Tadić at UN General Assembly

Boris Tadic and Vuk Jeremic are in New York for the start of the 62nd annual session of the UN General Assembly. There, the president and the foreign minister will talk with a number of leaders from all round the world, and Beta understands from the president’s delegation that this “diplomatic offensive will be another opportunity for Serbia to once more outline to all the UN members its dedication to the organization and the significance of respect for the UN Charter.” Tadic at UN General Assembly In his speech to the General Assembly on Thursday September 27, Tadic will say that Serbia is guarding her sovereignty and territorial integrity “by peaceful and lawful means, sincerely advocating a compromise solution for the Kosovo problem that will stabilize the region and contribute to the reconciliation of the Balkan peoples,” according to Beta’s sources. They add that the president will, in the course of over twenty bilateral meetings with member representatives of the UN and the Security Council “once more explain Serbia’s position in finding an acceptable solution for the province and will stress that Serbia is a peace-loving and democratic country whose aims are for accelerated economic development and EU membership.” Today, he is due to meet with Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis and Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi. Ahead of the opening of direct talks on the province, Tadic and Jeremic will meet with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The first direct talks between Belgrade and Pristina over Kosovo are scheduled for September 28. The United Nations headquarters in New York Imposed solution leads to forcible partition of Serbia Sunday, Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic assessed that "imposing independence for Kosovo would lead to the forcible partition of Serbia." "Imposing independence in the Western Balkans is tantamount to forcible partition of Serbia, and it will set a precedent that international borders are not unchangeable," Jeremic said at a lecture held at Harvard University. Jeremic, along with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, was declared the most successful student of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University for 2007, Politika newspaper said in its Sunday edition . Jeremic, at a meeting held on that occasion in Boston on Friday, reiterated that official Belgrade was urging a compromise and mutually acceptable solution in direct negotiations with provisional institutions in the southern Serbian province. He pointed out that such a solution would respect the territorial integrity of Serbia, but that it would also grant Kosovo Albanians "their legitimate demand for essential autonomy." The minister also said that Belgrade was against the setting of a firm deadline for the completion of negotiations, because in that case the parties would not be focused on the negotiations, but would simply "wait out the clock." Jeremic said that a mutually acceptable solution of the two sides would ensure "prosperity and a democratic future for the region inside the European Union." Belgrade negotiating team line-up The government’s decision to form a negotiating team for talks on the future status of Kosovo has been published in the Official Gazette today. The team is headed by two co-presidents, President Boris Tadic and Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica. The head of the operative part of the team is Kosovo Minister Slobodan Samardzic. The co-presidents can allow the foreign ministers and other members of the cabinet to participate in the work of the team. Representatives of the Kosovo Serbs are Marko Jaksic and Goran Bogdanovic. The team also includes its permanent advisers appointed from the ranks of assistant ministers and advisers to the president and prime minister. The special adviser to the team is Thomas Fleiner, from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Experts in certain fields can also be engaged in the team, and special work groups formed in order to tackle specific issues while preparing for the talks.

Tadić at UN General Assembly

In his speech to the General Assembly on Thursday September 27, Tadić will say that Serbia is guarding her sovereignty and territorial integrity “by peaceful and lawful means, sincerely advocating a compromise solution for the Kosovo problem that will stabilize the region and contribute to the reconciliation of the Balkan peoples,” according to Beta’s sources.

They add that the president will, in the course of over twenty bilateral meetings with member representatives of the UN and the Security Council “once more explain Serbia’s position in finding an acceptable solution for the province and will stress that Serbia is a peace-loving and democratic country whose aims are for accelerated economic development and EU membership.”

Today, he is due to meet with Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis and Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.

Ahead of the opening of direct talks on the province, Tadić and Jeremić will meet with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

The first direct talks between Belgrade and Priština over Kosovo are scheduled for September 28.

Imposed solution leads to forcible partition of Serbia

Sunday, Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić assessed that "imposing independence for Kosovo would lead to the forcible partition of Serbia."

"Imposing independence in the Western Balkans is tantamount to forcible partition of Serbia, and it will set a precedent that international borders are not unchangeable," Jeremić said at a lecture held at Harvard University.

Jeremić, along with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, was declared the most successful student of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University for 2007, Politika newspaper said in its Sunday edition .

Jeremić, at a meeting held on that occasion in Boston on Friday, reiterated that official Belgrade was urging a compromise and mutually acceptable solution in direct negotiations with provisional institutions in the southern Serbian province.

He pointed out that such a solution would respect the territorial integrity of Serbia, but that it would also grant Kosovo Albanians "their legitimate demand for essential autonomy."

The minister also said that Belgrade was against the setting of a firm deadline for the completion of negotiations, because in that case the parties would not be focused on the negotiations, but would simply "wait out the clock."

Jeremić said that a mutually acceptable solution of the two sides would ensure "prosperity and a democratic future for the region inside the European Union."

Belgrade negotiating team line-up

The government’s decision to form a negotiating team for talks on the future status of Kosovo has been published in the Official Gazette today.

The team is headed by two co-presidents, President Boris Tadić and Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica.

The head of the operative part of the team is Kosovo Minister Slobodan Samardžić. The co-presidents can allow the foreign ministers and other members of the cabinet to participate in the work of the team.

Representatives of the Kosovo Serbs are Marko Jakšić and Goran Bogdanović.

The team also includes its permanent advisers appointed from the ranks of assistant ministers and advisers to the president and prime minister.

The special adviser to the team is Thomas Fleiner, from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland.

Experts in certain fields can also be engaged in the team, and special work groups formed in order to tackle specific issues while preparing for the talks.