Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica handed Serbia's proposals on the status of the southern Serbian region, which is mostly populated by ethnic Albanians, to officials during a meeting with a UN Security Council delegation to Belgrade and Kosovo Thursday.
Belgrade-based information agency Tanjug quoted Kostunica's advisor Aleksandar Simic as saying that Belgrade proposes fully devolving legislative, executive and judicial powers to Kosovo, except powers related to foreign, defense, customs and monetary policy.
The plan envisions minimal relations between Kosovo and Serbia and almost total independence from the rest of Serbia, but also opens up opportunities for the province to be represented in Serbia's Foreign Ministry and the national bank, without the right to independently maintain international relations or reach international agreements.
"If Kosovo Albanians wish to take part in Serbia's public, economic and political life, Pristina could have its representatives in many other governmental institutions," Simic said.
"Serbian forces must only protect and control Kosovo's external borders, while general demilitarization would reduce to zero the possibility of hostilities and violations of human rights. International forces will safeguard peace and security in the region, where they can remain for even up to twenty years until relations normalize between Albanians and Serbs," Simic said.
The Serbian proposal follows the failure of UN special envoy Martti Ahtisaari's plan for the region, which would lead to independence for Kosovo. The plan is rejected by Serbia.
During the first round of UN consultations on the Ahtisaari plan April 3, only four out of 15 permanent member-states at the UN Security Council voted for Kosovo's sovereignty.
Moscow proposed sending a UN mission to Kosovo and Belgrade before continuing talks on Kosovo to supervise compliance with a Security Council resolution, particularly on the status of Serb refugees who are still unable to return to their homes they fled to escape ethnic cleansing in the Kosovo conflict. The Security Council backed the initiative April 13.
Kosovo, which has a population of two million, has been a UN protectorate since NATO's 78-day bombing campaign against the former Yugoslavia ended a war between Serb forces and Muslim Albanian separatists in 1999.
