The envoys of the Contact Group on Kosovo from the United
States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia held a meeting
in Vienna Wednesday evening to discuss a negotiation framework for
the future status of Kosovo.
It's the first meeting for the Contact Group since the United
States and European countries decided not to refer their draft for
the future status of Kosovo to the United Nation Security Council
(UNSC) for voting on July 20.
The European diplomats said that in a two-hour closed-door
meeting, all parties involved agreed to seek a political solution
for the future status of Kosovo, as a troika of the European Union
(EU), the United States and Russia.
However, some important issues, as to which member country of
the EU should attend the troika, if the UN's special envoy to
Kosovo Martti Ahtisaari should attend the future negotiation and
whether Ahtisaari's proposal on the future status of Kosovo can
still be the basis of further negotiation, were still open.
Ahtisaari's Deputy Albert Rohan told media before the meeting of
the Contact Group that considering the regional stability and
international security, the issues on the future status of Kosovo
must be solved, but only in the framework of the Security
Council.
Ahtisaari referred to a comprehensive proposal on the future
status of Kosovo granting internationally monitored independence to
the province in March, which was the basis for the drafts of
resolution by the United States and other Western countries, but
was repeatedly criticized by Serbia and Russia as being partial
toward the Kosovo side.
Due to the opposition of Russia, the United States and other
Western countries decided not to refer their draft for the future
status of Kosovo to the Security Council on July 20, and chose to
impel for negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo with time
limitations.
(Xinhua News Agency July 26, 2007)
