KOSOVO STATUS NEGOTIATIONS: SEPTEMBER 8-9 TALKS MAKE LITTLE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENNA 002731

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE


SIPDIS


STATE FOR EUR/SCE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM UNMIK SR YI AU

SUBJECT: KOSOVO STATUS NEGOTIATIONS: SEPTEMBER 8-9 TALKS MAKE LITTLE
PROGRESS

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THIS CABLE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. PLEASE HANDLE
ACCORDINGLY.


1. (U) THIS CABLE IS AN UPDATE FROM THE U.S. LIAISON OFFICER IN THE
OFFICE OF THE UN SPECIAL ENVOY FOR KOSOVO STATUS (UNOSEK).

SUMMARY
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2. (SBU) DESPITE A MORE POSITIVE SPIN IN THE MEDIA, TECHNICAL TALKS
ON KOSOVO HELD IN VIENNA SEPTEMBER 8 AND 9 MADE LITTLE PROGRESS.
THE MEETINGS CONFIRMED THAT THERE IS NOW VIRTUALLY NO MOVEMENT BY
EITHER SIDE ON THE ISSUES OF DECENTRALIZATION, PROTECTION OF
CULTURAL HERITAGE AND COMMUNITY RIGHTS. THE MEETINGS WERE CHAIRED
BY DEPUTY SPECIAL ENVOY ALBERT ROHAN WITH THE BELGRADE DELEGATION
LED BY SLOBODAN SAMARDZIC AND ALEXANDAR SIMIC AND PRISTINA LED BY
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER LUFTI AZIRI AND UNITY TEAM MEMBER VETTON
SURROI.

MEETINGS WITH SPECIAL ENVOY AHTISAARI
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3. (SBU) PRIOR TO THE TWO DAYS OF NEGOTIATIONS, EACH SIDE HELD A
BRIEF PRE-MEETING WITH SPECIAL ENVOY MARTTI AHTISAARI. THE BELGRADE
DELEGATION STRESSED TO THE SPECIAL ENVOY THE NEED TO SLOW DOWN THE
NEGOTIATING PROCESS IN ORDER TO FIND MUTUAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE
TWO PARTIES. AHTISAARI TOLD THE BELGRADE DELEGATION THAT UNOSEK IS
FOLLOWING THE TIMEFRAME AS OUTLINED BY THE CONTACT GROUP (CG),AND
IT IS THE MEMBERS OF THE CG THAT BELGRADE SHOULD TALK TO IF THEY
WISH TO CHANGE THE TIME FRAME. IN ITS MEETING WITH SE AHTISAARI,
THE PRISTINA DELEGATION EMPHASIZED THAT THE UNITY TEAM WAS UNDER
INTENSE POLITICAL PRESSURE FROM THE ASSEMBLY AND POLITICAL PARTIES
AND THAT THEY WOULD BE UNABLE TO COMPROMISE MORE WITHOUT SINCERE
POLITICAL COSTS BACK IN PRISTINA.

DECENTRALIZATION
--------------


4. (SBU) TALKS ON DECENTRALIZATION CENTERED SPECIFICALLY ON THE
MUNICIPAL COMPETENCIES FOR NEW SERB-MAJORITY MUNICIPALITIES.
NEITHER SIDE MOVED OFF ITS POSITIONS REGARDING ASYMMETRIC
DECENTRALIZATION, WHICH WOULD GRANT ADDITIONAL COMPETENCIES FOR
SERB-MAJORITY MUNICIPALITIES COMPARED TO ALBANIAN-MAJORITY
MUNICIPALITIES. BELGRADE CONTINUES TO INSIST ON ADDITIONAL
COMPETENCIES FOR ALL SERB MUNICIPALITIES, PARTICULARLY IN THE REALM
OF HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION. PRISTINA CONTINUES TO WANT TO
ENUMERATE WHICH MUNICIPALITIES CAN HAVE ADDITIONAL COMPETENCIES, AND
ONLY IN SPECIAL CASES. OUTSTANDING ISSUES INVOLVE THE UNIVERSITY OF
MITROVICA, TEXTBOOK/CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT, AND THE NUMBER OF
HOSPITALS WITHIN SERB-MAJORITY MUNICIPALITIES. WITH REGARDS TO
CROSS-BOUNDARY COOPERATION, PRISTINA OBJECTED TO THE DIRECT LINKS OF
MUNICIPALITIES COOPERATING WITH GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN SERBIA.
(NOTE: THIS IS A STEP BACKWARDS FOR PRISTINA, WHOM UNOSEK PREVIOUSLY
BELIEVED HAD AGREED TO THIS CONCEPT. END NOTE.) MINOR PROGRESS WAS
ACHIEVED WITH BELGRADE AGREEING THAT FUNDING FOR PARTNERSHIPS COULD
BE CHANNELED THROUGH MUNICIPAL BUDGETS. PRISTINA AGREED THAT, FOR
PRACTICAL MATTERS, THERE COULD BE DIRECT RELATIONS BETWEEN
PARTNERSHIPS AND INSTITUTIONS OUTSIDE OF KOSOVO.

CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS HERITAGE
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5. (SBU) DISCUSSIONS FOCUSED ON THE DELINEATION OF THE PROTECTIVE
ZONES; THE TERMS OF REFERENCE OF A MONITORING AND IMPLEMENTATION
COMMITTEE REGARDING THE CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS SITES; AND THE RETURN
OF ARTIFACTS. UNOSEK PROPOSED SOME REVISIONS TO FOUR PROTECTIVE
ZONES DISCUSSED EARLIER AND THE ADDITION OF PROTECTIVE ZONES FOR
NOVO BRDO, SOCANICA, ZVECAN FORTRESS AND GAZIMESTAN. PRISTINA
PROPOSED MINOR ADJUSTMENTS TO MOST PROPOSALS, BUT AIRED MAJOR
OBJECTIONS TO THE SUGGESTION TO HAVE A LARGE PROTECTIVE ZONE AROUND
GAZIMESTAN. BELGRADE PRESENTED A MORE PRECISE PLAN (DEFINED TO THE
LEVEL OF CADASTRAL ZONE) FOR ITS PROPOSAL OF 39 PROTECTIVE ZONES,
TOTALING SOME 5200 HECTARES. BELGRADE CONTINUED TO EXPLICITLY LINK
THE RETURN TO PRISTINA OF THE ARTIFACTS, TAKEN FROM THE MUSEUM OF
KOSOVO IN 1999, WITH AN OVERALL AGREEMENT ON CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS
HERITAGE. THE PRISTINA DELEGATION REPEATEDLY REFERRED TO THIS
LINKAGE AS "BLACKMAIL." WITH REGARD TO THE MONITORING AND
IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE, BELGRADE WANTS TO ENLARGE THE
PARTICIPATION TO INCLUDE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MINISTRY OF RELIGION
AND CULTURE AS WELL AS TWO BELGRADE INSTITUTIONS DEALING WITH THE
PROTECTION OF CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS HERITAGE. AS FAR AS SECURITY
FOR THE SITES, BOTH SIDES WISH TO SEE KFOR PROTECTION FOR AS LONG AS
NECESSARY. ROHAN INFORMED THAT UNOSEK WAS IN TOUCH WITH NATO
REGARDING THIS ISSUE, ADDING THAT IT WAS UNOSEK'S UNDERSTANDING THAT
THE CURRENT LEVEL OF PROTECTION OF THE SITES WOULD MAINTAINED "AS

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LONG AS NECESSARY," BASED ON THE SECURITY ASSESSMENTS/CONSULTATIONS
WITH THE PROPOSED INTERNATIONAL MONITORING COMMITTEE.

COMMUNITY RIGHTS
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6. (SBU) COMMUNITY RIGHTS TALKS FOCUSED ON THE REPRESENTATION OF
THE COMMUNITIES IN THE KEY INSTITUTIONS (ASSEMBLY, GOVERNMENT AND
JUDICIARY),AND OTHER MECHANISMS FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF
THE COMMUNITIES (VITAL INTEREST MECHANISM, OMBUDSPERSON AND THE
COMMUNITY CONSULTATIVE COUNCIL). THE PRISTINA DELEGATION REITERATED
ITS POSITIONS ON THESE ISSUES, AS OUTLINED IN PRISTINA'S REVISED
DOCUMENT, ENTITLED THE "FRAMEWORK FOR THE PROTECTION OF RIGHTS OF
COMMUNITIES IN KOSOVO," WHICH WAS RELEASED AT THE END OF AUGUST AND
WHICH UNOSEK HAD PREVIOUSLY DELIVERED TO BELGRADE.


7. (SBU) THE BELGRADE DELEGATION NOTED THAT MANY OF THE ISSUES
RELATING TO COMMUNITY RIGHTS WERE NOT STATUS-NEUTRAL AND COULD NOT
BE DISCUSSED IN THIS FORMAT OF "TECHNICAL TALKS." IT THEN PRESENTED
A NUMBER OF PRINCIPLED OBJECTIONS TO THE TEXT OF PRISTINA: I) THE
FRAMEWORK PROPOSED BY PRISTINA ASSUMED IN MANY INSTANCES THAT KOSOVO
WOULD BE INDEPENDENT IN FUTURE; II) PRISTINA'S PROPOSALS WERE SEEN
TO BE TOO MUCH FOCUSED ON INDIVIDUAL RATHER THAN COLLECTIVE RIGHTS;
III) THE DEFINITION OF COMMUNITIES REFERRED TO "MINORITIES," WHILE
BELGRADE WOULD NOT ACCEPT THAT SERBS WERE CONSIDERED A MINORITY
WITHIN SERBIA; IV) THE COMMUNITY RIGHTS LISTED IN THE PRISTINA
DOCUMENT SHOULD BE GUARANTEED BY THE CONSTITUTION, NOT MERELY BY
CONSTITUTIONAL LAWS; V) A NUMBER OF RIGHTS FOR THE COMMUNITIES WERE
OF A TEMPORARY NATURE; AND, VI ) IN SOME RESPECTS, THE RIGHTS AS
OUTLINED BY PRISTINA FELL SHORT OF THE CURRENT CONSTITUTIONAL
FRAMEWORK. BELGRADE ALSO FOCUSED ON THE NEED FOR BETTER ENFORCEMENT
OF PROTECTIONS CURRENTLY ON THE BOOKS AND STRESSED THE NEED FOR
ADEQUATE FISCAL RESOURCES TO APPROPRIATELY FUND SOME OF PRISTINA'S
PROPOSALS, SUCH AS THE PUBLISHING OF ALL PUBLIC DOCUMENTS IN BOTH
ALBANIAN AND SERBIAN LANGUAGES.


8. (SBU) BELGRADE OFFERED FEW PRAGMATIC PROPOSALS. INSTEAD,
BELGRADE REITERATED ITS INTEREST IN SEEING AN AD HOC "TWO CHAMBER"
SYSTEM, UNDER WHICH KOSOVO SERBS IN KOSOVO'S ASSEMBLY WOULD
REPRESENT THE KOSOVO SERB COMMUNITY IN A SEPARATE CHAMBER. UNDER
THIS SYSTEM, ALL MATTERS OF VITAL INTEREST WOULD GO TO THIS SECOND
CHAMBER IN WHICH A MAJORITY OF ITS MEMBERS WOULD BE REQUIRED TO PASS
SUCH LEGISLATION. IF THIS WERE NOT POSSIBLE, THE LEGISLATION WOULD
GO TO A "SPECIAL PANEL" AND, AS A LAST RESORT, TO THE INTERNATIONAL
REPRESENTATIVE, WHO WOULD HAVE THE FINAL WORD. UNDER THIS SETUP, THE
KOSOVO SERB COMMUNITY WOULD BE TREATED ON A PAR WITH THE MAJORITY
KOSOVO ALBANIANS. BOTH THE UNOSEK TEAM AND PRISTINA DELEGATION
QUESTIONED THE PRACTICALITY OF SUCH A COMPLICATED MECHANISM, AND
NOTED THAT A DOUBLE MAJORITY MECHANISM (REQUIRING A MAJORITY VOTE
WITHIN THE MINORITY) FOR ALL LEGISLATION AFFECTING THE VITAL
INTERESTS OF KOSOVO SERBS COULD BE ESTABLISHED WITHIN A
SINGLE-CHAMBER KOSOVO ASSEMBLY. BELGRADE ALSO CONTINUED TO OBJECT TO
ANY PRISTINA PROPOSAL THAT WOULD REDUCE THE LEVEL OF SERB AUTONOMY
IN THE JUSTICE AREA. AT THE END OF THE TALKS BELGRADE INDICATED THAT
IT WOULD PREPARE ITS OWN PAPER AND SHARE IT WITH ALL PARTIES IN THE
FORESEEABLE FUTURE.

NEXT STEPS
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9. (SBU) THERE WILL BE A MEETING IN VIENNA ON SEPTEMBER 15 WITH
BOTH PARTIES TO DISCUSS THE DELINEATION OF NEW MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES.
NO OTHER MEETINGS ARE CURRENTLY PLANNED AT THIS STAGE.
MCCAW