Stefan Lehne denies he's EU's new Kosovo representative
Political Director of the Austrian Foreign Ministry Stefan Lehne has denied reports about his appointment as the new EU envoy to Kosovo.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, March 22, 2011
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton will probably propose Austrian diplomat Stefan Lehne for the position of the new EU representative in Kosovo, the Pristina-based daily Express reported on Monday.
The office of the EU representative is currently being performed by Dutch diplomat Pieter Feith, whose mandate is due to expire on April 30.
However, Feith will remain the head of the International Civilian Office in Kosovo.
According to the daily, authorities in Brussels are considering the possibility of merging two European structures in Kosovo, i.e. EU representative and European Commission (EC) Liaison Office, under one roof.
Renzo Davidi, head of the EC Liaison Office so far, had farewell meetings with Kosovo officials, Prime Minister Hasim Taci and his deputy Hajredin Kuci.
Quoting its sources in Brussels, the daily claims that EU leaders have not yet reached an agreement on the title of the future reorganised EU mission in Kosovo, which would bring together EU representative, EC Liaison Office, EULEX and other EU structures.
The problem of merging and naming the future mode of EU presence in Kosovo has its roots in the fact that EU countries have not recognised Kosovo's unilaterally declared independence.
