Albania lobbies for Kosova’s independence

TIRANA, March 27 – Albanian Foreign Minister Besnik Mustafaj went to New York on Wednesday to lobby the UN Security Council for Kosovo’s independence after the proposal from U.N. Envoy Martti Ahtisaari. Mustafaj will talk with the ambassadors of the five permanent Security Council members and seek a special meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Independence is “the only viable option” for Kosova, the U.N. envoy for the province said in a report released Monday to accompany his proposal on the territory’s future. The two documents by Martti Ahtisaari, who mediated yearlong talks between ethnic Albanians and Serbs, were delivered to the U.N. Security Council on Monday. The council will make the final decision. In the 3 1/2-page introductory report accompanying the proposal, Ahtisaari said he had “come to the conclusion that the only viable option for Kosova is independence, to be supervised for an initial period by the international community.” It is the first time the envoy has explicitly mentioned independence for the Serbian province in an official document. Ahtissari’s plan faces an uncertain future in the Security Council, which is split on the issue. Russia supports Serbia _ which vehemently opposes independence for Kosova _ and has implied it could use its veto power in the Council if Belgrade’s interests are not addressed. The United States and the European Union back the U.N. plan.
Mustafaj hailed the United Nations Secretary-General’s and Ahtisaari’s plan. “His (Ahtisaari’s) recommendation takes into consideration the historic circumstances, present reality and the urgent need for political and economic stability in Kosovo,” Mustafaj told reporters. “Albania is convinced that at this extremely important stage until the finalization of the status from the Security Council, which we believe will be concluded soon, Kosovo’s political factors will continue to be in full partnership with the international community. Kosovo has gone much ahead and should continue to preserve its achievement. It cannot lose prospect. Unity, maturity and self-reluctance are needed as a testimony of the fulfilled standards from the Kosovo society and the institutions so that they deserve an independent state.” Mustafaj also called on the minorities, especially the Serb one, to be included in “this irretrievable and decisive process, also believing that the Belgrade authorities will respond to the international appeal to build a favorable climate for the full integration of this community in the Kosovo society and institutions.” “Implementation of recommendations presented by Mr. Ahtisaari will make possible to the region as a whole to finally get rid of the past on behalf of a new Balkans, based on peace, stability and prosperity for all, oriented toward European and Euro-Atlantic integration.”
Mustafaj started his lobbying in Tirana meeting with the British Ambassador to Albania Fraser Wilson to discuss on Ahtisaari’s proposal. They both said that further negotiations, as Russia and Serbia have already asked, would bring no new results as the gap between the two sides is very deep.
Albania has been the strongest supporter of Kosovo’s independence, although it says that it has no territorial ambitions over it.
In a meeting Tuesday with Kosovar students studying in Albania President Alfred Moisiu said taht an independent Kosova respecting the minorities’ rights would be the solution to generate peace and stability in the Balkan region and wider.