Jeremic: ICJ opinion opportunity for compromise

He said that despite the setbacks on the ground, "a new, more promising moment" is being approached, and expressed belief that the opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will create an unprecedented opportunity to achieve a strategic compromise between Serbs and Albanians.

"This year can be the year of our shared success. I want to assure this Council that Serbia stands ready to flexibly engage in all sincerity, for our intent is neither to freeze the conflict, nor to triumph or to subjugate," Jeremic said.

The UN Security Council session was dedicated to the situation in Kosovo, which, as Jeremic said earlier, "could be the last one before the ICJ gives its advisory opinion".

Serbia has asked the highest UN court to give its opinion on the legality of the 2008 ethnic Albanian unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence.

"This is a fact we all have an obligation to take very seriously. The judges' work should be allowed to run its course, unhindered by political pressures, such as further recognitions of Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence," the minister underscored.

Jeremic reminded that even two years after the unilateral proclamation of Kosovo's independence, and regardless of different views, the status of the southern Serbian province remains bitterly disputed.

"Pristina's unilateral declaration of independence has clearly divided the world and brought into question the fundamental tenets of the contemporary international system. It has neither contributed to Balkan stability, nor enhanced regional cooperation," he stated.

The only way forward, as he assessed, is to bring about a just compromise that balances the desires and interests of the two peoples.

"This is the goal of Serbia, and we will pursue it until it is achieved - for no stopping short of agreement will ever be justified," Jeremic pointed out.

On the other hand, waiting around for an indeterminate period in the vague hope that one side will eventually give-in is a recipe for freezing Kosovo's limbo, the minister warned, adding that this is most certainly not what any responsible stakeholder wants.

Jeremic reminded that a substantial majority of UN member states and the Security Council have stood firm against efforts to impose the forcible partition of Serbia, and reiterated Belgrade's stand that it will never recognize the unilateral declaration of Kosovo independence.

"The principled position of Serbia's democracy remains set in stone: we will never recognize the unilateral declaration of independence. We will continue to vigorously defend our position in a non-confrontational manner, using all diplomatic means at the disposal of a peaceful sovereign state," Jeremic said.

Speaking about the situation on the ground, Jeremic pointed out that it is critical that the Security Council keeps supporting UNMIK as "a crucial pillar of peace and stability" in the province.

"We deeply appreciate the constructive approach by the UN and organizations that operate under its overall authority, such as EULEX," the minister said.

Pointing out that disagreements on status must not impede the ability to act in concert on resolving practical issues, Jeremic reminded that Kosovo's ethnic Albanian authorities have on numerous occasions failed to embrace pragmatic, status neutral engagement, notably in the rule of law area.

Pristina publicly rejected the agreement on how to move forward rapidly on the judiciary issue, in particular as it affects the northern Kosovska Mitrovica courthouse, which was reached during the March 2 visit by the Head of EULEX, Yves de Kermabon, to Belgrade, Jeremic said, and warned that the the UN Secretary General's report unfortunately downplays a number of growing challenges in Kosovo.

He pointed to the case regarding Pristina's Minister of Transport and Communication Fatmir Limaj, who has been under investigation for "money laundering, organized crime, misappropriations of office, fraud in office, and soliciting bribes," as well as to the fact that the EULEX chief prosecutor has hinted that Kosovo Premier Hasim Thaci had strongly discouraged him from moving forward.

The foreign minister also reminded that War Veterans Association of the (so-called) Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) made threats against EULEX after the recent arrest of former KLA commander Sabit Geci, who is charged with crimes related to organ harvesting committed on ethnic Serb civilians in the well-known "Yellow House" in neighboring Albania.

Jeremic reminded that several Serbian officials were illegitimately expelled by Pristina under armed escort, and that at around the same time, unilateral force was used by a Kosovo special police unit on Serbian mobile and fixed telephony, disrupting the ability of Kosovo Serbs to communicate beyond their enclaves.

This is a serious breach of contemporary humanitarian norms, Jeremic underlined, warning that this sort of unilateralism must not happen ever again.

The precarious state of Serbian patrimony also remains a deeply troubling part of the reality on the ground in Kosovo, and the report by the UN Secretary general highlights a number of disturbing incidents, including church vandalism, graveyard desecration, looting of icons and other relics, he said.

Jeremic, however, noted that the report does not mention the lack of progress in reversing the outrageous decision to pave-over with concrete the remains of the twice-destroyed Serbian church in the center of the town of Djakovica.

"These illustrative examples are not isolated incidents. They cause, result from and reinforce each other - all at the same time. They are an integral part of the post UDI-reality on the ground that directly affects the return of the 205,835 expelled Kosovo Serbs registered by the UNHCR," Jeremic stressed, pointing out that last year, only a few hundred Kosovo Serbs had returned to their homes.

"This amounts to less than one half of one percent, a staggering figure. It is a failure of monumental proportions that must urgently be addressed," Jeremic concluded.