Washington Waking Up to Dangers of Kosovo Independence

U.S. Congressmen Join a Growing Chorus of Experts Warning Against Kosovo Independence; Serbian President Boris Tadic Conveys Kosovo Independence Dangers to U.S. Leaders; Christian Serbs in Kosovo Denounce Muslim Albanian Violence Against Non-Albanians; Kosovo-based Wahhabism in FYROM

This week saw further indications that official Washington is becoming increasingly aware of the disastrous consequences a forcible and illegal detachment of Kosovo from democratic Serbia would have on the Balkan region. Worthy of note:

1. In the September 3, 2006 edition of The Washington Times, House International Relations Committee members Representatives Dan Burton (R-IN) and Joe Wilson (R-SC) wrote “If the U.N. Security Council decides in favor of Kosovo's independence, it will have a far-reaching negative effect throughout the region. It will also affect the dialogue between Kurds, Sunnis and Shi'ites in Iraq and may strengthen the hand of separatist movements around the world. Such a decision has serious global security concerns, and the United States should carefully consider how a U.N. decision in favor of Kosovar independence will affect countries like Russia, India and Indonesia, all struggling with minority ethnic populations that use terrorism to weaken democratically elected governments. The U.N. must not force a decision on Serbia that is unacceptable to its people and democratically elected representatives. A final decision must be a workable compromise and mutually acceptable to Serbia, ethnic Albanian leaders in Kosovo and the minority Serbian population. If this is not the case, the status quo will continue, or worse, the region will regress to the ethnic cleansing of Serbian Christians in Kosovo.”

COORDINATION CENTER
OF SERBIA FOR KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

New York, September 13, 2006

SANDA RASKOVIC - IVIC
ADDRESS TO THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL, NEW YORK

Mr. President, distinguished members of the Security Council,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my special privilege to address you and express my respect to this
world organisation's high body.

First and foremost, taking into account an imperative of introducing peace
and stability as well as developing the future of both Kosovo and Metohija
and the region of South East Europe, I wish to emphasize the unique
significance of the Security Council as a guarantor for upholding the
universal principles of international law and the entire world order.

The Republic of Serbia resolutely maintains that upholding and upgrading the
peace and stability in the West Balkans are only possible through the means
of a strict observance of the international principles, such as
inviolability of sovereignty and territorial integrity of democratic states.

Mr President, we particularly wish to reiterate that Serbia is all set to
assume her share of responsibility in the process of a successful resolution
of the Kosovo and Metohija issue, pursuant to the international law and in
conformity with the democratic values of the contemporary world. We address
the Security Council in full confidence, expecting its instrumental
contribution in line with its previously endorsed documents, and in
particular with Resolution 1244 of June 10, 1999, which reconfirms the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.

We firmly believe that achieving a durable settlement on the future status
of Kosovo and Metohija is only possible through the means of systematic,
responsible and orderly negotiations, without artificial deadlines that can
only result in additional pressure. Otherwise, there may occur new
complications entailing inestimable consequences as always and inevitably
invoked by any deviation from the international community's universal
principles.

Nervousness, irrational haste and arrogance can not contribute to finding a
sustainable solution for Kosovo and Metohija, or to the peace and stability
in the SEE region, both of which my country's politics is firmly supporting.

Regretfully, I have to inform this high body that three months ago, on the
very day of my previous address to the Security Council, on the day when
UNMIK reported on progress of the standards, security, and the return of
displaced persons to Kosovo and Metohija, late Dragan Popovic, a Serbian
returnee from Klina, was brutally murdered.

Thus, tragically, it took another human life to drastically disprove the
ever-repeating wording of UNMIK report about improvements of standards,
security, return of displaced person etc. as it was being presented to this
high body.

Sorry to say, but it is the reality in Kosovo and Metohija that most
tragically and brutally drafts its reports about security, thus proving
wrong the inflated clerical reports.

Since that Security Council session to the day before, there have occurred
51 small and high-scale incidents, involving assaults against lives and
property of the Serbs (from 24 October 2005 till 1 September 2006 there were
260 incidents).

On 26th of August this year, in the evening, a 16 year old Albanian slowly
walked across the bridge between South and North Mitrovica. He threw a bomb
on a nearby Serbian café bar packed with guests, and walked away in cold
blood. Undoubtedly, this act of violence was in fact a political one, aiming
at the Serbs as targets. Therefore, it was not aimed at a person who
happened to be a Serb, but at the Serbs marked as tragically legitimate
targets.

With our deepest regret, we have to state that this terrorist attack against
the Serbs occurred subsequent to the statement that "Serbs as a nation were
guilty", which was verbatim made in front of the Serbian Negotiation Team in
Vienna and several other witnesses by a man least expected to, having in
mind his high office. Regretfully, it was Mr. Martti Ahtisaari, the Special
Envoy of the Secretary-General for Future Status Process for Kosovo, who
said that.

This unfortunate statement, Mr President, together with his refusal to offer
to the Serbian people an apology for making such a horrid accusation,
unheard of since the end of World War Two, is at the same time the only
argument in favour of Kosovo and Metohija independence we had a chance to
hear so far.

Whilst our negotiation team maintains the universality of the international
law and impossibility to rip a state of 15 percent of its territory as their
arguments, and actively works on protection of the Serbian people in Kosovo
and Metohija, the Albanians in fact do not engage in negotiations at all,
calmly waiting for being granted a second Albanian state in the Balkans - on
the territory of the internationally recognized Serbia. The negotiations are
being carried out in a relaxed and peaceful tone, being so realxed that,
until the Serbian party explicit request, neither the minutes were kept nor
the rules of procedure were set.

Last March, there was another incident on the same bridge which the above
mentioned Albanian youth crossed before throwing a bomb at a Serbian café
bar, where 19 year old Milisav Ilincic was stabbed. International Public
Prosecutor for Kosovska Mitrovica County, Paul Flin, terminates
investigation against two Albanians suspected to have attempted the murder
of this young Serbian, although one of them confessed to stabbing Ilincic
with a knife on 28th of March. Pursuant to that event and other numerous
cases, as well as pursuant to the incomprehensible fact that ever since
UNMIK had assumed responsibility for the peace and security in Kosovo and
Metohija, namely, since 1999, very few from among numerous cases of murders
of, and assaults against the Serbs have been brought to court. One may
conclude that survival and life of Serbs, from Albanians' point of view, are
an obstacle for achieving their political and ideological goals, whereas
UNMIK's tactics for avoiding conflicts with militant Albanians is a simple
shutting of eyes to the reality.

Mr President, it is hard to believe it, but all previously said point out to
a conclusion that the fear of powerful and violent Albanians and their
threats to avenge, currently amount to a "principle" which makes the
international law and international justice deviate.

Let me remind you that in Kosovo and Metohija people have been killed just
for speaking a Slavic language which happens to resemble Serbian. A
Bulgarian in Pristina lost his life because of it. Ethnic identity becomes a
licence to kill. But the real situation is worse still. In a previously
referred terrorist bomb attack on a Serbian café bar of 26 August, few
non-Serbs, foreign citizens, were also injured. One of them is an
international police officer. They were attacked just because they have been
sitting in a "Serbian" café bar. This simply means that in Kosovo, if one
speaks Serbian, or sits at a Serbian café bar, he or she becomes a target of
a terrorist attack.

With regards to the religious monuments, culture heritage and religious
freedom, on the one hand there is an emphasis on adoption of laws regulating
these matters, while on the other hand, in reality, in real life, the sacred
monuments are being desecrated and the sacred items looted. In a church in a
Serbian village of Mogila, in the vicinity of Gnjilane, there are still some
Christian icons on the church walls but the eyes of portraited saints were
dug out by extremists during the thorough Albanian March 2004 ethnic
cleansing of remaining Serbs and non-Albanians. Kosovo Provisional
Institutions never undertook to protect these sacred sites and ease the fear
of beleivers, who pray in this church and look at the icons with hollow
eyes, and contemplate perseverance and survival.

Further to this, the international community has every right to urge Kosovo
institutions to endorse laws against the so-called general discrimination.
However, the mere endorsement of laws is not going to resolve this problem.
It is the individuals of indisputable authority within their communities,
the clannish leaders, who reign in the Kosovo society. They are the real
arbiters. It is they who make decisions, not the judiciary. A woman in that
society has no right. In Kosovo, the justice is being taken into one's own
hands; the tribal laws and "blood revenge" rule there. One cannot fight
those by implementing the law against discrimination only, because in that
case that would be tantamount to searching for excuses that an effort was
made to make the difference, which is not even a good excuse.

Securing the public transport has always been a priority, at least
declaratory. In practise, we have "death roads". The "death roads"
expression is a colloquial term used by KFOR and UNMIK officers to refer to
roads that connect Serbian settlement Strpce to other Serbian regions, along
which a series of 12 terrorist attacks on Serbs has been executed. Only a
few hours before the public transport competences were to be transferred
from UNMIK to the Provisional Institutions, some Albanians stoned a bus,
carrying the Serbian children home from an excursion. The incident took
place in the village of Zabari, outside Kosovska Mitrovica, on 30 August
2006. Bus windows were broken, but fortunately there were no casualties.
UNMIK issued a statement saying police officers who escorted the bus had not
seen the incident occurred, but stopped denying it had happened. Sadly
enough, the children will remember this ordeal, regardless of whether anyone
saw anything, whether anyone chose to see anything, or whether the statement
on the incident was issued at all.

I wish to recall that Ambassador Kai Eide in his 'Comprehensive Review of
the Situation in Kosovo' denoted the process of establishing the future
status of Kosovo and the continuance of standard implementation as the only
way towards any progress. Ambassador Eide also emphasized other very
important and essential issues. Regrettably, so far there are no serious
signs whatsoever that anyone seeks to recognize at least some among those
absolutely adequate and correct recommendations. On the other hand,
unfortunately, a flexible attitude of our negotiation team failed to be
replicated by the Albanian negotiation team, which stuck to a rigid and
exclusive attitude - independency, at any cost. Sadly, even Special Envoy
Martti Ahtisaari, at least according to his statements, went beyond the
mandate he was entrusted with. We hold that his frequent stepping out might
create more serious concerns than the current ones existing in the Province.
My country, rightly and in good faith, expected Mr. Ahtisaari to provide his
share to the compromise solution.

With regards to the completion of the reconstruction and compensation
program related to the ethnic cleansing of Serbs in March 2004, it is
important to underline the fact that the security is the first issue that
has to be dealt with. All other issues will be eventually resolved, but when
human lives are at stake, then talking about conditions they live in has no
point.

Particularly worrying is by now already evidenced truth about the lack of
progress in the return of the displaced and exiled population. Without
getting into details about methods that some organizations employ to record
the returnees, we bring your attention to the fact that even the most
optimistic of the records show the maximum of five percent of returnees. The
real numbers are significantly fewer and do not exceede two percent. I also
wish to point out that the return of the displaced persons can be
facilitated and made possible through the means of true and devoted work in
the field.

Kosovo's Provisional Government should publicly support the submitting of
property claims to the Kosovo Property Agency (KPA) with regards to
agricultural and commercial properties; however, the problem is that there
is no good will to resolve the issue. The KPA has started collecting the
claims but without any media coverage or information campaign. That agency
has still not received the funds to process the claims, which is a clear
message about its importance as seen by the Provisional and international
institutions.

Whoever wants to know, Mr. Chairman, can easily find out that organized
crime, including the so-cold ordinary crime, trafficking of people and the
corruption in Kosovo and Metohia are a large scale, omnipresent occurrence.
Drugs and weapons trade and smuggling channels of this criminal-terrorist
business expand in spite of the presence of representatives from the
International Community, the Police and the Army. There is no need to stress
yet again that Serbia, as a country whose integral parts are Kosovo and
Metohia, is more than open for any specialized police and investigatory
activity which will assist in eradication of trafficking in people and
narcotics in Kosovo and Metohia.

The situation and developments in Kosovo and Metohia are to be viewed upon
realistically and responsibly. Here, 'realistically' means from the
international-legal but also from the historical-political aspects.
'Responsibly' is likely most important of all, and that means that we need
to try to anticipate the consequences of our present actions and forsee what
will happen in two, five, ten or even more years. Any nervous acceleration
of the solution will cost the Region dearly, including the Province itself
as well as the international community who, instead of coming to a
sustainable solution, will have to deal with an even more difficult and more
complex situation in Kosovo and Metohia. A hasty solution will not be a
solution only but a precedent that opens Pandora's Box which should not be
open at any cost. It is really hard to believe that anyone would want to
take that responsibility for it's opening, just because of someone's wish or
a request to meet a certain deadline. I emphasize that only patience,
patience alone, and eyes wide open to the reality and future can bring about
a true compromise solution to Kosovo and Metohia issue. Imposing a solution
will not lead to the resolving of the issue of Kosovo and Metohia and it is
quite clear that believing in the precedent is misleading. The point is,
ladies and gentlemen, about an obvious situation that, if the solution is
imposed, it will inevitably have unforeseeable and dangerous consequences.

Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen members of the Security Council, I would
like to share with you that feeling of responsibility and, together with
you, with the leaders in my government and with my country, to say out loud
and clear that the issue of Kosovo and Metohia can not be granted a
sustainable and compromise solution if it is to serve an arteficial deadline
dictated by interests other than a wish to solve a problem on permanent and
stable grounds so to preserve and uphold the peace and stability in the
Region.

Therefore, the Serbian side sees the solution of the Kosovo and Metohia
problem through implementation of the principles and concrete solutions
under the Platform of the Serbian Negotiating Team about the future status
of Kosovo and Metohia. In the long run it remains the only way ahead towards
a proper resolution of the terrifying situation in the Province. The
international community ought to support this and to show, by its deeds,
that it wants a stable and safe region. That can only be achieved by making
steps towards establishing the rule of law, sanctioning of criminals and
terrorists and bringing them to the justice, introducing security and all
other preconditions for living a normal life. Further, political steps refer
to persuading the Albanian side to give up on extreme, exclusive demands and
to embrace a rational and a compromise solution - namely, autonomy with
vast, essential competences. At the same time, this would mean that the
Albanians are gaining strategic partners for building the future and that
these potential strategic partners are the Serbs. Albanians without Serbs
cannot do much and therefore they should not lightly reject the reasonable
and generous offers coming from our side of the table. In spite of the
evident difficulties, there still exists maneuver space for an agreement,
based on the democratic principles and European standards.

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