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US backs Ahtisaari's supervised independence plan for Kosovo: Burns

Mar 26, 2007, 11:03 GMT

Brussels - The United States fully backs United Nations special envoy Martti Ahtisaari's proposal for supervised independence for Kosovo, US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns said Monday. The blueprint - about to be formally unveiled by Ahtisaari - gives Kosovo 'the way forward towards independence,' Burns told reporters in Brussels. The plan also assures the rights of the territory's Serbian minority, including protection for Serbian churches and monasteries, said Burns who is scheduled to discuss Kosovo's future in talks with senior European Union and NATO officials. 'Ahtisaari's plan says there should be supervised independence for Kosovo. We support that,' said Burns, adding that he expected the UN Security Council to adopt a framework resolution on Kosovo in April or May this year. The US and the EU would be 'reaching out' to Russia and China - which oppose Kosovo's independence - in a bid to bring both countries on board, said Burns. But he warned that discussions were likely to be 'complicated.' © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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US backs Ahtisaari's supervised independence plan for Kosovo: Burns

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