ForMin Cioroianu on recognition of independence of Kosovo

Chances that an agreement will be reached on the future status of the Serb province of Kosovo by December 10, when the Troika made up of the EU, the US and Russia is expected to present a report on Kosovo, are very much reduced now, and no solution can be envisaged that would satisfy all parties involved, Romanian Foreign Minister Adrian Cioroianu said on Monday at the end of the first day of the meeting in Brussels of the General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) of the EU.

'Unfortunately, chances of reaching an agreement by December 10 have decreased as time passed by. And yet, ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger insists it is too early to draw final conclusions,' said Cioroianu.

In his speech to the GAERC meeting, Cioroianu said although there are no final conclusions yet, there are some certainties. 'First of all, everything in the Balkans is interrelated, and the Kosovo file might make waves and the developments in Kosovo might influence what is happening in the Serb Republic or in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Secondly, the post-December 10 period is at least as important as the current time, and that is why we have called on the Portuguese Presidency and the incoming Slovenian Presidency of the EU to start off talks within the EU on the options that might exist after December 10, on the legal basis for any future decisions, the European prospects of the region, and on the consequences of unilateral independence not being recognised,' said Cioroianu.

The Romanian foreign minister submitted to the participants in the GAERC meeting a declaration of Romania on the Kosovo issue, as it had already been voiced at similar previous meetings. In statements to Romanian journalists, Cioroianu said Romania will not be among the first countries to recognise the independence of the Kosovo province. 'Unity within the EU is not built only by all the EU member states rallying around a dominant current, but also by identifying solutions to common issues,' he said.

Cioroianu added that Romania did not feel during the talks on the future status of the Kosovo province that the matter would be seen in terms of a majority ruling over a rebellious minority, but, on the contrary, it was very pleased to feel that there is room in the EU for diverging opinions and interpretations, which proves there is a climate of understanding at the level of the 27 EU member states.

ROMPRES