Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08LJUBLJANA451
2008-10-08 11:09:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ljubljana
Cable title:  

KOSOVO ICJ RESOLUTION: SLOVENIA WILL ABSTAIN, SAYS

Tags:  PREL UNGA EUN KV SI 
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VZCZCXRO1174
OO RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHLJ #0451 2821109
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 081109Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY LJUBLJANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6949
INFO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 0230
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L LJUBLJANA 000451 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/08/2018
TAGS: PREL UNGA EUN KV SI
SUBJECT: KOSOVO ICJ RESOLUTION: SLOVENIA WILL ABSTAIN, SAYS
FRENCH UNLIKELY TO ACHIEVE EU CONSENSUS

REF: A. SECSTATE 105796

B. LJUBLJANA 395

Classified By: DCM Brad Freden, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L LJUBLJANA 000451

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/08/2018
TAGS: PREL UNGA EUN KV SI
SUBJECT: KOSOVO ICJ RESOLUTION: SLOVENIA WILL ABSTAIN, SAYS
FRENCH UNLIKELY TO ACHIEVE EU CONSENSUS

REF: A. SECSTATE 105796

B. LJUBLJANA 395

Classified By: DCM Brad Freden, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) DCM met the morning of October 8 with MFA Director
General (P equivalent) Bogdan Benko to follow up on Ref B
demarche. Benko said the French Presidency proposal for a
common EU position was under silence procedure until 0900 in
New York. He said the proposal had three elements:
abstention, a common explanation of vote, and no amendments.
Benko said, however, that it is unlikely that all 27 member
states will agree to abstain. He cited in particular,
Greece, Spain and Romania as likely to vote "yes." He said
the UK planned to join the U.S. in voting "no."


2. (C) Absent a common EU position, Slovenia will abstain
despite our efforts to convince them to vote "no." Benko
explained that Slovenia wanted to preserve its influence with
Belgrade in order to continue pulling Serbia toward Europe.
He noted that Slovenia enjoys excellent relations with both
Kosovo and Serbia, which has allowed it to play a stabilizing
role in the Western Balkans. He cited as an example
Ljubljana's handling of Kosovo's independence declaration
during the Slovenian EU presidency. Noting that it could
take the ICJ "two years" to decide the case, he speculated
that referring Kosovo's independence to the ICJ could help
Tadic by temporarily taking the issue off the front burner of
Serbian domestic politics.


3. (C) Benko said that Slovenia was trying to play a
constructive role within the EU on this issue by, for
example, attempting to convince Spain to abstain rather than
vote "yes." He said the Slovenian explanation of vote would
note the importance of the ICJ in international law, but
would emphasize "the unique context that makes Kosovo's
independence sui generis."

GHAFARI