UN SECRETARY-GENERAL: GRANTING INDEPENDENCE TO KOSOVO WILL NOT CREATE PRECEDENT FOR SEPARATIST MOVEMENTS IN OTHER COUNTRIES
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
July 17 2007
The U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon believes that granting Kosovo
independence cannot be a precedent for separatist movements in other
countries, including Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Ki-moon stated at a news conference at the UN headquarters in New York
on 16 July, "I’d like to make it clear that this issue of Kosovo is
a sui generis (unique) issue" that will not create any precedence
for other situations such as for Georgia’s Abkhazia republic or
Azerbaijan’s disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.
At the end of last week the United States and its allies sent the UN
Security Council the next 4th draft resolution on the future status
of Kosovo which caused serious objections by Russia.
Ban Ki Moon is concerned over the Security Council’s inability to
define the future status of Kosovo. In Europe, the UN Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon is warning that further delays to resolve Kosovo’s future
could lead to renewed violence in the Balkan region. "Any further
delay or prolongation on this very important issue will have a very
negative impact on all peace and security not only in Kosovo, not
only in the Balkans, but in all European situations.
"I hope the UN Security Council members can resolve this problem on the
basis of recommendations by my special representative. I also discussed
this issue with a number of heads of Security Council member-states,
including Russian President Vladimir Putin," the UN Secretary General
said. Recommendations by the UN Envoy Martti Ahtisaari include all
elements needed to define the future status of Kosovo.