SLOVENIA WAITING FOR EU POSITION ON KOSOVO ICJ

C O N F I D E N T I A L LJUBLJANA 000395 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/02/2018 TAGS: PREL UNGA UN KV SI SUBJECT: SLOVENIA WAITING FOR EU POSITION ON KOSOVO ICJ RESOLUTION REF: SECSTATE 91908 Classified By: DCM Brad Freden, reasons 1.4(b,d) ¶1. (C) On September 2, DCM met with Ambassador Matjaz Kovacic, Head of International Organizations and Human Security Division in Slovenia's MFA, and Blazka Kepic, Minister Plenipotentiary in the MFA's Political Planning and Multilateral Policy Directorate, to encourage Slovenian opposition to Serbia's resolution on Kosovo (reftel). Kovacic said that Slovenia will wait to take a firm position on the resolution, allowing the French to take the lead on any common EU determination. He noted that Slovenia had "no problem" recognizing Kosovo's independence because the process followed international law, and a referral to the ICJ would not change anything. He added that although Serbia might get enough support in the General Assembly to refer the matter to the ICJ, such support "won't mean much" because recognition is a political, rather than legal, issue. ¶2. (C) Speaking personally, Kovacic speculated that the proposal could simply be Serbia's attempt to delay the inevitable. He claimed that it might be better to let Serbia "have [the resolution pass] just to get it over with." Kepic commented that Serbia might be hoping that the resolution will confer some legitimacy on Serbia's position because all UN countries have recognized the ICJ but not all have recognized Kosovo. Kovacic stated that it would be great if Belgrade could see EU integration as the way forward instead of constantly looking back. ¶3. (U) Although he will not make the final decision, Slovenian President Danilo Turk stated to the press on September 2 that Slovenia does not support Serbia's resolution because the ICJ is a legal forum, while Kosovo's status is a political issue. ¶4. (C) COMMENT: If the EU is unable to reach a common position on this issue--an outcome the Slovenians deem likely--we may want to reiterate our message either here or in New York in the leadup to the vote. GHAFARI