Ischinger hints at possible Kosovo status conference
The EU envoy to the Contact Group troika Wolfgang Ischinger hinted at a possible Kosovo status conference in November or December.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Monday, October 08, 2007
"We, as a troika, do not rule out a conference-style meeting, but I don't think it will be a Contact Group event, it is more likely that the negotiating parties and the troika would meet," Ischinger said in an interview published on Sunday.
Ischinger said, however, that such a conference would make sense "only if we have enough negotiating material by the end of November".
"We will do everything possible to find a solution, but that means the existence of the will from both sides in the talks to find a compromise", he underlined.
The EU envoy also said that the focus of the troika process is "only on status" and added that the troika might contribute more actively in the process.
"We will not relieve the Serbian and Albanian negotiating teams of their basic responsibility. Their job is to find an agreement, the problem is theirs, and it is their job to reach a compromise and come up with a proposal," Ischinger explained.
The EU envoy said that the three diplomats could contribute through their own proposals for the Kosovo status, "at the same time noting common elements," coming from Belgrade and Pristina.
Asked whether Washington and Moscow showed more flexibility, Ishinger said a Contact Group document adopted on September 27 in New York contained "very specific language, stirring the process in a particular direction, speaking about the urgency of ending it."
