US and EU back Kosovo independence by May
26.03.2007 – 17:39 CET | By Andrew Rettman
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – The US and EU have backed a UN plan for
"supervised independence" in Kosovo despite Russian and Serb
opposition, with US diplomat Nicholas Burns in Brussels calling for a
new UN security council resolution 30 to 60 days from Monday (26
March).
"The US fully supports the proposals put forward by Martti Ahtisaari,"
the US’ number three man on foreign affairs told experts at a seminar
by think-tank CEPS in the EU capital, a few hours before UN envoy
Martti Ahtisaari submitted his Kosovo blueprint to UN chief Ban Ki
Moon in New York.
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"It’s time to bring a century of peace to the Balkans, to see Kosovo
independent and to see a democratic and strong Serbia," the American
said, with UK foreign secretary Margaret Beckett adding shortly
afterward from London she "welcomes UN special envoy Martti
Ahtisaari’s final settlement proposals."
The Ahtisaari plan envisages giving Pristina its own army, flag and
constitution and the possibility of applying to join international
institutions like the UN and EU, but with thousands of NATO and EU
troops keeping the peace and an EU envoy that can veto some Kosovo
government decisions.
"Independence is the only viable option for a politically stable and
economically viable Kosovo," Mr Ahtisaari’s final recommendation
stated, Reuters reports, in a bold, new tone after months of
negotiations in Vienna, Belgrade and Pristina that avoided using the
painful word "independence."
Speaking to press the same day, EU top diplomat Javier Solana still
remained shy of the term, opting to use the phrase "the work of
president Ahtisaari" instead while expressing his support for the
ex-Finnish president’s ideas.
In terms of a timetable for the solution, the US’ Mr Burns said "we’re
not going to rush to a security council resolution" mentioning "late
April or early May" and "30 to 60 days" down the line as targets to
get all five veto-holding powers in the UN – the US, UK, France,
Russia and China – on board.
The biggest EU foreign policy players back the US line, but some EU
states such as Spain, Greece, Romania, Slovakia and Cyprus sympathise
with Belgrade. Serbia has denounced the Ahtisaari plan and Russia has
threatened to veto anything unacceptable to its historic ally. China
has been silent so far.
Mr Burns’ statement kicks off a heavy week of Kosovo diplomacy, with
the US talking to NATO states in Brussels on Kosovo for the next two
days, Mr Ahtisaari briefing EU ambassadors on Tuesday and EU foreign
ministers devoting a Friday meeting to the topic.
Almost exactly 8 years ago on 24 March 1999 NATO began a bombing
campaign in Kosovo designed to halt what Mr Burns called Serbian
"ethnic cleansing" against the ethnic Albanians who form 93 percent of
the population. The Serb province has been under UN rule ever since.
Kosovo is US and EU’s top priority The US diplomat said the task of EU
and US foreign policy today is to "produce peace and stability in the
world" adding "our first priority is to be successful in the Balkans,
to complete the revolution that has taken place there since the
1990s."
In terms of handling Serb objections to the move, Mr Burns said he
planned to call moderate Serb president Boris Tadic this week to
explain "we are a friend to Serbia" and guarantee US protection for
ethnic Serb enclaves and holy sites in the region.
The EU approach is similar, with Brussels offering to unfreeze
Belgrade’s EU accession talks despite lack of full cooperation with
the UN on war crimes fugitives and with the new EU envoy in Kosovo to
focus on keeping ethnic Serbs safe.
The US and EU are also reading from the same page on how to handle
Russia, praising Moscow for its help on international problems like
Iran and North Korea but scotching Russian talk of Kosovo independence
as a precedent for rebels in Georgia or Moldova.
"Our second task [in terms of EU-US foreign policy priorities] is to
have good relations with Russia," Mr Burns said. "[But] we certainly
would not support any other trade, or precedent that would link Kosovo
to other problems in Europe."
The American went a bit further than most European diplomats might
dare, saying those countries who "made the biggest sacrifice" in terms
of Kosovo military intervention and post-conflict aid – NATO and EU
states – should take the lead in the region.
Iraq legacy dogs US In an aside on recent Russian complaints the US
has a "unipolar" world view, Mr Burns said assertively "My country
finds itself the most powerful country economically and
militarily…we have a lot of power, but we want to use that power for
good, peacefully."
It was left to CEPS expert and ex-EU ambassador to Russia, Michael
Emerson, to remind Mr Burns that when Bush junior became US president
in 2002, he said "the US doesn’t need allies" before wading into Iraq.
The Iraq adventure – which has seen over 600,000 civilians killed
since 2003 – caused a serious rift between the US and France and
Germany, with many ordinary left-leaning Europeans suddenly seeing the
US with new, post-Cold War eyes as an oil-hungry imperialist not a
force for good.
"Many senior analysts say the [US] language may change a bit, but the
fundamentals remain obstinately constant," Mr Emerson suggested.
"I think there’s a bipartisan consensus in my country – and I’m a
career diplomat not a Republican or a Democrat – there’s a consensus
that America cannot live in the world alone," Mr Burns
replied. "There’s a great distance between those statements and the
reality today."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
