Kosovo officials say Mitrovica cannot be modelled after Brcko

12/08/2008

PRISTINA, Kosovo -- Officials and analysts on Monday (August 11th) rejected a suggestion that the Brcko model from Bosnia and Herzegovina could be applied to northern Kosovo. The government says such an effort could destabilise Kosovo, while the president's office said any proposal that conflicts with former UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari's plan is unacceptable. Former EU special envoy to Kosovo Wolfgang Petritsch suggested in a BBC interview Monday that the Brcko model could be used in Kosovo to temporarily resolve the Mitrovica issue.

In other news Monday, UNMIK announced plans to slash its number of employees by about by 70%, or around 1,400 people, as part of the restructuring of the international presence in Kosovo. UNMIK spokesman Alexander Ivanko stressed, however, that staffing in the northern part of Kosovo, predominantly populated by Serbs, will not shrink, as that requires separate discussion in New York.

Also Monday, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said Malaysia has decided to temporarily suspend the process of recognising Kosovo's independence. The announcement followed a visit Jeremic made to Kuala Lumpur. He travels next to Singapore. (Koha Ditore, Kosovalive, Zeri, Lajm, Express, Politika - 12/08/08; RTK, Kohavizion, Beta, B92, Tanjug, Studio B - 11/08/08)