is smoldering terrorism," our interviewee says.

 

The recent large explosion at the military depot at Paracin is attracting people's attention. Various stories have appeared in the media, one of which was that there was a suspicion that the series of explosions and fires at Paracin had been caused by a terrorist act.

 

Our interviewee, who headed the Department of Security at the Military Academy for many years, believes that the investigation will discover the true causes of the Paracin disaster.

 

"One must take into account objective facts and these show that, since the start of the army reform two years ago, the reduction of military cadres has been going on at a brisk pace. Thus, we have a situation where a large number of commissioned officers and noncoms, who are competent to handle mines and explosives, have met the requirements for retirement and are leaving. On the other hand, one should not rule out the possibility of a terrorist attack, if one bears in mind that the number of army members that were securing the depot was very small. There were something like six or seven guards, in addition to the technical security measures," Professor Mijalkovski says.

 

Some people were of the opinion that the security services should have had information about the facility's security and should have acted to prevent the accident.

 

Our interviewee says that Defence Minister Zoran Stankovic himself said that the government had been warned down the chain of command about the possibility of a disaster.

 

"If the minister was issuing the warning, he could have been informed down the chain of command, as well as by the Military Security Agency [VBA]. The VBA is certainly competent to know, because its main job is to protect personnel, materiel, and facilities of the Army of Serbia and the Defence Ministry against all kinds of threat. If there were indications that the protection of the materiel was inadequate, the VBA should certainly have had to have been aware of all these fine points," our interviewee says.

 

Speaking about the military security services, many people are of the opinion that these have not been adequately reformed. We ask Professor Mijalkovski for his opinion.

 

"Where the military security services are concerned, they have been reformed already. Practically, when we take into consideration all the elements of the Defence Ministry and the army, I believe that the military security service is near the top of the list of the reformed institutions. I am not just saying this off the top of my head; I am speaking from facts and from the simple reason that a large number of VBA members have attended various specialist training courses and are cooperating highly successfully as part of agreed cooperation with the intelligence services in the Euro-Atlantic security structures. It is easy to say: 'Carry out a reform.' In my opinion, this is tendentious," Professor Milan Mijalkovski says at the end of our talk.

 

Source: Borba, Belgrade, in Serbian 30 Oct 06

15 November 2006

Diplomats fear 'fudge' over Kosovo's status

Reuters, Thursday, 2 November, 2006, 11:19 AM Doha Time By Paul Taylor

BRUSSELS: European officials are worried that a UN mediator will avoid outlining a clear final status for Kosovo, risking a unilateral declaration of independence that may cause a diplomatic crisis and split the European Union.

Officials familiar with Finnish mediator Martti Ahtisaari's thinking say he is set to stop short of proposing independence for the breakaway Serbian province in deference to fierce hostility from Belgrade and strong Russian opposition.

"The dangerous situation is if there is no clear recommendation as to the final status," one senior EU official said. "There is a very significant risk of that." EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, in charge of the European integration of the Western Balkans, has been urging Ahtisaari to ensure clarity in his proposals for an agreed settlement, due to be issued sometime this month.

Many European officials are urging the mediator to delay his push for a deal until after early Serbian elections possible next month, following a weekend referendum that approved a new constitution declaring Kosovo an integral part of Serbia.

But the US and Britain are pressing for a final status agreement this year, arguing that delay risks provoking violence among Kosovo's overwhelmingly Albanian population.

Kosovo has been under UN protection in a state of legal limbo since 1999, when Nato waged an air campaign to drive out Serbian forces and stop ethnic cleansing.

Its prime minister, Agim Ceku, insists independence by the end of this year is the only acceptable outcome for Kosovo's 2mn people, some 90% of whom are ethnic Albanians.

"Nothing less than independence will be acceptable," the former general said in an interview this month.

While Washington and London argue that Kosovo's situation is unique, Russia sees it as a precedent for changing international borders without the consent of the country concerned.

If Kosovo can have independence against Belgrade's wishes, then breakaway regions of Moldova or Georgia backed by Moscow should enjoy the same right, Russian officials contend.

The EU official said Ahtisaari, a former Finnish president and veteran negotiator often tipped for the Nobel peace prize, felt it was not his duty to make "a judgment of Solomon".

He planned to set out legal arrangements on governance, decentralisation and minority rights but leave the ultimate final status decision to the UN Security Council.

The Kosovo daily Express, quoting two diplomats it said had seen Ahtisaari's draft, said the plan would not include the word "independence" but recommend Kosovo be given "treaty-making powers" and the right to join international organisations.

A senior European diplomat in the Kosovo capital Pristina said the report "seems to tie in very much with what we know.

"He doesn't mention independence but Ahtisaari is describing the criteria which characterise an independent country," he said.

An EU official in Brussels said that could trigger a "messy scenario" in which the Security Council would be deadlocked and the Kosovo government, perhaps with the green light from Washington, would declare independence.

If that happened, there would be an intense diplomatic battle over recognition, with the US likely to lead a drive for recognition against Russian resistance.

The EU risked a split between "Orthodox and Habsburg" member states closer to Serbia and others such as Britain that might recognise Kosovo individually, he said.

An EU diplomat in Brussels said a discussion of Kosovo among ambassadors of the 25-nation bloc last week was based on the assumption that Ahtisaari would delay.

"Now it looks as if the whole schedule has been delayed. Ahtisaari will want to see Serbian elections before presenting his report. People recognise it is a very complicated process," the diplomat said.

But Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki said after talks with EU officials last Friday that a delay in Kosovo's final status could affect his own country next door.

"The situation in our country is stable, however we are aware that certain risks exist on Kosovo," he said. "You need only three people, one landmine, one flag and a press communique to have an incident.

"Therefore we think a decision concerning the final status of Kosovo should be taken earlier ... The endless prolongation of the status quo is not creating a bigger space for some ideal solution. There will be no ideal solution," he said.

It was always best to take difficult decisions in the Balkans in winter, he said, before the snows melt and fighters can take to the mountains.

Unilateral changing of Kosovo status would be illegal

ITAR-TASS - October 30, 2006 Monday 06:41 AM EST By: Sofia Filippova

MOSCOW, October 30 - The unilateral changing of the status of Kosovo, without the consent of the Serb nation, ``would mean that the decision would be illegal,'' Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Duma committee for international affairs, told journalists on Monday, commenting on the results of the referendum in Serbia.

Kosachev reminded that the new Constitution, for which the majority of Serbs voted, ``records the status of Kosovo as an integral part of Serbia.'' The results of the referendum are a key factor in the establishment of the status of Kosovo, he stressed.

``Now the recognition of Kosovo's independence without the consent of Belgrade will mean a direct violation of the OSCE Act, dated 1975, under which any changes of the borders may take place only with the consent of all parties concerned,'' he added. In the opinion of Kosachev, any decisions on Kosovo should be made, depending on the results of the talks between Belgrade and Pristina. He believes the promptness of decision-making on the problem is no so important as its effectiveness.

Kosachev stressed that Russia would help as much as it can in the working out of a compromise solution. ``We shall be satisfied with any compromise. No Russian interests are involved. We are interested in the observance of standards of international law,'' he said.

Russia supports Kosovo compromise solution

UPI, November 1, 2006

MOSCOW, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- Russia's foreign minister says the future of Serbia's mainly ethnic-Albanian Kosovo province must be decided through compromise talks.

Addressing reporters Wednesday in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the U.N.-led Kosovo talks between Serbs and ethnic-Albanians must end in a solution acceptable to the two sides, Serbia's RTS radio-television said.

After meeting with his Serbian counterpart Vuk Draskovic, Lavrov said the solution to Kosovo's future status could be reached only in mutual agreement and without imposed solutions on any side.

The Kosovo talks, being held in Vienna since February, have brought no breakthrough.

Leaders of ethnic-Albanians, who make up 90 percent of Kosovo's population of 1.8 million, insist on independence from Belgrade and the Serbian government in Belgrade, representing 100,000 Serbs in Kosovo, says the province will be an integral part of Serbia forever.

U.N. administrators and NATO troops have been stationed in Kosovo since 1999, to contain armed conflicts between ethnic-Albanians and Serbs.

Serbs will never accept the loss of Kosovo: PM

Reuters, Thursday, 2 November, 2006, 11:26 AM Doha Time

BELGRADE: Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica further sharpened warnings against independence for Kosovo yesterday, saying that not only his outgoing coalition but "every future Serbian government" would refuse to accept it.

A few days after warning that countries which recognise an independent Kosovo would suffer consequences in their relations with Serbia, Kostunica said any move to grant statehood to the majority Albanian province was "bound to fail".

Diplomatic sources say UN Kosovo envoy Marrti Ahtisaari is proposing that Kosovo get the right to join world bodies normally reserved for sovereign countries. States would be able to recognise it and it could apply for a UN seat.

Kostunica said he had not seen Ahtisaari's plan but added: "One thing is certain: if Ahtisaari's paper is not in line with the UN Charter, and if it violates the principle of Serbia's territorial integrity, the paper is bound to fail."

"The Security Council will never allow the UN charter to be violated and 15% of Serbia's territory to be taken away," the prime minister told the state news agency Tanjug.

Kostunica said that a new constitution passed in a referendum at the weekend by a narrow majority of the Serbian electorate, "fully defines the stand of every future Serbian government towards our southern province".

Kosovo has been run by the UN since 1999 when Nato bombing forced then-strongman Slobodan Milosevic to withdraw Serb forces from a counter-insurgency war in which they killed an estimated 10,000 ethnic Albanians and drove out nearly 1mn.

The Albanians form 90% of Kosovo's population. They demand independence and vow they will not return to the embrace of the state that tried to exterminate them. Serbia says they can have the fullest possible autonomy, but not their own state.

The West, led by the US, is sympathetic to the Albanians' independence aspirations and impatient with Serbia's insistence on legalisms that clash with the stark realities.

The Albanians were not encouraged to vote in the constitutional referendum although Belgrade's own argument makes them citizens, but they would have shunned it in any case. They say the Serbs simply "want the land but not the people on it".

No major Serb politician openly concedes that Kosovo may be lost for good when the UN makes its ruling in the coming months. But as the decision draws closer, Kostunica's rhetoric is growing noticeably stronger than that of Serbian President Boris Tadic, who is more conciliatory.

The prime minister's stance of late seems more in keeping with that of Tomislav Nikolic, leader of the opposition Radical Party, Serbia's ultranationalists.

Nikolic goes further, however. He says Belgrade should declare Kosovo "occupied territory" if it is taken away from Serbia - a step which could potentially create an open-ended Balkan Cold War.

Nikolic says: "If the European Union takes Kosovo away from us, that door will forever be closed." He adds that Serbia's continued membership of the UN would also be in question.

The Radicals may again emerge as Serbia's strongest party in an early election expected in December. The prospects of them forming a governing coalition have been slim in the past, but a shift in political opinion over Kosovo could change that.

Celebration of two-year anniversary of renewal of monastic life in Zociste Monastery

KIM Info Newsletter 31-10-06
 
KIM Info, Zociste - Orahovac, October 27, 2006

On Friday, October 27, 2006, the feast of St. Paraskeva (sv. Petka), the two-year anniversary of the return of the brotherhood and the beginning of work on the restoration of the monastery destroyed by Albanian extremists in 1999 took place in the monastery of the Unmercenary Physicians Sts. Cosmas and Damian in the village of Zociste near Orahovac.

With Bishop Artemije's blessing Vicar Bishop Teodosije of Lipljan served Holy Hierarchal Liturgy in the restored church with the priests and priest-monks of the Diocese of Raska and Prizren. In addition to approximately one hundred faithful from the Orahovac region and other parts of Kosovo and Metohija the festivities were attended by the head of the German Office in Pristina Eugen Wollfarth, representatives of the Austrian and Swiss Office, and representatives of KFOR in the German zone of responsibility.

In his homily Bishop Teodosije advised the local residents of Zociste, Velika Hoca and Orahovac to follow the example of their wise ancestors and remain in their ancestral homes building their future with hope and faith in God. "Throughout the centuries this land has been soaked with blood and sweat and tears. This land is too precious, brothers and sisters, to be sold for money, fleeting satisfaction and fleeting prosperity here on earth. That is why you must follow the example of our ancestors who knew how to value the eternal and respect what belongs to us, guarded by our forebears and passed on to us as our legacy," said Bishop Teodosije during Holy Liturgy.
 
Abbot Petar, the elder of Zociste Monastery, was especially joyful that the local residents of Velika Hoca and Orahovac restored the monastery with their hands, their will and their great effort. "Many things, like the frescoes and everything that existed before, cannot be restored even though in the foundations (of the monastery) traces have been found of an early Christian basilica much older than our monastery. This attests to the fact that people prayed to God here from the earliest of times and that this location should remain a place of prayer and spiritual life," said Fr. Petar. Presently there are four monks living in Zociste Monastery, who hope that with the restoration of the church and the living quarters the brotherhood will continue to grow.

The head of the German Office in Pristina Eugen Wollfarth emphasized the importance of return and the restoration of the holy shrine as a priority so that all people can live in peace with their neighbors. "We all know there are Serbs in this region but that is not enough. A greater degree of return would contribute to the wealth of Kosovo," said Wollfarth.

Houses for returnees have been built but local residents of Zociste have not returned because they have no regular water supply and, according to municipal coordinator for Orahovac Dejan Baljosevic, the houses still have not adequately equipped for a normal life. "The houses have been built but they are not furnished. The office of the Kosovo Government's Ministry of Returns is currently in the process of seeking donors who will equip the houses with basic necessities and finding a way of making the return sustainable," said Baljosevic.

Today's festivities were secured by Swiss KFOR forces from the Austrian-Swiss military base in Suva Reka.

The restoration of the church of Zociste Monastery was financed by the Republic of Serbia's Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija, and the restoration itself was entrusted to the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments in Leposavic. After the restoration of the church there are plans to rebuild the other monastery buildings to create more space for housing the brotherhood and visiting faithful.
 
PROGRESS IN RESTORATION OF ST. GEORGE CATHEDRAL IN PRIZREN

After the celebration in Zociste Monastery Bishop Teodosije visited St. George Orthodox Cathedral in Prizren which is currently undergoing restoration. The head of the Council of Europe's Commission for Restoration Emma Carmichael and chief architect and project manager Milan Catic informed Bishop Teodosije of work done thus far. Currently the roof frame and the central dome are being put in place. In addition to continuing work on the roof, in the next several days work is expected to begin on covering the metal beams with plaster. Work on restoration of Devic Monastery, St. Nicholas Church in Pristina, St. Elijah in Vucitrn, and the church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Belo Polje are continuing according to schedule.

During his visit to the construction site in Prizren Bishop Teodosije gave an interview to EURONEWS on the restoration of the Serbian Orthodox patrimony in Kosovo and Metohija. "By restoring our holy shrines we are showing that Orthodox Serbs want to stay and survive in Kosovo and Metohija, where they have lived for many centuries. Restoration is the greatest encouragement for all Serbs wishing to return to their homes, and by renewing our holy shrines we at the same time renew ourselves," said Bishop Teodosije in the interview.

The same afternoon Visoki Decani Monastery received a visit from British ambassador in Belgrade David Gowan and the head of the British Office in Pristina, David Blunt. They discussed with Fr. Sava on greater engagement by the British Government in projects intended to improve the lives of Serb returnees as well as on Britain's possible contribution in restoration of Serbian holy shrines and the protection of Serbian Orthodox spiritual and cultural patrimony in Kosovo and Metohija.
 
DECISION ON PROTECTED ZONE AROUND VISOKI DECANI MONASTERY EXTENDED

UNMIK chief Dr. Joachim Ruecker addressed a letter to Bishop Teodosije informing him that he had approved the extension of the protected zone around Visoki Decani Monastery for the next six months. By decision of Ruecker's predecessor, Soeren Jessen-Petersen, over 700 hectares of forest around Visoki Decani Monastery was placed under special UNMIK protection in 2005 as an area of special cultural-historical and environmental importance and beauty.

"As you know, the exact modalities for the protection of cultural heritage in Kosovo are yet to be worked out as a part of the future status arrangements. I have no doubt that the concerns of the Serb Orthodox Church will be adequately addressed in the process. For as long as those arrangements are not in place, UNMIK will continue to apply necessary measures to protect Serb cultural and religious monuments", UNMIK chief Ruecker wrote in his letter to Bishop Teodosije.

Ambassador Frank Wisner and Bishop Teodosije visit Serb returnees in Klina municipality

KiM Info Newsletter 31-10-06
 
KIM Info Service. October 27, 2006

The U.S. envoy for negotiations on the status of Kosovo Ambassador Frank Wisner with his wife and the head of the U.S. Office in Pristina Tina Kaidanow visited Serb returnees in Klina and Vidanje on Thursday, October 26, 2006, accompanied by Bishop Teodosije and Fr. Sava from Decani Monastery.

In the home of Milorad Pavlovic Ambassador Wisner and his associates learned of the problems this family has experienced, especially after an explosive device was lobbed into their home a month ago inflicting serious injuries upon all four members of the family. "The living room was completely demolished by shrapnel and it's nothing less than a miracle that we survived," said Milorad Pavlovic, adding that he, his wife Rada and mother Jela are firmly determined to remain in their home.

A month after the attack, the Pavlovices' apartment has been completely renovated and the Kosovo Government's Ministry of Return has provided funds for the purchase of new furniture and household appliances. "We are trying to live normally like before; we go to the store and the market; we are greeted by our neighbors and momentarily we have no difficulties. We place our faith in God that things will remain so and that even more Serbs will return to Klina," added Pavlovic. During the meeting Ambassador Wisner said he was deeply impressed by the example of the Pavlovices who, despite what occurred to them, responded with dignity and courage deserving of sincere respect.
 
After the visit to the Pavlovic family Ambassador Wisner with his associates and Bishop Teodosije visited the Klina municipal assembly where they met for one hour with Prenk Djekaj (LDK) and his deputies. During the conversation special emphasis was placed on the fact that Kosovo institutions are faced with the great responsibility of ensuring a normal and secure life for members of national communities, especially returnees, and that those responsible for recent attacks on Serbs in Klina must be found and brought to justice.

"That is what we expect of you," emphasized the U.S. envoy who then gave a press statement saying that the resolution of Kosovo's status, which the U.S. would like to see during the course of this year, will not resolve all the problems facing Kosovo and that everyone in Kosovo is confronted with the enormous responsibility of building a better future for all citizens regardless of their ethnic or religious affiliation. In Klina municipality, which has a population of 55,000, there are currently 212 Serb returnee families (in the villages of Bicha, Grabac, Vidanje and Drsnik, including 59 Serbs who returned to the town of Klina itself). Only days ago 15 Serb returnees returned to their restored homes in the village of Klinavac.
 
The visit to Klina municipality concluded with a visit to the ethnically mixed village of Vidanje where some 40 Serb returnees are living among Albanian Roman Catholics. In the store owned by Serb Ranko Kostic Ambassador Wisner learned of the challenges faced by this small Serb community. "Life is not easy and two Serb houses in the village were robbed yesterday. Nevertheless, we live the hope that things will get better and that even more Serbs will return to this region." Ranko Kostic opened a small store where he sells food articles obtained in Klina, Pec and Mitrovica. "In addition to Serbs I frequently have my Albanian neighbors stopping into the store," said Kostic, explaining that one has to work to make a living and that the revenue from the store enabled him to provide his family with the means to survive.
 
After visiting Vidanje Ambassador Wisner left for Pristina Airport where he held a press conference. During the afternoon Bishop Teodosije visited the Serb village of Brestovik and the monastery of the Pec Patriarchate.

Yesterday in Pristina Ambassador Wisner met with the premier and president of Kosovo, the Kosovo negotiating team, the president of the Liberal Serbian Party and representatives of institutions, political parties and civil society. On that occasion he conveyed the message of the U.S. State Department to his collocutors with respect to the resolution of the future status of Kosovo and Metohija.

Commenting on their joint visit to Klina Bishop Teodosije gave the following statement for the KIM Info Service:

"Ambassador Wisner's visit to Klina yesterday is strong encouragement for the Serb returnees as well as a powerful message to Kosovo Albanians that attacks on innocent people must finally stop. Mr. Wisner emphasized that the perpetrators of the most recent attacks on Serbs must be found because these are crimes that are damaging to everyone wishing a better future for Kosovo. We are especially happy that we visited the home of Milorad Pavlovic and the Serbs in the nearby village of Vidanje together, where Mr. Wisner and his associates had the opportunity to learn first-hand of the problems confronted by Serb returnees. We were all deeply impressed following our visit with the Pavlovices, who despite everything they have experienced demonstrated deep Christian optimism and firm determination to stay and live in their home in Klina. They are true heroes of our times."
 

Kosovo Serbs called best-protected group

UPI, November 1, 2006

BELGRADE, Serbia, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- A U.S. envoy says minority Serbs in Serbia's mainly ethnic-Albanian Kosovo province will be the best protected national group in the Balkans.

Frank Wisner, U.S. envoy in talks on Kosovo's future status, told Serbian leaders in Belgrade that Washington wants the U.N.-led talks between the Serbian government and leaders of ethnic-Albanians to be completed this year, Belgrade's B92 radio-television reported Wednesday.

In an interview with B92, Wisner said the United States hopes the talks will be completed with as much cooperation and compromise as possible.

The Serbian government in Belgrade, representing about 100,000 Serbs in Kosovo, and the leaders of ethnic-Albanians, who make up 90 percent of Kosovo's population of 1.8 million have shown in the talks, begun in February, their stands are diametrically opposed.

The ethnic-Albanian leaders insist on Kosovo's independence from Belgrade, while the Belgrade government says Kosovo will always be an integral part of Serbia.

The U.N. civil administration and NATO protection troops have been deployed in Kosovo since 1999 to contain ethnic armed conflicts.

Kosovo falls hostage to big power rivalry

FINANCIAL TIMES (UK), Published: October 27 2006 18:44 By Guy Dinmore in Washington

 

The US has sent a special envoy to Kosovo and Serbia to press both sides to keep the peace as the international community prepares to decide the status of the United Nations-run province.

 

Diplomats and politicians on all sides expect a messy and inconclusive outcome, and fear further ethnic ­violence in Kosovo with peacekeepers from Nato caught in the middle.

 

Few believe that Martti Ahtisaari, the former Finnish president acting as UN mediator, can broker a compromise. This weekend Serbian voters are likely to approve by referendum a new constitution reaffirming Kosovo as part of Serbia, while the province’s ethnic Albanian majority overwhelmingly aspires to, and expects, full independence.

 

The fate of Kosovo – run by the UN and protected by Nato since the 1999 air campaign stopped ethnic cleansing by Serbia – is also hostage to the deteriorating state of relations between the US and Russia. These are complicated by rising tensions in the southern Caucasus and competing interests over Iran and energy resources.

 

As Russia reasserts itself on the world stage, the US and Europe are wondering what price President Vladimir Putin will exact at the UN Security Council in exchange for consenting to Kosovo’s independence, or whether he will simply block the process completely.

 

Mr Putin warns that independence for Kosovo would set a precedent for Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the Russian-backed, separatist enclaves in Georgia. The US insists Kosovo is a “unique” case, thereby also seeking to assuage Chinese concerns over Taiwan and Tibet.

 

Diplomats expect Mr Ahtisaari will recommend a form of “managed” or “conditional” independence that falls short of full sovereignty, keeping Kosovo under international protection and guidance, possibly for three years.

 

Should Russia deprive Kosovo of the UN’s blessing for a path to independence, then the Kosovo Albanian government under Agim Ceku, prime minister, may be encouraged by the US to consider making a unilateral declaration of independence.

 

This heightens the risk that the Serb minority in Kosovo, mostly concentrated in Nato-protected enclaves, would follow suit and declare their own independence or allegiance to ­Belgrade.

 

Frank Wisner, the special US envoy, is expected to urge Belgrade to prevent any such breakaway move. Diplomats say his mission is to tell ­Kosovo and Serbia that they must accept Mr Ahtisaari’s “compromise imposed solution”.

 

Dimitri Simes, head of the Nixon Center think-tank which has close contact with Moscow, says Russia’s position on Kosovo is hardening but it may not have decided how it will vote at the UN.

 

“That depends on the overall status of the US-Russia relationship, the results of World Trade Organisation negotiations and the forthcoming meetings in November between Presidents Bush and Putin, first in Moscow and then in Hanoi,” he said.

 

But he warned that it might be difficult for Mr Putin to back down over Kosovo.

 

“The Russian leadership, including President Putin personally, is making it increasingly clear to the Bush administration that Georgia is becoming a defining issue in the US-Russia relationship the way Iran and North Korea are on the American side.”

 

Glen Howard, president of the Jamestown Foundation security think-tank, said Mr Putin had “let the genie out of the bottle with nationalism” and warned of the dangers posed by a Russia seeking to regain its Soviet-era domination of the Caucasus and its strategic oil and gas pipelines.

 

Condoleezza Rice, US secretary of state, kept making concessions only for Russia to keep “upping the ante”, Mr Howard said.

 

It was possible the Bush administration would seek to delay Kosovo’s bid for independence and Georgia’s bid for Nato membership to keep Russia on board over Iran and North Korea, he added.

 

Speaking of the deadlock facing Mr Ahtisaari, one Kosovo Albanian politician commented: “We are waiting for the real talks to begin – between the US and Russia.”