Thaci: Kosovo doesn't fear ICJ initiative

Kosovo PM Hashim Thaci says that the path of Kosovo’s future passes though Brussels and Washington, not Belgrade. He said that he was not afraid of Serbia’s initiative to seek the opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) regarding Kosovo’s unilateral independence declaration. Thaci: Kosovo doesn't fear ICJ initiative Speaking before the Kosovo assembly, Thaci said that Serbia’s initiative would not help improve its relations with Kosovo. “By doing this, Serbia is once again proving that its policies have no vision when it comes to peace, stability, cooperation and integration within Euro-Atlantic structures,” the prime minister said. He said that more “bad” initiatives could be expected from Serbia and that they should not cause any consternation in Kosovo or instill fear on its path towards international integration, economic development and democratization. Thaci said that regardless of the situation created within the UN General Assembly, “there is neither the room nor the possibility for disappointment, but only the opposite.” He called on the Kosovo institutions to rally round and work on gaining more recognitions of its unilateral independence. The prime minister said that even if the question reached the ICJ, there was no way that the court would rule against Kosovo independence. Hashim Thaci (FoNet, archive) ”Initiative in line with international law” Foreign analysts say that Serbia’s initiative in the UN General Assembly is in accordance with international law. Richard Gowen, an analyst from the European Council for Foreign Affairs, said that Serbia should be allowed to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its opinion on the unilateral declaration of Kosovo independence, because anything else would be a violation of the concept of international law. The UN General Assembly has included Serbia’s request on the proposed agenda for its coming session. “Personally I am all for allowing Serbia to ask the opinion of the ICJ,” Gowen told the BBC. He added that in return “Serbia should accept the reality on the ground, and cooperate with the EU mission for the sake of the Serbs in northern Kosovo and in the enclaves.” Gowen warned that pressure and blackmail was not the way to gain the UN as an ally, adding that it would be “very sad if the EU, whose influence, according to a report by an independent association, has fallen away drastically in the UN, sank to the level of using bully-boy tactics to push through its proposals and ideas, like some countries do.” He said that the EU’s influence had fallen away in the UN because the EU’s actions often left the impression of double standards, adding that divisions between the Western countries were weakening its influence in the international organization. According to the report by the European Council for Foreign Affairs, the EU’s influence within the UN has waned in recent years, while that of Russia and China is on the rise.

Thaci: Kosovo doesn't fear ICJ initiative

Speaking before the Kosovo assembly, Thaci said that Serbia’s initiative would not help improve its relations with Kosovo.

“By doing this, Serbia is once again proving that its policies have no vision when it comes to peace, stability, cooperation and integration within Euro-Atlantic structures,” the prime minister said.

He said that more “bad” initiatives could be expected from Serbia and that they should not cause any consternation in Kosovo or instill fear on its path towards international integration, economic development and democratization.

Thaci said that regardless of the situation created within the UN General Assembly, “there is neither the room nor the possibility for disappointment, but only the opposite.”

He called on the Kosovo institutions to rally round and work on gaining more recognitions of its unilateral independence.

The prime minister said that even if the question reached the ICJ, there was no way that the court would rule against Kosovo independence.

”Initiative in line with international law”

Foreign analysts say that Serbia’s initiative in the UN General Assembly is in accordance with international law.

Richard Gowen, an analyst from the European Council for Foreign Affairs, said that Serbia should be allowed to ask the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its opinion on the unilateral declaration of Kosovo independence, because anything else would be a violation of the concept of international law.

The UN General Assembly has included Serbia’s request on the proposed agenda for its coming session.

“Personally I am all for allowing Serbia to ask the opinion of the ICJ,” Gowen told the BBC.

He added that in return “Serbia should accept the reality on the ground, and cooperate with the EU mission for the sake of the Serbs in northern Kosovo and in the enclaves.”

Gowen warned that pressure and blackmail was not the way to gain the UN as an ally, adding that it would be “very sad if the EU, whose influence, according to a report by an independent association, has fallen away drastically in the UN, sank to the level of using bully-boy tactics to push through its proposals and ideas, like some countries do.”

He said that the EU’s influence had fallen away in the UN because the EU’s actions often left the impression of double standards, adding that divisions between the Western countries were weakening its influence in the international organization.

According to the report by the European Council for Foreign Affairs, the EU’s influence within the UN has waned in recent years, while that of Russia and China is on the rise.