Over 90 per cent of ethnic Albanians want independent Kosovo, poll shows

Excerpt from report by Serbian independent news agency FoNet

Belgrade, 19 July: It is of vital importance for 60 per cent of Serbs from central Serbia, almost 80 per cent of Serbs from Kosovo and two thirds of those Serbs who have moved out of the province that Kosovo remain within Serbia as a province with broad autonomy, while 90 per cent of Kosovo Albanians see such a solution as unacceptable.

On the other hand, around 90 per cent of Kosovo Albanians believe that the independence of Kosovo within its current borders is the best solution for the future status of the province, which is unacceptable for almost three quarters of Serbs from central Serbia and some 90 per cent of Serbs from Kosovo and those Serbs who have moved out of the province. These are the results of a poll carried out by the Belgrade-based Strategic Marketing Research and Pristina-based Institute for Political Research and Development.

The poll was carried out on the territory of central Serbia and Kosovo between 10 and 20 May, with the participation of almost 2,700 interviewees.

The results show that the "conditional independence" of Kosovo is unacceptable for over 90 per cent of Albanians, but also for over 80 per cent of Serbs from central Serbia and almost all the interviewed Serbs from Kosovo and those who have moved from the province.

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Source: FoNet news agency, Belgrade, in Serbian 1349 gmt 19 Jul 06