NEW YORK-MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Dmitry Kosyrev) - Russia has attained its goal: after a ministerial meeting in the UN headquarters in New York, the informal Contact Group on the Balkans decided that the Kosovo Albanians (Kosovars) must resume negotiations with Serbia.
The talks were held the next day at the UN.
The Contact Group is composed of the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia - influential countries that have a significant interest in developments in the Balkans.
Kosovo, officially still a province of Serbia, has been a UN protectorate since 1999 in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1244. One of that resolution's stated goals is to facilitate "a political process designed to determine Kosovo's future status, taking into account the Rambouillet accords."
The Contact Group was set up to ensure the fulfillment of that resolution, and it is thanks to Russia, the European Union and the United States that talks were resumed after two years of procrastination.
Many familiar with the Kosovars' attitude may consider the latest UN efforts useless. The Kosovars want unconditional independence, and are unwilling to compromise. Even though Serbian President Boris Tadic has recently offered Kosovo broad autonomy and special rights within Serbia, based on the principles of the EU, the Kosovars remain unmoved.
Russian diplomats worked hard to break the illusion of "inevitable independence" for Kosovo. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told this writer: "When individual members of the trio say publicly that Kosovo is destined to become independent irrespective of the talks' outcome, this only encourages one of the two sides in the talks to reject concessions."
It seems that the Russians have succeeded. According to information from the closed meeting of the Contact Group, its participants insisted that Kosovo and Serbia hammer out a compromise, and made them equally responsible for the outcome of the talks, in line with Resolution 1244.
Why is Russia doing this? Though the United States is the loudest proponent of "inevitable independence", the other members of the Contact Group at least think the same, even if they are not prepared to say so in public. Russia is the "one man standing", Henry Fonda like, against a unanimous verdict - a source of great irritation to the group's other members.
To decide the future of Kosovo, the UN Security Council will have to approve a new resolution, which Russia could veto. This makes agreement essential. The situation is putting serious strain on Russia's relations with Europe and the United States.
The Europeans say that the problem of nations splitting into increasingly smaller states can be dealt with by a supranational organization, such as the EU. In plain English, the EU intends to apply the principles of European integration to solve the problems of Serbs and Albanians. Does Russia have a better idea? Or is it just trying to undermine the united Europe?
Russia has little to gain from its current policy. It is difficult to see how keeping Kosovo inside Serbia on paper (for it will still be de facto independent) will further Russia's commercial or political interests.
Nor are Russia's relations with Europe are at issue. Rather, at stake are the very principles of clearing up the consequences of conflicts such as the one between Serbia and Kosovo.
Palestinian independence has been on the international agenda for more than 50 years, yet nobody says it should be abandoned because Palestine consists of two enclaves located in Israel, which cannot exist independently.
All countries agree that the two sides in the Middle Eastern conflict must come to terms on the issue, and that the international community should help them do this.
This is one of the fundamental principles of both international law and the United Nations (which are almost synonymous, because international law is formulated in the UN). The Iraq war and the situation in Kosovo are testament to the fact that when any country tries to act contrary to the UN, or without its mandate, it will only lead to more problems.
It does not matter who threw the first stone. Albanians tried for years to push Serbs from their land, using subversion and armed force to attain their goal. Serbs are guilty of clumsy attempts to stop them, which only led to more bloodshed. One way or another, the two sides now have to agree on the future of the province.
My talks with direct participants in the Contact Group's meetings show that Moscow did not demand that Kosovo remain part of Serbia; it will accept a decision that suits both sides as a voluntary compromise.
My interlocutors could not find any parallels to the Kosovo situation that could affect Russia's immediate future. Had Russia wanted to expand its territory by incorporating breakaway republics, such as South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Transdnestr, it would have welcomed Kosovo's independence as a precedent.
I repeat, there are no parallels; but if they appear, Russia and other countries should know what principles they should abide by - and hence what actions they should and can take.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.
