Kosovo Information

Kosovo and Metohija than to help find solutions to serious problems in the province. The tensions have also been heightened by certain representatives of the international community â€" UNMIK, among others â€" claiming that the independence of Kosovo is the only possible outcome, or even a fait accompli. Martti Ahtisaari has a narrow space in which to manoeuvre, but there is room for compromise. The narrow space for a solution can be found somewhere between the situation in Kosovo and Metohija up to 1999 and independence. Independence is not a compromise; independence means merely succumbing to one of those two positions. Serbia is totally opposed to any redrawing of the borders and believes that any “either-or” solution â€" making one side a winner and the other a loser â€" would not be good. Our negotiating team, political leadership and general public deeply believe that a solution must be found through negotiations, that it must not be imposed and that both sides must engage more wholeheartedly and be prepared for alternative solutions. For its part, the Government of the Republic of Serbia has launched two initiatives aimed at providing new impetus to the negotiations. In its first initiative â€" submitted to the members of the Contact Group and Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari on 19 May â€" my Government proposed that direct negotiations be started on the future status of Kosovo and Metohija. According to that proposal, direct negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina on the status of Kosovo and Metohija would begin with a high-level round of negotiations and continue with a discussion of key elements that would crystallise the status and that would be conducted in four working groups, on constitutional matters, security, economic questions and decentralization. In its second initiative, submitted on 30 May, the Government of the Republic of Serbia presented a concrete proposal on the future status of Kosovo and Metohija. It is a compromise between two extreme positions: the status of Kosovo and Metohija prior to 1999 on the one hand, and independence on the other. It is the most concrete proposal that our side could have made, offering more than the standard autonomy that is known and practised in European countries.