“The adoption of the Resolution on Kosovo at the UN General Assembly is a new and major turning point for Kosovo, because it closes the cycle of efforts by Serbia and helps all others that have hesitated to enter a more dynamic process in terms of recognizing the independence of Republic of Kosovo and adhering to the opinion of the International Court of Justice on the declaration of Kosovo’s independence”, President Sejdiu said at a press conference today upon his return from New York, where the UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution filed by Serbia, in coordination with the EU member countries.
Further on, President Sejdiu said that the General Assembly does not only take note of Kosovo’s independence, but acknowledges it as a valid outcome, in terms of support that it provides, and that this ends all the discussions about the status of Kosovo among those who have had certain illusions about it.
“The text of the resolution contains, among others,” – President Sejdiu continued – “an invitation for a dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia”.
“Kosovo has never hesitated to discus issues of common interest to the people of both sovereign countries and to cooperate”, he said.
Among the topics that institutions of Kosovo would focus on, President Sejdiu mentioned the freedom of movement, fight against organized crime, the returns, the missing people, economic cooperation, regional cooperation and other topics that relate to the cooperation between the two countries, but always as between two sovereign states and in no other footage.
Speaking of meetings in New York, President Sejdiu mentioned the meetings that the Kosovo delegation has had with representatives of the Arab League, with the representatives of CARICOM countries and a very enlightening meeting with representatives of other member countries of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
President Sejdiu said that all these meetings discussed recognition of Kosovo’s independence and expressed his belief that a positive cycle of new recognitions would follow naturally. He also said that it was up to individual sovereign countries to decide about the moment of recognition and that joint and coordinated recognitions might follow.
At the press conference, President Sejdiu reminded of the ninth anniversary of terrorist attacks in the United States.
“Today is September 11. On behalf of the people of Kosovo and institutions of our country, I want to express the solidarity of the people of Kosovo with the American people and with the families of the victims for the terrible times and moments that they have gone through on the September 11. In these moments, we stand by them and express our compassion for all these people and our deep appreciation for what the United States of America has done for Kosovo”, President Sejdiu said.
Asked if one should be afraid that something more has been promised to Serbia in order for it to give up the first resolution that it has filed, President Sejdiu said: “There is no other promise and let nobody think or speculate that there is something else behind what has been announced publically. We had substantive meetings with the Quint member countries, like here in Prishtinë, and with the ambassadors or permanent representatives of the EU member countries and the United States. We have carried out an in-depth analysis of developments that have taken place up to the moment when the new resolution was filed, because there were thoughts that it would not be accepted in its current form. Our joint efforts consisted in making the right calculations. We received strong assurances and I believe Serbia knew very well that it would lose at the General Assembly. It was when it recognized that that the first draft was withdrawn. I believe what is essential to remember is that there will never be talks about independence or sovereignty of our country, about territorial integrity of our country or about Kosovo’s internal affairs and that topics of discussion will only involve issues of common interest”.
On the other hand, answering some questions about the north of Mitrovica and about a potential special status for this part of the country, President Sejdiu said that such a solution would not be acceptable to institutions of Kosovo, that they have had their say and that their position was very clear.
He also said that there would be no deviation from Ahtisaari’s Plan when it comes to the north of the country. He said that institutions of Kosovo are resolved to implement Ahtisaari’s Plan, to invest there more, like in other parts of the country, in terms of joint projects, of course in cooperation with and with the presence of international community, also in terms of fostering an economic development. It [the north] has always been in our minds, but there were external factors that have brought about consequences that we are facing at present. It is important that we maintain the same approach that we have been adopting so far, by allocating millions of euros for certain projects, to undertake coordinated actions with the international community and to engage in instating rule of law [in the north].
Asked if the north issue would be a topic of future talks, President Sejdiu replied: “The issue of the north will never be tackled as a separate issue. Talks will rather involve important actions that institutions of Kosovo must undertake in the framework that I mentioned earlier. We remain committed to implementing Ahtisaari’s Plan and the Plan necessitates a support by the Republic of Serbia”.