Serbia and Kosovo see seed of independence in UN plan

Feb 3, 2007, 9:20 GMT

Belgrade/Pristina - The UN Kosovo envoy Martti Ahtisaari didn't use the word 'independence' when presenting his plan for the breakaway Serbian province to Belgrade and Pristina, but local newspapers on Saturday were all about independence.

Ahtisaari handed his proposal for a Kosovo 'settlement package' to Belgrade and Pristina leaders on Friday. He said he was hoping to finalize it after another volley of talks in February and deliver it to the UN Security Council by late March.

On Friday he refused to say anything about the future status of the province, but the final proposal would have a 'clear definition' of it, he said.

Belgrade leaders were shocked by the elements of independence included in the proposal, while in Kosovo, the pro-independence majority Albanian politicians were happy.

'Independence hidden in details,' says the Serbian daily Politika, reporting that Ahtisaari's proposal was 'rejected by Belgrade and received with satisfaction in Pristina.' It added that the 'Serbian state leadership had a very negative reaction to the plan.'

'Ahtisaari's plan creates the possibility of independence for Kosovo,' says the daily Danas, saying: 'Kosovo will have a constitution and the right to seek membership in international organizations.'

With the ancient monasteries and the site of historic battles, Kosovo has been seen as Serbia's heartland for centuries.

But a badly bungled bid to forcibly put the majority Albanians - or 90 per cent of the population - under control led to bloodshed in 1999 and eventually a devastating NATO intervention which effectively ousted Belgrade from the province.

Serbian President Boris Tadic said that he and his country would 'never accept Kosovo's independence and caretaker Vojislav Kostunica repeated that detaching Kosovo from Serbia would be a violation of international law.

But a comment in the daily Blic warned that time has run out for a hope that the international law would take care of Serbia's claim over Kosovo - which is its province, at least until the UN rule otherwise.

'(Ahtisaari's) plan is far from the promised compromise without the winners and the humiliated,' it said. 'With it a part of Serbian territory is being hijacked, against principles of international law.'

'It's time for 'Plan B,' for the division of Kosovo along ethnic lines - if there is enough time left for action,' Blic said.

In Pristina, as with the Kosovo Albanian leaders, the newspapers welcomed the plan as a 'clear road to independence.'

'Pristina sees Ahtisaari's package as basis for Kosovo's statehood,' 'Ahtisaari brings serenity of independence,' 'Godspeed to us' and 'Status in March,' were some of the headlines in the dailies.