By Xinhua
United Nations : Russia has dismissed the latest version of a West-sponsored draft Security Council resolution on Kosovo.
There are many uncertainties in the draft, including those concerning the issues of the negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo’s ethnic Albanians, the return of the Serb refugees and the implementation of Security Council resolution 1244, Russia’s UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters Monday after attending a council meeting on Kosovo.
He said Russia believes that the cosponsors’ intention to keep some “grey areas” in the draft “is a wrong track.
“It will only create more problems and more friction and even more conflicts in the future if all those things remain uncertain.”
He said he was pleased that the cosponsors said they were going to consult among themselves and to clarify the text.
“I hope the clarity will go to the core of the matter,” he stressed.
Churkin elaborated by saying that the Security Council must encourage the parties to continue “serious negotiations” without the imposition of a deadline, and the council must continue to exercise its responsibilities.
“There can be no uncertainties about the role of the Security Council after the end of the period of negotiations,” he said.
China’s UN Ambassador Wang Guangya said there are still differences among council members on the draft, which was circulated by the US and its European allies Friday.
“I believe there are still differences among council members, so definitely I think we need more consultations within the council and also outside the council,” Wang added.
French envoy Jean-marc de la Sabliere said the new draft marks “a final attempt” to “try to reach an agreement of all members of the council.
“We went as far as we could to accommodate the concerns of some members of the council,” he noted, acknowledging, “not all members of the council could agree on it.
“There is a lot in the text that can be improved, but the concept, the core of the text cannot be changed.”
The revised UN draft calls for more talks between Serbia and its breakaway province of Kosovo but drops a reference to automatic independence if the talks fail. The new draft said that the Security Council stands ready to review the issue after the 120-day period of negotiations.
The text, based on an earlier version put forward by the West late last month, also said that the Kosovo issue should not be taken as “a precedent” by the Security Council.