Serbia Urges Security Council to Prevent Kosovo From Seceding Sunday
科索沃将宣布独立塞国促UN行动
Serbia's Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic told the UN Security Counci, Thursday, Belgrade will do everything in its power short of resorting to violence to prevent the breakaway province of Kosovo from seceding. The Council met at the request of Serbia Thursday in anticipation of Kosovo's expected declaration of independence Sunday.
Jeremic says Serbia will use its diplomatic, economic, and political clout to undermine Kosovo's independence plans. But the Serbian foreign minister says Belgrade will stick to previous pledges not to use force to keep the province and its majority ethnic Albanian population from seceding on Sunday.
Belgrade has offered Kosovo autonomy but says independence violates international law and interferes with Serbia's sovereignty.
贝尔格莱德表示可以让科索沃自治,但是说科索沃宣布独立违犯了国际法,并侵犯了了塞尔维亚的主权。
Serbia and its chief ally, Russia, say Kosovo's independence will unleash a wave of secessionist bids from dissatisfied territories across the globe.
塞尔维亚和其主要盟国俄罗斯都表示,科索沃的独立将在全球范围内引发一系列的独立浪潮。
Jeremic says he believes a majority of Security Council members favor continued negotiations.
耶雷米奇说,他相信,安理会的大多数成员国都倾向于支持双方之间继续协商的策略。
"Serbia is willing to work to find a compromise solution, to find a solution that is going to be acceptable for both us and the Kosovar Albanians," said Vuk Jeremic. "Such solutions are possible. This is not the first time in history that it is difficult to find a solution. But it would be first time in history that the international community declares it is too hard so, therefore, let's not continue looking for one."
After a series of failed negotiations on the issue, the Security Council declared itself hopelessly deadlocked in December. Russia and Serbia maintain the Council could still take last minute actions to prevent Kosovo's secession. But most western nations are expected to recognize an independent Kosovo.
The United Nations has administered the breakaway province since June 1999 after NATO troops bombed Serbia into withdrawing its troops from the province following an ethnic cleansing campaign. British ambassador John Sawers says there is no prospect of the two sides reaching an agreement.
"As far as the United Kingdom is concerned, Kosovo is unique because of the circumstances in which it came under UN administration in 1999 and the fact that there is a mandatory Security Council resolution, 1244, which calls for a political process leading to a final status for the territory," said John Sawers.