Decisive Kosovo round tomorrow in Vienna

Ahead of a new round of direct Kosovo talks, top Serbian officials once again reject possible unilateral moves. Starting Monday, Baden, near Vienna, will host Kosovo status talks between the Belgrade and Pristina teams for three days. The meetings are considered to be decisive, since the discussions will be the last confirmed round ahead of the December 10 deadline. Decisive Kosovo round tomorrow in Vienna The Contact Group Troika, made up of EU, Russian and U.S. envoys, is due to complete its role in the status settlement process on that day, and sumbit a report to the UN secretary-general. This time, as was the case in Brussels earlier this week, the delegations will be represented at the highest level. The official Belgrade team will be led by President Boris Tadic and Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, while Kosovo Albanians will have President Fatmir Sejdiu and outgoing Premier Agim Ceku as their representatives. Beta news agency reported this Sunday that the talks will be conducted as before, with separate meetings between the Troika and the teams first, followed by direct negotiations. So far the only confirmed news conference is that scheduled for Wednesday, at the end of the round, when the Troika will address reporters at the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vienna. Belgrade is likely to repeat its essential autonomy proposal for the southern province, suggesting a solution along the lines of those found for Hong Kong and the Aland Islands, while Pristina insists on independence. It was also announced that Wolfgang Ischinger, Aleksandr Botsan-Kharchenko and Frank Wisner will on December 3 visit Belgrade and Pristina, ahead of their trip to New York a week later. In Belgrade this weekend, President Boris Tadic said that the state delegation would once again try to, in the final stages of negotiations, make "an integrated proposal that results from Serbia's basic stand and this is essential autonomy for Kosovo-Metohija." Tadic told Tanjug Saturday that the Belgrade delegation would attend the three-day negotiations in Baden, believing that compromise on the future status of Kosovo was possible. "In the past few days I carefully studied reports in renowned world media and I think that the idea of Kosovo's independence was brought into question once again, at least among those people who shape the public opinion in the world. "But it has not been brought into question completely where politicians are concerned, because there is some political inertia in everything, including deciding on the future status of Kosovo," Tadic said. According to the president, the Serbian government delegation will take part in the negotiations "bravely and confidently that we advocate the right position". "We cannot hide from the major risks we are facing. We have been living with them for years. The Kosovo [status] issue was not created yesterday, last year or the year before that. It has existed for decades and has become especially prominent after 1999. We will go there with full faith that we are in the right and we will represent our stand very firmly and carefully," Tadic said. Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said, also Saturday, that "all government measures and action plans prepared in case Kosovo Albanian separatists unilaterally declare independence were aimed at just one thing - for Serbia to show in practice that unilateral independence is completely insignificant." "All of Serbia must unite and show strongly that this illegal creation does not exist for us and that the province of Kosovo-Metohija is an integral and inalienable part of the Serbian territory," Kostunica told Tanjug. The Serbian government will immediately annul any unilateral decisions and all Kosovo Serbs will always be full-fledged Serbian citizens as far as all state institutions as concerned. "It is of paramount importance that Serbs remain in the province and know that their government and parliament are in Belgrade and that Serbia is their state," Kostunica said. The prime minister invited all Serbian citizens never to refer to unilateral independence as an independent state. "The American or any other recognition of unilateral independence cannot change and transform illegality into something normal and regular. Nobody can ever take away our right to reject unilateral independence in accordance with the Serbian Constitution and UN Charter, and nobody can take away Serbia's right to preserve its sovereignty and territorial integrity," the prime minister said. Boris Tadic and Vojislav Kostunica will head the state team in Baden (FoNet, archive)

Decisive Kosovo round tomorrow in Vienna

The Contact Group Troika, made up of EU, Russian and U.S. envoys, is due to complete its role in the status settlement process on that day, and sumbit a report to the UN secretary-general.

This time, as was the case in Brussels earlier this week, the delegations will be represented at the highest level.

The official Belgrade team will be led by President Boris Tadić and Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica, while Kosovo Albanians will have President Fatmir Sejdiu and outgoing Premier Agim Ceku as their representatives.

Beta news agency reported this Sunday that the talks will be conducted as before, with separate meetings between the Troika and the teams first, followed by direct negotiations.

So far the only confirmed news conference is that scheduled for Wednesday, at the end of the round, when the Troika will address reporters at the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vienna.

Belgrade is likely to repeat its essential autonomy proposal for the southern province, suggesting a solution along the lines of those found for Hong Kong and the Aland Islands, while Priština insists on independence.

It was also announced that Wolfgang Ischinger, Aleksandr Botsan-Kharchenko and Frank Wisner will on December 3 visit Belgrade and Priština, ahead of their trip to New York a week later.

In Belgrade this weekend, President Boris Tadić said that the state delegation would once again try to, in the final stages of negotiations, make "an integrated proposal that results from Serbia's basic stand and this is essential autonomy for Kosovo-Metohija."

Tadić told Tanjug Saturday that the Belgrade delegation would attend the three-day negotiations in Baden, believing that compromise on the future status of Kosovo was possible.

"In the past few days I carefully studied reports in renowned world media and I think that the idea of Kosovo's independence was brought into question once again, at least among those people who shape the public opinion in the world.

"But it has not been brought into question completely where politicians are concerned, because there is some political inertia in everything, including deciding on the future status of Kosovo," Tadić said.

According to the president, the Serbian government delegation will take part in the negotiations "bravely and confidently that we advocate the right position".

"We cannot hide from the major risks we are facing. We have been living with them for years. The Kosovo [status] issue was not created yesterday, last year or the year before that. It has existed for decades and has become especially prominent after 1999. We will go there with full faith that we are in the right and we will represent our stand very firmly and carefully," Tadić said.

Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica said, also Saturday, that "all government measures and action plans prepared in case Kosovo Albanian separatists unilaterally declare independence were aimed at just one thing - for Serbia to show in practice that unilateral independence is completely insignificant."

"All of Serbia must unite and show strongly that this illegal creation does not exist for us and that the province of Kosovo-Metohija is an integral and inalienable part of the Serbian territory," Koštunica told Tanjug.

The Serbian government will immediately annul any unilateral decisions and all Kosovo Serbs will always be full-fledged Serbian citizens as far as all state institutions as concerned.

"It is of paramount importance that Serbs remain in the province and know that their government and parliament are in Belgrade and that Serbia is their state," Koštunica said.

The prime minister invited all Serbian citizens never to refer to unilateral independence as an independent state.

"The American or any other recognition of unilateral independence cannot change and transform illegality into something normal and regular. Nobody can ever take away our right to reject unilateral independence in accordance with the Serbian Constitution and UN Charter, and nobody can take away Serbia's right to preserve its sovereignty and territorial integrity," the prime minister said.