Ahtisaari’s Kosova plan unworkable, says Russian ambassador

TIRANA, May 2 – Russian Ambassador to Tirana, Alexander Prisepov, said Moscow remains very interested in a solution to Kosova’s status but insisted such a solution must be agreeable to all parties. The Russian ambassador also said Russia did not consider U.N. Envoy Martti Ahtisaari’s proposal on Kosova’s status to be a compromise solution.
“Decisions without the understanding of the interested parties do not bring stability and the desired peace,” said Prisepov in an interview to Top Channel’s Shqip show.
“If the solution will be imposed it will not bring stability,” he said.
The ambassador said that Moscow was really interested in a peaceful solution in the Balkans, which Russia considers a close neighbor politically, economically and spiritually.
Prisepov said that before coming to Albania he was posted to the Caucasus region, and solutions there were not reached precisely because the interested sides were not willing to compromise. There are many cases in history when third parties have imposed solutions, but they had brought only conflicts and the last 50 to 60 years were proof of that, according to the ambassador.
“Ahtisaari’s plan cannot be considered a compromise. He has prepared his proposal which is only his proposal. They are not neither a proposal representing (the interests of) both sides, and that is why it is not a compromise,” he said.
Prisepov tried to avoid a direct answer on a possible Russian veto at the U.N. Security Council which will discuss the issue this month. He noted that the Council had already sent a mission to Belgrade and Pristina to review diplomatic options.
Russia was not interested in promoting conflicts and would like the Balkans to at last find a peaceful resolution to its territorial problems, Prisepov said.
Russia has recently increased its presence and role in the international arena. This new involvement was also mentioned during a recent speech given by Russian President Vladimir Putin who noted that, at last, his country had come out of the long economic fall and is on the path of stable economic growth. “Now Russia is one of the ten biggest economic countries in the world and the third for gold reserves … which helps its international position,” he said.
The ambassador commented that Russia is a country with more than 100 nationalities who live in peace and understanding, like Albania with its religious coexistence. “I believe that’s a good example for Kosova,” Prisepov said.