Thaci: Independence date set to be announced

Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci says the independence date will be announced very soon, maybe even this week. It is also interesting that Albanian Foreign Minister Lulzim Basha has arrived in Pristina on a surprise visit to inform Kosovo Albanian officials of the latest messages coming from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Thaci: Independence date set to be announced During his stay in Pristina, Basha has met with UNMIK deputy chief Larry Rossin, President Fatmir Sejdiu, Prime Minister Hashim Thaci and Parliamentary Speaker Jakup Krasniqi. The Albanian foreign minister is believed to have passed on first-hand to his colleagues Brussels and Washington’s recommendations for measures that Pristina should undertake with regards to status, though it was rather hard to tell on the basis of what he told reporters after the meeting. Giving the impression that everything regarding Kosovo’s status was already settled, Basha said that Albania had prepared a clear plan of measures to help Kosovo in the event of Serbia imposing a blockade after the independence declaration. “In the next few days and weeks, we will prove that the third party’s belief that they could exert pressure on the new state of Kosovo was misconceived,“ he said. After the meeting, Sejdiu said that a few formalities still lay ahead before the independence date was announced. “These are preparations concerning documents stemming from the Ahtisaari package,“ the Kosovo president explained. Meanwhile, Thaci told journalists that the independence timeframe had been set out. “We’re left with the final step of making the date public,“ said the Kosovo prime minister. Hashim Thaci (Fonet,archive)

Thaci: Independence date set to be announced

During his stay in Priština, Basha has met with UNMIK deputy chief Larry Rossin, President Fatmir Sejdiu, Prime Minister Hashim Thaci and Parliamentary Speaker Jakup Krasniqi.

The Albanian foreign minister is believed to have passed on first-hand to his colleagues Brussels and Washington’s recommendations for measures that Priština should undertake with regards to status, though it was rather hard to tell on the basis of what he told reporters after the meeting.

Giving the impression that everything regarding Kosovo’s status was already settled, Basha said that Albania had prepared a clear plan of measures to help Kosovo in the event of Serbia imposing a blockade after the independence declaration.

“In the next few days and weeks, we will prove that the third party’s belief that they could exert pressure on the new state of Kosovo was misconceived,“ he said.

After the meeting, Sejdiu said that a few formalities still lay ahead before the independence date was announced.

“These are preparations concerning documents stemming from the Ahtisaari package,“ the Kosovo president explained.

Meanwhile, Thaci told journalists that the independence timeframe had been set out.

“We’re left with the final step of making the date public,“ said the Kosovo prime minister.