http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=103153
Top Albanian diplomat says Kosovo should be independent Amid the heated debate on the future of Kosovo, Albania is throwing its weight behind supporters of full independence. Albanian Foreign Minister Besnik Mustafaj Albanian Foreign Minister Besnik Mustafaj strongly warned against the partition of Kosovo while fully endorsing the idea of independence. His statements come in the wake of United Nation's Kosovo mediator Martti Ahtisaari's plan calling for an independent state without calling it "independent." In an exclusive interview with Today's Zaman in Brussels, Mustafaj says the best way to insure stability in the region is by granting full independence to Kosovar Albanians. Mustafaj flatly rejects any parallelism between Kosovo and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, stressing that Kosovo is a unique case. While former Finnish President Ahtisaari's plan has already been rejected by Russia and Serbia, the US, EU and the majority of the international community have endorsed it. Excerpts from the interview follow: Do you think Mr. Ahtisaari's plan can fly after being rejected by Serbs, as it almost proposed an independent state, and by Kosovar Albanians, as it does not explicitly talk about independence? Mr. Ahtisaari's report requires a careful reading. It is true that it does not mention the word "independence" but it is provisional, a pre-document so to speak, and it needs to be consulted with both with Albanians and Serbs. In the document however you have all the prerogatives for an independent state. It has clear international borders; it talks about the right to have three parts of a state, i.e. legislative, executive and judiciary. The right to sign international treaties and conventions is also mentioned. Do you think Kosovo should be independent? All these are the prerogatives of a normal state, if in the final status this report does not lead to an independent state, Kosovars, of course, won't be satisfied. So it is not up to us to be satisfied or not but the question is whether Kosovars will be satisfied or not. The idea of independence was born in Kosovo not in Albania. But do you support the idea of an independent Kosovo? We do support the independence of Kosovo. We support it because we are the main neighbour and we are the most affected country in case of instability in the region. Only that kind of solution, including independence and supported by the vast majority of the population, could insure stability. Can Ahtisaari's plan be implemented considering the fierce reaction from Russians and Serbs? I am quite sure we have good chances for these recommendations to be implemented. Most of the international community does support Mr. Ahtisaari's position. Yesterday, in the EU Foreign Ministers meeting it was explicitly mentioned that the EU supported Ahtisaari's plan. The contact group has declared themselves in favour of the proposal, which means Russia itself as well committed itself to the proposal. More importantly, US is very committed to the plan. If the US, EU, the majority of the international community and the majority of Kosovars are and will be in favour of the plan, then there is no ground why it won't be implemented. There is the fear that it could lead to a Greater Albania, carving territory from Macedonia and Serbia. We have expressed ourselves on this issue on numerous occasions. This has been a subject which Serbs frequently used as a tool to blackmail the international community. We have clearly expressed ourselves that if Kosovo becomes independent, that independence should be a conditional one. The first condition will be no shift in borders, not of Albania or Macedonia. The second is there won't be any border change between Kosovo and Serbia. What about the partitioning of Kosovo between Serbia and Kosovo proper? This would be the most mistaken scenario. If these series of divisions start, nobody knows where it will end. I am against this scenario. That is the most dangerous scenario. The Turkish community in Kosovo has some grievances against the majority Albanians. By the end of December I paid an official visit to Kosovo and met the leader of the Turkish community. They fully support the independence of Kosovo. Disaffections can certainly be sorted out in a democratic society. I always said by only focusing on one minority, there would be frustrations in the other minorities as there cannot be a privileged minority that has more rights than the others. It is a great mistake and will be a mistake if special conditions are created for the Serbian minority, all minorities should have equal rights. Do you think the possible independence of Kosovo could set precedents for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and other similar problems? There is no parallelism whatsoever. In all the treatments regarding this question, we say Kosovo is a unique case. The EU, US and the vast majority of the international community treat Kosovo case a unique, sui generis one. Do you think justice has been served in the case of Mr. Milosevic? He passed away when justice had just started to be achieved. If God acted faster and got the things in his hand, it is the destiny. 17.02.2007 SELÇUK GÜLTAŞLI BRUSSELS +++ ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Check out the new improvements in Yahoo! Groups email. http://us.click.yahoo.com/4It09A/fOaOAA/yQLSAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? 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