Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Belgrade must be ready for possible Kosovo independence - Serbian paper

Text of unattributed commentary entitled: "Shadow of Rambouillet", published by the Serbian newspaper Danas on 21 February

When a country is in a situation where it has to discuss the status of part of its territory, that in itself constitutes a kind of defeat - the defeat of a policy that over a protracted period of time was unable to deal with internal problems in a rational way and ensure the functioning of the community. This is what has happened to Serbia in the case of Kosovo.

Not so long ago, Belgrade held all instruments of power in this province, but it did not know how to curb a swelling interethnic conflict and provide peace and security. When this territory became engulfed in total chaos, the international community stepped in and practically removed Kosovo from Serbia's rule.

What comes now is the definition of a new status of Kosovo. In the meantime, a major political turnabout has occurred in Belgrade. The regime that was mostly to blame for the exacerbation of the Kosovo problem has been overthrown, but unfortunately, this has not obliterated in the eyes of international arbiters a negative role played by Belgrade in the creation of the Kosovo crisis.

Last weekend, Serbia sent to Vienna a team of a completely different political mentality than the one that had travelled to the Rambouillet conference, but it is little likely, despite its democratic and pro-European endorsement, that it will manage to convince Europe and the world that Kosovo will be comfortable in a Serbia without Milosevic. The dark shadow of Rambouillet as the symbol of an arrogant, uncooperative and defiant policy of Belgrade that cared nothing for the consequences of its intransigence will inevitably loom over the present negotiating team. The difficulty of their negotiating position is evident from the statement of the chief international mediator, Martti Ahtisaari, made on the day the Belgrade team left for Vienna. Not for the first time, a representative of the international community made it known with frankness unusual in diplomatic communication that independence is the most likely option for the future status of Kosovo.

This forecast is not pleasant for anybody in Serbia to hear, but a serious, rational policy absolutely must take it into account. If by some miracle more is achieved, that will, naturally, be easy to accept and explain to the domestic public. Belgrade must have a rational attitude and a policy ready for the painful eventuality - an independent Kosovo.

Source: Danas, Belgrade, in Serbian 21 Feb 06

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

It doesn't hurt to start updating textbooks and tourist maps since now. There will be a rush in September.

Anonymous said...

It's time for those bloody serbs to learn that arrogance and extreme nationalism are not features of civilised world. Why are they so mad about. They are just giving back after almost 100 years what doesn't belong to them.
Go Kosovo!!!!

Anonymous said...

^^ Wtf? are you some british retard? If you were sqip you woulda said go kosova, so since you didnt i cana ssume your some other foreigner. Dont medal in problems that arent yours, they come back and put a dinkeys dick in your ass

Anonymous said...

100 years is the time kosoov has been serbian? please show me your historical facts.

Anonymous said...

"Hmm... you know someone that is 1000 years old?"

I could find you sources that say tribes [that later became present day albanians] were settled in this region up to serbia...but im afraid it has no pictures for you to look at

tung
~Anonymous

Anonymous said...

Dear All,
To learn about the hitory of the region, you dont have to read serbian or albanian books. Almost in all western history books its stated very clear that the reagion was always populated by Albanians. When slavic people settled in the region after the 7th century, this land was full of chrches and christians, which later were forced by turks to change thier religion. Don't forget that Constantne the Great, who was the first Roman Emperor, was the first to institutionalize the church and the christian religion,was from that part of the world. Serbs can claim their roots north in Siberia, and on on someone elses land.
If you wanted shqip, bloody serb, here you go:
Go Kosova!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

To answer your question if kosovo has been under the serbian rule for 100 years.
Actually, its less than that. In 1913 after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Kosovo was asigned to Albania. Than, it was cosidered as war trophy from Russia (one of the winning parties of the turkish-russian war). Of course Russia couldnt move Kosovo, so it gave it a gift to their allies, Serbs. After the second World War, 1945, Kosovo was re-asigned again to Albania, but for the second time Russia intervened, and Kosovo remained under the bloddy serbian rule. You dont have to belive me for what i said above. Just read the western encyclopaedias.
Go Kosova!!!!!!