Jeremic: Serbia's mission impossible at UNGA
Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić said that Serbia's goal is to garner support for its resolution before the UN General Assembly, which would be an uphill battle.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, August 10, 2010
He said that even though it is almost impossible to achieve, the country would do everything in its power to convince all UN member-states that its stances are righteous.
Over the past week, the Serbian delegation, headed by Jeremić, held over 40 bilateral meetings in New York with permanent representatives of UN member-states, which were aimed stopping the number of recognitions of Kosovo's Kosovo's unilaterally proclaimed independence from growing, in spite of all the pressure that some of the most influential world powers are exerting on them to do so.
"We have informed our colleagues about the contents of the International Court of Justice's advisory opinion, which did not back Priština's unilateral secession from Serbia in any way," the Serbian Foreign Minister told the Tanjug new agency's correspondent in New York.
He said that the Serbian delegation acquainted the international representatives with the dangers of creating a precedent that would bring into question the territorial integrity of any multi-ethnic country in the world.
The meeting with diplomats also focused on the resolution Serbia submitted to the UN General Assembly on July 28, Jeremić said.
Jeremić said that Serbia has to remain calm and systematical, do everything in its power to avoid direct confrontation and a mass recognition of Kosovo's independence, which Priština has been announcing over the last couple weeks.
He dismissed as unfounded the accusations by the opposition parties in Serbia that by deciding to address the UN General Assembly, Serbia renounced its fight before the Security Council (SC), where it has the support of Russia and China, both of which are permanent UN Security Council members with the right of a veto.
"We have no intention of abandoning the safe haven of the UN Security Council. At last week's session we expressed our firm stance that Kosovo's future status can be discussed only within the framework of that UN body and in keeping with UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which clearly defines the manner in which this can be achieved," Jeremić said.
"Whatever the outcome of the voting, our stance before the UN General Assembly will not endanger our position at the SC in any way whatsoever. On the contrary, it can only strengthen our position," the minister stressed.
"Having in mind the little chance we have, every result we achieve will be seen as a proof of our perseverance in the defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity, which will show that supporting Serbia is worthwhile," Jeremić concluded
Over the past week, the Serbian delegation, headed by Jeremić, held over 40 bilateral meetings in New York with permanent representatives of UN member-states, which were aimed stopping the number of recognitions of Kosovo's Kosovo's unilaterally proclaimed independence from growing, in spite of all the pressure that some of the most influential world powers are exerting on them to do so.
"We have informed our colleagues about the contents of the International Court of Justice's advisory opinion, which did not back Priština's unilateral secession from Serbia in any way," the Serbian Foreign Minister told the Tanjug new agency's correspondent in New York.
He said that the Serbian delegation acquainted the international representatives with the dangers of creating a precedent that would bring into question the territorial integrity of any multi-ethnic country in the world.
The meeting with diplomats also focused on the resolution Serbia submitted to the UN General Assembly on July 28, Jeremić said.
Jeremić said that Serbia has to remain calm and systematical, do everything in its power to avoid direct confrontation and a mass recognition of Kosovo's independence, which Priština has been announcing over the last couple weeks.
He dismissed as unfounded the accusations by the opposition parties in Serbia that by deciding to address the UN General Assembly, Serbia renounced its fight before the Security Council (SC), where it has the support of Russia and China, both of which are permanent UN Security Council members with the right of a veto.
"We have no intention of abandoning the safe haven of the UN Security Council. At last week's session we expressed our firm stance that Kosovo's future status can be discussed only within the framework of that UN body and in keeping with UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which clearly defines the manner in which this can be achieved," Jeremić said.
"Whatever the outcome of the voting, our stance before the UN General Assembly will not endanger our position at the SC in any way whatsoever. On the contrary, it can only strengthen our position," the minister stressed.
"Having in mind the little chance we have, every result we achieve will be seen as a proof of our perseverance in the defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity, which will show that supporting Serbia is worthwhile," Jeremić concluded
