Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BELGRADE53
2008-01-11 17:47:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Belgrade
Cable title:  

Serbia's Kosovo Minister Pledges No Violence and No

Tags:  PREL PREF PGOV PHUM KV SR 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO0156
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBW #0053/01 0111747
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 111747Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2049
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BELGRADE 000053 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PREF PGOV PHUM KV SR
SUBJECT: Serbia's Kosovo Minister Pledges No Violence and No
Recognition

Ref: Schroeder-Brush 01/04/2008 Fax

Summary
-------

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BELGRADE 000053

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PREF PGOV PHUM KV SR
SUBJECT: Serbia's Kosovo Minister Pledges No Violence and No
Recognition

Ref: Schroeder-Brush 01/04/2008 Fax

Summary
--------------


1. (SBU) Serbia's Kosovo Minister Samardzic told UK, US, French,
German and Italian COMs on January 11 that Serbia was committed both
to no-violence and no-recognition of Kosovo. In response to a
UK-headed "Quint" demarche, Samardzic said EU and U.S. policy toward
Serbia was stuck in a Milosevic-era time warp, but nevertheless
Serbia was committed to a negotiated Kosovo settlement. Until that
time, which he estimated would take one to four more years, Serbia
would continue to treat the "loyal Serbian citizen" population
(which includes Gorani and Roma),as Serbian citizens and attend to
their needs as a responsible government should. End Summary.

UK Demarche
--------------


2. (SBU) On January 11, UK Ambassador Wordsworth led a Quint (UK,
U.S., Italy, France and Germany) demarche to Serbia's Kosovo
Minister Samardzic protesting the opening of the Kosovo Ministry
Office in North Mitrovica without UNMIK approval. Wordsworth
introduced the demarche requesting that the contents not be made
public and that Samardzic understand the demarche as an effort to
cooperate with Serbia on Kosovo status. Text of UK Demarche
follows:

Begin Text:

-- We recognise your objections to the whole idea of independence.
But be clear: it is going to happen. This is not about 'punishing
Serbia', or 'taking territory away' from Serbia. It is, in our
view, the only possible way forward now, after the unprecedented
crimes of the Milosevic regime in 1998/99 which, by their scale and
because they were undertaken by the Serbian state, created a wholly
new situation;

-- You may not agree with our view - but you should not publicly
cast aspersions on our motives, or doubt our seriousness to see this
through;

-- Despite our differences, we assume that we share some common
objectives:

* we want to avoid any step, by either side, which would escalate
tension, putting livelihoods or even lives at risk;
* we want minority communities to stay, and flourish;
* we want the whole region to make progress towards the EU, to bring

lasting stability and prosperity;

-- Supervising Kosovo's independence, in the interests of Kosovo's
minority communities and wider regional stability, is a substantial
contribution on the part of the EU and US, which will last many
years at great cost to our taxpayers. The December 2007 European
Council confirmed the EU's readiness to launch the ESDP mission, and
to contribute to the ICO;

-- Serbia, as a country that sees its future as a member of the EU,
will have to come to terms with this. Serbia cannot simultaneously
seek rapid progress towards EU membership, including the early
granting of candidate status, yet impose bilateral sanctions on
trade, power supplies etc to Kosovo which will be destabilising
regionally. You cannot simply refuse to cooperate with the EU's
efforts. Your economic future, in particular your ability to
attract investment from EU countries and the US, depends on your
continuing to move towards integration;

-- For our part, we recognise that domestic political realities
might place some restraints on the ability of the Government of
Serbia to cooperate with the international community over Kosovo.
Given some good will on your part, we are willing to develop 'work
arounds' that will make it possible for day-to-day cooperation to
continue;

-- Specifically, we are willing to work with you to support the
co-ordinated and transparent development of links between Serbia and
K-Serb municipalities in the areas of their competencies, which
would help to reassure those communities and encourage them to stay,
including the provision by Serbia of financial and technical
assistance, expert personnel and equipment;

-- In return we expect cooperation from you in avoiding steps to
which we would have to respond - e.g. the uncoordinated creation of
Serbian Government presences on Kosovo territory, specific actions
that would publicly challenge our view of status, challenges to the
freedom of movement of international presences in Kosovo, including
KFOR, the EU Mission and the ICO, or unilateral attempts to conduct
local elections.

-- Existing Serbian presences - such as the Kosovo Ministry office

BELGRADE 00000053 002 OF 003


in Kosovska Mitrovica - must be re-established on a mutually agreed
footing as a matter of urgency. UNMIK has already made clear to you
its concern that this office was not established in accordance with
UNSCR 1244. The Government of Serbia needs to formally request a
change with UNMIK. The office should be closed if it does not have
UNMIK permission to operate, and Serbia should not open further such
offices elsewhere in Kosovo without UNMIK's approval.

End Text.

Time Warp Politics
--------------


3. (SBU) While keeping his tone cordial, Samardzic accused the
United States and the EU of "time-warp" politics -- treating Serbia
as if it were still in the Milosevic era. "In spite of all our
advances in democratic and economic reform and good-neighborly
relations, you treat us the same way you did pre-1999." In
contrast, Samardzic countered, Kosovo under UNMIK had stagnated and
was now ineptly governed by a criminal elite, assisted by UNMIK.
Serbia was not the problem, Samardzic insisted, the problem was the
inertia of bad policies.

No Recognition, Ever (for now)
--------------


4. (SBU) Samardzic said the Serbian Government would never, ever,
recognize Kosovo's independence and that the Troika process had not
been a real negotiation since one side - the Albanians - already had
been promised their desired result. Since there was no real
negotiated settlement, Serbia would continue to consider Kosovo a
constituent part of Serbia and attend to its citizens accordingly.
Serbia would be practical in this approach, however, and attend to
the needs of those who considered themselves Serbian citizens, which
in addition to Serbs, included Gorani (a small Muslim/Slav group of
less than 100,000 living in the mountains on the
Albanian/Kosovo/Macedonia border) and Roma. As a practical matter,
Serbia would not attempt to impose its citizens' services on the
Albanian population. "The Albanians will be the first to understand
Serbia's actions, they have lived 10 years under parallel
institutions, and it's better for them that way."


5. (SBU) The North Mitrovica Office of the Kosovo Ministry,
Samardzic said, was the legal heir to the Coordination Center
established in 2001 with UNMIK consent. This office was now
subordinate to the Kosovo Ministry but its legal status had not
changed, he said, therefore there was no need to request permission
from UNMIK to establish the office.


6. (SBU) In response to the Italian Ambassador's question about
whether Serbia's goal was a hard partition, Samardzic responded that
the current situation was not the end of the story. "We couldn't
negotiate when the other side already knew it would get what it
wanted." Samardzic said Serbia remained interested in a negotiated
settlement and would continue to negotiate with the Kosovar
Albanians to obtain a mutually acceptable result, which could take
"anywhere for one to four years."

Punitive Actions
--------------


7. (SBU) In response to the demarche's language on possible use of
Serbian "sanctions" in the event of a declaration of independence,
Samardzic said, "the only ones talking about punitive actions are
the EU and the United States, we have no interest in punitive
actions, they would only hurt us." Specifically addressing concerns
about trade, Samardzic countered, "we had free trade and open
borders, until UNMIK arrived and established a customs regime."
Samardzic reminded that maintaining free movement of goods and
people was a centerpiece of Serbia's "substantial autonomy" model.
The biggest challenge in the interim, Samardzic said was Kosovar
participation in international organizations, which Serbia would not
tolerate. Serbia remained committed to non-violence in any case,
Samardzic reiterated.

Comment
--------------


8. (SBU) Though Samardzic, predictably, rejected both independence
and criticism of the Northern Mitrovica office, he claimed he and
the Serbian Government were committed to non-violence and were not
considering punitive measures against Kosovo. Samardzic said he
welcomed future such discussions with the Quint. End Comment.

MUNTER







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