U.S. asks for evidence on organ trafficking

He added that all evidence on human organ trafficking in Kosovo indicated in the report of the Council of Europe (CoE) should be presented to the authorized bodies.

"The U.S. takes all plausible claims on criminal activities very seriously. All evidence and sources mentioned in the report should be delivered to the authorized bodies in order for a detailed and complete investigation to be carried out," Crowley stressed at a press conference.

When asked if the U..S can confirm, based on its own information, the allegations on human organ trafficking in Kosovo, Crowley said that the Hague Tribunal conducted an investigation into the issue, but decided not to react.

"There are tribunals, such as the ICTY (Hague), which have for years been active and successful in investigations and war crimes trials. The UN and ICTY investigated the charges of organ trafficking in 2004 and decided then not to take any action," Crowley underscored.

He added that the his country "will certainly continue encouraging" the cooperation in further investigations.

The Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) today adopted the report prepared by Special Rapporteur Dick Marty, in which Kosovo Albanian outgoing prime minister Hashim Thaci is qualified as the leader of a group engaged in organ, drugs and weapons trafficking.

In view of the COE report's assessment that, in order to recognize Kosovo's secession, one part of the international community tried to achieve stability at any cost, Crowley said that Washington recognized Kosovo "when it became clear that there was no other sustainable option, and that the U.S. is now working on improving the relations between Kosovo and its neighbors".

Kosovo Albanians: Marty report is "racist"

Acting Kosovo President Jakup Krasnici said on Wednesday that the draft report by Council of Europe Rapporteur Dick Marty is "racist".

He also protested against claims that Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci was a leader in the trafficking of body parts of Kosovo Serbs following the 1999 conflict in Kosovo.

"This draft report is nothing but another in a series of irresponsible statements and slander contained in the book by former Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) Carla del Ponte," Krasnici said.

In Albania, which has been named as the country where kidnapped Kosovo Serb and other civilians had their vital organs removed, Prime Minister Sali Berisha said on Wednesday that accusations against Thaci were false and unfounded.

"This is a completely unfounded report, without any evidence or proof, which shows the clear political background of the author and constitutes a flagrant abuse of Council of Europe powers," Berisha said quoted by the Albanian language media in Pristina