Mr. President,

Mr. Secretary-General,

Respected High Commissioner Arbour,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honored to address this esteemed body of the United Nations system—the system that in today’s tumultuous world is still the crucible of human hope for peace and security, the focal point of international trust, and the center of our confidence in the coming of a future that aligns our universal values with our national interests.

I am privileged to represent a country—the Republic of Serbia—that believes, with firmness of spirit and strength of conviction, in the principles that have brought us here, in this jubilee year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to celebrate and reflect on the central place of human rights in the world today.

Human rights are essential for achieving the progressive, peaceful development of mankind. They enable us to embrace the global diversity of views that makes us stronger as a world community, on the basis of equality and mutual respect. And they endow us with the ability to promote not only the peaceful resolution of disputes, but the reconciliation of peoples throughout the world.

That is why the Republic of Serbia will make a voluntary contribution, in line with our financial capabilities, to the budget of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Excellencies,

The struggle to instill a sense of respect and obligation on all states and all individuals to promote human rights throughout the world stands at the very peak of mankind’s 20^th century achievements. It is our duty to ourselves as human beings to continue to nobly strive to improve our record in the 21^st century. And to re-dedicate ourselves, as members of the human family, to the respect for human rights with a determined, committed steadfastness of purpose.

To do anything else would be to deny the judgment of humanity that says, the world is, on the whole, a better place today than it has ever been before, full of the possibility that comes with a secure knowledge that our destiny is inexorably tied to one another’s.

As a sign of our bedrock commitment to the respect for, and advancement of, human rights throughout the world, the Republic of Serbia has declared itself a candidate for the Human Rights Council for the period of 2008 to 2011, to be decided by a vote in the General Assembly in May of this year.

I would like to take this opportunity to express that, should Serbia be elected to the Council, we would dedicate ourselves to contribute to strengthening even further the Council’s effectiveness, with a particular focus on enhancing the respect for human rights in an ever more complex and diverse global community of nations, cultures, and religious traditions.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The democratic Government of the Republic of Serbia is proud of its record as a central pillar of human rights protection in Southeast Europe. Since the peaceful overthrow of the regime of Slobodan Milosevic in October 2000, we have made tremendous achievements on the human rights front.

This year alone, the Republic of Serbia will report to the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee Against Torture, and, in December, will present a comprehensive report to the Human Rights Council, consistent with the new procedures of the Universal Periodic Review.

Moreover, during this Session of the Human Rights Council, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Human Rights Defenders will present what we confidently believe will be a positive report on her September 2007 visit to my country.

The stellar state of human rights in Serbia does not mean that there are no more challenges. But it indicates a unified national conviction to face every obstacle head on, to engage the issues forthrightly, to solve problems constructively, and to achieve results concretely.

This is not mere lip-service. We speak clearly, but we also act clearly. Our deeds match our words.

Before proceeding to the next portion of my remarks, I wish to highlight the human rights record of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina that has been aptly termed “Europe in miniature.” It is a place of toleration and integration that took in more than a quarter of a million refugees from the civil wars in Croatia and Bosnia during the 1990s.

And it is a safe bastion of prosperity in which more than 25 ethnic communities live harmoniously together, not just side by side: Serbs, Hungarians, Slovaks, Croats, Romanians, Roma, Slovenians, Albanians and more than a dozen other ethnic groups populate this region, lending weight to the truth that identity is not the simple result of a unification of likeness; it requires the offering and accepting of the gift of difference.

That is why I am proud of Serbia’s dedication to press forward our promotion of cultural diversity, the handmaiden of human rights protection. We believe diversity to be a source of strength, and we embrace the view that individual cultures genuinely prosper and progress when they come into contact with others.

____

But all is not well on the human rights front in the Republic of Serbia.

Standing in stark contrast to the record of those areas covered under the direct jurisdiction of our Government institutions, the state of human rights in our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija, currently under United Nations administration, is dismal.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Kosovo is a place where the vulnerable have simply been forgotten.

In the wake of the arrival of the UN and NATO in June 1999 after a 78-day bombing campaign, hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Serbs, Roma, Bosniaks and others were ethnically cleansed from their centuries-old hearths. Hundreds have been killed, and thousands more have disappeared without a trace. Tens of thousands of homes and businesses have been destroyed, and tens of thousands more have been illegally occupied by ethnic Albanians.

The UN Committee on Human Rights has harshly criticized the lack of human rights protection in Kosovo, concluding that “discrimination against Serbs and Roma is widespread in Kosovo.” Amnesty International has echoed those words. And in a report issued just a few days ago, Human Rights Watch said that “today, Kosovo is a place where human rights are frequently violated, where political violence, impunity for common and political crimes, intimidation and discrimination are commonplace. […] Organized crime and corruption are largely unchecked, […] witness harassment is widespread, […] domestic violence is a serious and prevalent problem, […] and trafficking of women remains a serious issue”, as is forced prostitution.

Perhaps most appallingly, less than eight percent of the estimated 250,000 Kosovo Serb IDPs have returned to their homes, conceivably because the UNHCR warns that Kosovo Serbs, Roma and others risk persecution if they return to areas in which they would be in a minority.

It’s also because for many displaced Serbs, security fears and deep concerns about freedom of movement, access to courts, employment, housing, healthcare, education and other public services impede return.

The litany of offences is endless; the remedial list of concrete steps taken is trivial.

Consider that hundreds of Serbian holy sites remain to this day under the heavy protection of NATO. Monks, nuns and priests live encircled by tanks, barbed wire, and electric fences.

More than 150 Serbian Orthodox monasteries and churches have been destroyed since June 1999 in wanton acts of cultural cleansing, including 35 in a three-day period in March 2004.

Let me pause for a moment on the significance of these living religious communities, and of Kosovo more generally, for the Serbian people. The Orthodox holy sites of Kosovo—some of which have been placed on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage Sites, and alarmingly, on its List of World Heritage in Danger—stand at the foundation of Serbian identity. They are not simply buildings or mere monuments. They constitute an essential link to the living tradition of Serbia today.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The unilateral, illegal, and illegitimate declaration of independence of Kosovo’s Assembly on February 17^th from the Republic of Serbia has profoundly affected my country. For Kosovo is the essential link between our proud national past and our proud European future.

But that is not the only cause of the present apprehension throughout the region and around the world, caused by the illegal acts of the authorities in Pristina. As a result of the recognition by about twenty countries of the attempted secession of the Kosovo Albanians from Serbia, the innate operating logic of the international system has come under direct attack.

And I will tell you why. The United Nations Charter and Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999) places a binding obligation on all member-states to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all internationally recognized states, including the Republic of Serbia.

By furthering the secessionist cause of the Kosovo Albanians, the international system has become more unstable, more insecure, and more unpredictable. A terrible precedent has been established.

Recognizing the unilateral declaration of Kosovo’s independence from Serbia legitimizes the doctrine of imposing solutions to ethnic conflicts. It legitimizes the act of unilateral secession by a provincial or other non-state actor. It transforms the right to self-determination into an avowed right to independence. It legitimizes the forced partition of internationally-recognized, sovereign states. And it supplies any ethnic or religious group with a grievance against its capital with a play book on how to achieve their ends.

____

I want to be very clear. We will never recognize the attempt by the authorities in Pristina to unilaterally secede from Serbia. We call upon the countries that have recognized to reconsider, and we call on those that have not to stay the course, to help us defend the international system from being fundamentally undermined. And we applaud the United Nations in so far resisting the pressure from a vocal minority of countries to cede the administration of Serbia’s southern province to an illegitimate European Union mission, in clear violation of Security Council Resolution 1244. We hope that this will continue. Anything less would strike at the very heart of the core constituent elements of global governance.

Excellencies,

We are here to talk about human rights.

So I would like to conclude my remarks to you this afternoon by telling you about a very special young woman from Kosovo.

Her name is Slobodanka Tasic. Born in 1992, she was 7 years old when the bombs began to fall on Serbia, in 1999. It was the year her father Saša went missing. It was the year her ancestral home in the village of Strezovce was torched to the ground. And it was the year she and her mother became IDPs.

It was a terrible year.

Taking shelter in a neighboring village, Slobodanka and her family remained in Kosovo and Metohija.

They survived.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Slobodanka came to world attention late last year when she wrote a letter to President Boris Tadic of Serbia, a letter he read to the Security Council.

“As I write this letter to you, I feel like a leaf on a tree that does not know which way the wind will blow”, the now fifteen year old wrote.

“My childhood is different from that of children who live in freedom. They have friends, but mine is fear. Fear of the early dawn; fear of the setting sun”, she continued.

“And it is because of all the tears of children, because of all our pain, because of the early opened wounds that do not heal, Mr. President, that I implore you to transmit my message to the world. They have taken away our right to an innocent childhood; our right to live freely; our right to be happy. They have taken away the warmth of family life. Let them not take away our right to live even such a life as we have now: the right to live in our own country.”

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Now they have tried to take even that away from her. For today Slobodanka no longer lives permanently in Kosovo.

For when her letter was read by President Tadic, her family was forced to flee by Kosovo Albanians.

They told her mother, “remember what happened to your husband.”

It was all too much for the family of a young Serbian woman from Kosovo, for the Anne Frank of the Balkans, to take. Nevertheless, she is still drawn to her birthplace, moving back and forth from the safety of Serbia proper to the danger of a Kosovo ruled by secessionists.

____

This is the reality of Kosovo today. A dark, ugly reality that sits in the heart of Europe.

Such is the reality that some have chosen to reward with recognition.

But I tell you in the name of the Republic of Serbia that we will never recognize an independent Kosovo. And we will employ all diplomatic and political means at our disposal to hinder, obstruct and ultimately reverse the unilateral, illegal and illegitimate declaration of independence of our southern province.

This is no temporary policy. We are not just posturing. It is a part of a national strategy to keep Serbia whole and free, fully integrated into Europe, and actively engaged with the world.

And we will pursue it for as long as our country itself survives.

Kosovo shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. Chairman,

Mr. Secretary General,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Friends,

The last time I had the honor of addressing this body of the oldest pan-European institution was on the occasion of the transfer of my six-month chairmanship to my friend and colleague, the Foreign Minister of the Slovak Republic, Mr. Jan Kubiš.

And I must confess that I have always appreciated how the Committee of Ministers has responded to my words, and to those of my fellow countrymen—with understanding and solidarity. “Gently to hear, kindly to judge”, as Shakespeare has written.

But the world has changed since that day in November when I last spoke before you.

Excellencies,

The world has changed because of the unilateral, illegal and illegitimate declaration of independence by the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija from the Republic of Serbia.

Kosovo is not a territory like any other. For the Serbian people, it stands at the crucible of our identity; it is the essential link between our proud national past and our proud European future; it is what ties the living tradition of Serbia to itself today.

____

The world has indeed changed. And it has not changed for the better. On the contrary. As a result of this hostile act by the authorities in Pristina, the international system has become more unstable, more insecure, and more acrimonious. Because of this flagrant violation of the fundamental norms of international conduct, a grave mockery has been made of the universal principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter and enriched, in the European space, by the Statute of the Council of Europe and the Helsinki Final Act.

Excellencies,

The core principle of legitimate conduct in the global arena, around which revolve all others, is the sovereign equality of states. Adherence to, and promotion of, this first principle of the international system, is the highest duty—the binding obligation—of all responsible states, as is the respect for the territorial integrity of established countries, and the inviolability of internationally recognized borders. No caveats. No exceptions. No special cases.

Together, these principles form an integral part of the innate operating logic of the international system. They constitute the bedrock of global governance. And they form the basis of the preservation of the legitimacy of international law, of international peace and of international security.

Through their actions, the Kosovo Albanians have triggered a revival of the debate about the legitimacy of internationally recognized borders throughout our region and beyond. And they have rejected the principles of European concord—such as compromise, concession, and consensus-building.

Excellencies,

The rejection by the authorities in Pristina of that which binds us together has established a truly dangerous precedent that fundamentally undermines the statecraft of generations of men and women.

This precedent has at least five components. First, it legitimizes the doctrine of imposing solutions to ethnic conflicts. Second, it legitimizes the act of unilateral secession by a provincial or local entity. Third, it transforms the right to self-determination into a right to independence. Fourth, it legitimizes the forced partition of internationally-recognized, sovereign states. And fifth, it violates the commitment to the peaceful, mutually-acceptable resolution of disputes in Europe.

Imposing this unilateral outcome is an historic injustice, for no democracy has ever before been punished in such a brazen way. It has also, in effect, resurrected the disgraceful Cold War doctrine of limited sovereignty. And it has restored the Machiavellian worldview to prominence in which might triumphs over right.

And in such a world, there is no room for genuine diplomacy. No room for justice. And no room for visionary statesmanship.

Ask yourselves an honest question: are the Kosovo Albanians the only ethnic or religious minority with a grievance against the majority? Surely not. And by legitimizing the secessionist aspirations of the authorities in Pristina, you have supplied separatists the world over with a play book on how to achieve their aspirations: First, through violence, followed by threats and intimidation. Then, finally, the appearance of good-faith negotiations that from the onset everyone knew led to nowhere but to UDI.

Excellencies,

In recent days, we have reminded the Security Council of the language of Resolution 1244 that explicitly places a Chapter VII obligation—a binding obligation—on all member-states to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, including Kosovo, consistent with the first principle of the United Nations Charter: the sovereign equality of states. That is why we have demanded of the Security Council, the body charged with the primary responsibility to maintain international peace and security, and to continue respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.

Furthermore, we have called upon the Secretary-General of the United Nations to instruct his Special Representative to our southern province to make swift and full use of his reserved powers, as enumerated in the Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government in Kosovo, by proclaiming this illegitimate declaration of independence null and void, as have done already our Government and our National Assembly. SRSG Ruecker must also be instructed to dissolve the Kosovo Assembly on the grounds that declaring independence is not in conformity with Resolution 1244.

We have also called on KFOR to remain status-neutral. Only by continuing to abide by the legal framework of its operation, namely paragraph 9 of Resolution 1244, can KFOR retain its capacity to prevent a repeat of the ethnic cleansing against the Serbian population, and the cultural cleansing against our nation’s holy sites, that took place in the latter half of 1999 and during the carefully orchestrated pogrom of March 2004.

Moreover, we have welcomed, as a matter of principle, any demonstration of the European Union’s deepening commitment to the Western Balkans. And for that reason, we welcome the EU’s desire to increase its presence in our southern province. But it is the position of the Republic of Serbia that such a mission must seek a mandate from the Security Council, as a plain reading of paragraphs 5 and 19 of Resolution 1244 makes clear. Only such a mandate can bestow an EU mission with the international legitimacy so crucial to the fulfillment of its tasks—one of which is, ironically, the establishment of the rule of law.

Lastly, we have called on the Permanent Council of the OSCE to preserve the legitimacy of its role in maintaining security in the European space, by condemning the unilateral declaration of independence by the Kosovo Albanians, and by making sure that Kosovo is not granted a seat at the OSCE table.

Excellencies,

I believe it is appropriate for me to express, on behalf of my country, my simple message to the Committee of Ministers. While the Council of Europe has not been a participant in the process to determine the future status of Serbia’s southern province, the important, status-neutral work of this solid pillar of European multilateralism must continue.

Thanks in no small part to the leadership of Secretary-General Terry Davis, the Council of Europe has greatly contributed to the promotion of its values in our southern province. As a member-state of this organization, the Republic of Serbia continues to subscribe to the view that the Council’s values must be fully implemented throughout our territory.

At the same time, the Republic of Serbia stresses that any consideration of an application by the authorities in Pristina, or a proposal by a third party, for membership of our southern province to the Council of Europe, would call into question this organization’s principled position not to involve itself in the process of determining Kosovo’s future status. And it would damage the work of the Council of Europe in Kosovo and throughout the rest of Serbia done so far.

Additionally, it would make the Council of Europe complicit in Pristina’s flagrant violation of international law, and call into serious question its adherence to its own values—values that have been the visionary source of so much achievement over the course of its fifty-nine years of existence.

Excellencies,

On September 21^st 2007, Secretary-General Davis took part in a flag-raising ceremony. For the first time, on European Flag Day, the deep blue flag of Europe stood alongside the Serbian tricolor. This image will stick in my mind as a symbol of Serbia and Europe in dynamic motion—moving together from what has been, to what is now, to what we hope it will be.

But a European future cannot be built on a foundation of aggressive intentions, illegal declarations, and unilateral actions—but rather through concession, compromise, and consensus-building.

I appeal to all the countries here present, and to the citizens of our southern province of Kosovo, to understand the spirit in which I make these remarks. We cannot afford any more missed opportunities to build trust, to seek agreements, to consolidate values, and to arrive at solutions that benefits us all.

Even in this late hour, therefore, we are compelled in equal measure to hope and to demand that a negotiated, compromise solution to Kosovo’s future status be found.

That a way be found to address the legitimate right to broad self-governance of the Kosovo Albanians, while preserving a Serbia that is whole and free, that is fully integrated into Europe, and that is actively engaged with the world.

Such is the basic tenet of our national interest. And we will pursue it for as long as Serbia itself remains.

Kosovo shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Thank you for your attention.

Remarks Before the Foreign Affairs Committee of
the European Parliament
by H.E. Mr. Vuk Jeremić
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia,

Strasbourg, 20 February 2008

Dear Mr. Chairman,
Distinguished MEPs,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I stand before you this afternoon as a proud European, and as an ashamed European.

Proud because my heritage, my culture, my beliefs, and my history bind me to a constellation of nations that, at the onset of the 21st century, reconciled themselves, and created something so magnificent that one could say: ‘there has truly never been anything else like it in the history of the world.’

Winston Churchill equated the feeling I am trying to describe to you with a “sense of enlarged patriotism.” That was his vision of Europe, and Jean Monet’s vision of Europe, and Konrad Adenauer’s vision of Europe. It is a vision I proudly share. For the peoples of Europe, between whom rivers of blood have flowed without mercy, chose to end the feuds of a thousand years. And they sought to eliminate from their shores a zero-sum approach to the conduct of regional politics.

How could I not be proud? How could I not, until just a few days ago, without the faintest shadow of a doubt, support the aspirations of my country to join the European Union, and therefore welcome the EU’s commitment to the incorporation of Serbia and all the Western Balkans within its welcoming boundaries?
____

But I am also a deeply ashamed European. Tacitus wrote: Deserta faciunt et pacem appellant: “They create a desolation and they call it peace.” That is what some European Union countries have done to the Republic of Serbia, to a small, peace-loving, democratic country in Europe, a founding member of the United Nations, an original signatory to the Helsinki Final Act, and a pillar of stability in Southeast Europe.

Creating desolation out of the promise of a European future. This is what the governments of some of your countries have done by recognizing the unilateral, illegal and illegitimate declaration of independence of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of Serbia’s southern province of Kosovo and Metohija.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am ashamed not as a Serb—for in the negotiating process on the future status of our province of Kosovo, we did nothing but demonstrate good faith and understanding for the legitimate rights of the other side. In fact, since the democratic overthrow of the regime of Slobodan Milosevic in October 2000, we have done almost everything right. We have overcome almost every obstacle. We have fulfilled almost every condition. We have embraced almost every standard. And we have taken on every challenge to our future with an optimism that thinkers like Alexis de Tocqueville thought had departed the Old Continent long ago.

I am ashamed as a European. As someone who knows in his heart that what has been done to Serbia is a fundamental violation of the very nature of not just the international system, but of the values that hold up the European construction.

I am ashamed, because if recognizing this act of ethnically-motivated secession from a democratic, European state is not wrong, then nothing is wrong.

I am ashamed, because I see how the bedrock of values that make us who we are is being trampled underfoot. Because I see how my fellow Europeans are trying to construct the future on a foundation of sand and rubble.

And I am ashamed, because for all the talk about reason and Enlightenment, for all the pious declinations on the common good and solidarity, Europe is rapidly becoming just another place where might makes right.

Some may say I have exaggerated. Well, let us turn to the matter at hand.

The institution with primary responsibility to maintain international peace and security is, according to the United Nations Charter, the Security Council. And, in 1999, following the 78-day bombing of my country, it adopted a resolution—still operative today—that conferred upon the UN the authority to administer Serbia’s southern province of Kosovo, and explicitly and unambiguously reaffirmed the sovereignty and territorial integrity of my country. When Serbia was ruled by a tyrant, Kosovo was a confirmed part of Serbia.

It said so in Security Council Resolution 1244. And it went further than that. It placed a Chapter VII obligation—a binding obligation—on all the member-states of the United Nations to respect the borders of my country.

And now, when Serbia is a democracy, some European nations are prepared to recognize Kosovo as an independent state. They say, in effect, we did not punish the tyrant, but now we will punish a democracy—a European democracy—and we expect its citizens to take it.

They say Kosovo can be independent, while saying that 1244 in its entirety still applies, including, presumably, that part that reaffirms Serbian sovereignty over Kosovo. And they send an EU-led mission to our province without the approval of the Security Council, even though paragraphs 5 and 19 of 1244 make it abundantly clear that only the Security Council can do that.

And yesterday, at an emergency session of the Permanent Council, no European ambassador could explain to anyone with any degree of reason why what is being done to Serbia is not a violation of the core principles of the Helsinki Final Act.

They could not explain to me why what they are doing is not setting a dangerous, precedent that will create very troubling consequences to the stability of Europe and the whole world.
____

Recognizing the unilateral declaration of Kosovo’s independence from Serbia legitimizes the doctrine of imposing solutions to ethnic conflicts.

It legitimizes the act of unilateral secession by a provincial or local entity.

It transforms the right to self-determination into an avowed right to independence.

It legitimizes the forced partition of internationally-recognized, sovereign states.

And it violates the commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes in Europe.

It even resurrects the discredited Cold War doctrine of limited sovereignty.
____

By the actions of some European Union member-states, every would-be ethnic or religious separatist across Europe and around the world has been provided with a tool kit on how to achieve recognition. Does anyone in this room think that the Kosovo Albanians are the only group in the world with a grievance against their capital?

Do any of you honestly think that just by saying that Kosovo is sui generis, you will make it so? That there will be no consequences to the stability and security of the international system, just because you say it won’t?

Is this the way proud Europeans behave? Is this the way European values are put into practice? Is this the way to treat friends?

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Notwithstanding everything I have witnessed and all that my country has gone through, I have not lost faith in Europe, even though I am ashamed by the actions of some within it.

I have not lost faith in Europe because I still hold out a measure of hope that Europe will live up to its values; that Europe will pause for a moment and recall the principles that drive its own decision-making in Brussels and Strasbourg. I’m talking about compromise, concession, and consensus-building. That’s how it works: by engaging in a process of deliberate, patient, and sustained, good-faith negotiations until a compromise is struck that all stakeholders can abide by.

In the case of Kosovo’s future status, only a solution that is acceptable to the sides can be viable, sustainable, and lasting.

Only a negotiated solution can pave the way towards a common, European future.

Only such a solution can consolidate the regional gains made, reinforce the geo-strategic priorities achieved, and restore the drive for change in Southeast Europe.

The imposition of a one-sided outcome—the recognition of an independent Kosovo—does the opposite. It sets back the achievements of European visionaries in our region; it uncouples the Western Balkans from its future in Europe; and it fosters a view throughout the region that Europe is in the business of imposing outcomes.

This is where we are. It’s a shameful place to be. And it’s not where we should be.

Where we are is at the precipice, facing down into the shadows of uncertainty. Uncertainty over the future of the Western Balkans. Uncertainty over democracy in Serbia. Uncertainty over the safety of the Kosovo Serbs. And uncertainty over the fate of our holy sites—the central element of our national identity.

Yet we also face forward. We can see beyond the break, and beyond the discord. We can still see Europe for what it is, for what it can become, for what it can accomplish.

But also for what it can harm: the dreams of a proud, democratic, European country that has surmounted more obstacles since October 2000 than most other nations have in a hundred years.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I assure you, with the fortitude of a unified nation, Serbia will not go quietly. We shall strive for what is just, for what we believe in, for our future, for what is rightfully ours.

The Republic of Serbia shall not tolerate this illegal act of secession. Our Government and National Assembly have declared this action by the authorities in Pristina null and void. And we shall undertake all diplomatic, political, measures designed to impede and reverse this direct and unprovoked attack on our sovereignty.

As a responsible member of the international community committed to the peaceful and negotiated resolution of disputes, the Republic of Serbia will not resort to the use of force. For violence cannot bring a peaceful settlement to any crisis. Violence only destroys—lives, property, hope, ambitions. It destroys everything and creates desolation.

We are for peace. We are for agreement. We are for concord. We are Europeans.

Kosovo shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Mr. Chairman,

Distinguished Members of the Permanent Council,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I thank you for having convened this emergency session of the Permanent Council.

What has been dreaded has come to pass: the unilateral and illegal declaration of independence of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija from the Republic of Serbia.

This grave threat to the security of Europe must be addressed, for the principles of the OSCE have been shaken to their very foundation. But there is still time to prevent the situation from spiraling needlessly out of control.

We call on this body to condemn the unilateral and illegal declaration of independence by the authorities in Pristina from the Republic of Serbia, by reaffirming the OSCE’s basic principles and values, as enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act, the Charter of Paris for a New Europe, and the Charter for European Security.

The participating States must do their duty. We must remain steadfast in upholding the very principles that have brought unimaginable prosperity to the lives of hundreds of millions of Europeans living in an unprecedented era of peace and security. How we react to this flagrant violation of the core norms of international conduct will determine the future course not only of this organization, but also for the enduring strength of the values we have pledged to uphold and defend—universal values that were first enshrined into law by the United Nations Charter, before being enriched by the Helsinki Final Act and the other core documents of our Organization.

Permit me therefore, Mr. Chairman, to begin with a summary of the points the Republic of Serbia made to the Security Council of the United Nations, the body charged with the primary responsibility to maintain international peace and security.

One: Security Council Resolution 1244—as well as our Constitution—unambiguously reaffirms the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, including our southern province of Kosovo. Its language explicitly places a Chapter VII obligation—a binding obligation—on all member-states to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, consistent with the first principle of the United Nations Charter: the sovereign equality of states.

Two: We have called on the Secretary-General of the United Nations to instruct his Special Representative to our southern province to make swift and full use of his reserved powers, as enumerated in the Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government in Kosovo, by proclaiming this illegitimate declaration of independence null and void. He must also be instructed to dissolve the Kosovo Assembly on the grounds that declaring independence is not in conformity with Resolution 1244.

Three: The Republic of Serbia has called on KFOR to remain status-neutral. Only by continuing to abide by the legal framework of its operation, namely paragraph 9 of Resolution 1244, can KFOR retain its capacity to prevent a repeat of the ethnic cleansing against the Serbian population, and the cultural cleansing against our nation’s holy sites, that took place in the latter half of 1999 and during the carefully orchestrated pogrom of March 2004.

And four, Mr. Chairman, we have welcomed, as a matter of principle, any demonstration of the European Union’s deepening commitment to the Western Balkans. And for that reason, we welcome the EU’s desire to increase its presence in our southern province. But it is the position of the Republic of Serbia that such a mission must seek a mandate from the Security Council, as a plain reading of paragraphs 5 and 19 of Resolution 1244 makes clear. Only such a mandate can bestow an EU mission with the international legitimacy so crucial to the fulfillment of its tasks—one of which is, ironically, the establishment of the rule of law.

The tasks of that mission, Mr. Chairman, will indeed be many. Kosovo today is the most dysfunctional entity in the OSCE space. Little tangible progress has been achieved, despite the billions of euros that have been invested in its development.

In other words, Kosovo has not come close to achieving the standards of good-governance that ought to have remained a pre-qualification for the commencement of the process to determine future status. For rather than focusing on the very hard work of improving the lives of all its residents, the authorities in Pristina have chosen instead to destabilize the region. Instead of building bridges, they have opted to widen and deepen the chasm. The authorities in Pristina have, in short, made an irresponsible decision to pursue the nihilistic politics of alienation, instead of a progressive politics of concord.

Mr. Chairman,

The abject failure of the Kosovo Albanians to embrace the 21^st-century principles of Europe—such as compromise, concession, and consensus-building—have produced a precedent that will create very troubling consequences to the stability of the international system and the community of democracies that is the OSCE.

The precedent to which I refer is five-fold. First, it legitimizes the doctrine of imposing solutions to ethnic conflicts. Second, it legitimizes the act of unilateral secession by a provincial or local entity. Third, it transforms the right to self-determination into a right to independence. Fourth, it legitimizes the forced partition of internationally-recognized, sovereign states. And fifth, it violates the commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes in Europe.

All told, the declaration of independence by the Kosovo Albanians from the Republic of Serbia, if left unchecked, would constitute a fundamental attack on the sovereign equality of states, and it would resurrect the discredited Cold War doctrine of limited sovereignty. It would restore the dangerous view that the willful exercise of might triumphs over the steady application of the law by all.

There would be no room for justice in such a worldview. And there would be no room left for any other clause of the Helsinki Final Act to have standing, were we to draw an equivalence between the right of self-determination and the right to secession. For we, the participating States, would be saying, in effect, the first principle of the OSCE would in fact be the right to secession. Everything else—all the other clauses, all of Helsinki’s enumerated rights, are secondary.

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Let me be clear, Mr. Chairman. The Republic of Serbia holds that the Helsinki Final Act, the Charter of Paris, and the Charter for European Security constitute a binding code of conduct on the participating States and their governments. Our adherence to the principles enumerated therein forms the basis of security and cooperation in Europe.

As such, we must act on the courage of our convictions, condemn the unilateral declaration of independence by the Kosovo Albanians, and make sure that Kosovo is not granted a seat at the OSCE table. Anything less would roll the dice on the continuing relevance of this Organization.

Mr. Chairman,

The Republic of Serbia believes in the principles of this Organization and those of the United Nations. We believe in them because we believe in the cohesive strength of the international community, because we believe that the ultimate legitimacy of outcomes can be conferred only through the United Nations, and because we believe in the legitimacy of the OSCE process for solving disputes peacefully, in agreement with one another.

And that is why the Republic of Serbia sees, in the far horizon, a flickering beacon of hope that signifies “justice can still prevail.”

Born of the determination that we are in the right—and armed with the fortitude of a unified nation—a commitment to justice compels us to hope—but equally to demand—that a negotiated solution be found. That a way to address the legitimate cause of distress of the Kosovo Albanians can be put alongside the preservation of a Serbia whole and free, fully integrated into Europe, and actively engaged with the world.

This is the basic tenet of our national interest. It will not change. And we will pursue it for as long as Serbia itself remains.

We will pursue it by seeking to negotiate with the Kosovo Albanians. We are ready, at any time, in any place, in any manner, to engage in talks with the authorities in Pristina and agree on a mutually-acceptable solution to the future status of our southern province. And we are ready to do so without pre-condition, save one—the same one each and every participating state in the OSCE would attach to talks with a secessionist entity. That condition is sovereignty.

We can give them substantial self-government—the broadest possible autonomy one can imagine. We can guarantee that we will not tax them and that we will not police them. Their judicial and educational systems do not have to be re-integrated into ours. Our currency does not have to have a presence in Kosovo. Our military would not have to be there, either. And we would not interfere with their relationship with the World Bank; with them having separate membership in international sporting federations; or with them having some sort of representation abroad.

But we cannot give them sovereignty. No country can relinquish the ultimate basis of its legitimacy. For us, Kosovo stands at the crucible of our identity; it is the essential link between our past and our future; it is what ties the living tradition of Serbia to itself today. And when the past is asked to no longer illuminate the future, the nation is in effect being asked to walk into the darkness of humanity.

I appeal to all the countries here present, and to the authorities in Pristina, to understand the spirit in which I make these remarks. We cannot afford any more missed opportunities to build trust, to seek agreement, to consolidate values, and to arrive at a solution that benefits us all.

We are ready to do our part—to channel the hope, to remove the fear, and to instill the confidence in ourselves necessary to succeed in the noble project to secure the future against those who challenge its very foundation.

Mr. Chairman,

Kosovo has unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia, in contravention of the United Nations Charter, Security Council Resolution 1244, and the Helsinki Final Act.

If this violation of the very nature of the international system is not wrong, then nothing is wrong.

We all know this in our hearts.

And knowing this fact—this universal truth—some have chosen to ignore it. Some will embrace the failure of reason and reject the binding commitment to seek the peaceful resolution of disputes with the agreement of all its stakeholders. Some will seek to impose an outcome that flies in the face of the values that bring us together in this chamber, that calls into question the very legitimacy of the work we do here.

The Republic of Serbia will not accept responsibility for this shameful failure. History will judge those who have chosen to trample on the bedrock of the international system, and on the principles upon which security and cooperation in Europe have been established. It is they who will have to give an account as to why the construction of the future will be attempted on a foundation of sand and rubble.

The Republic of Serbia did not consent, has not consented, will not consent. For Kosovo and Metohija shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Mr. Chairman,

In the Book of Proverbs, we see written: “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a picture of silver.”

For the Republic of Serbia, the first principles of the international community enumerated in the United Nations Charter have proven to be an apple of gold to the world. And, for Europe, the Helsinki Final Act is the picture of silver, subsequently framed around it.

Membership in these two organizations are the ultimate tests of sovereignty. Membership in these two standard-bearers—these two great pillars—of the international system, signifies belonging to the world community of sovereign nations. The Republic of Serbia is one such nation. And Kosovo will never be. It will never acquire this ultimate status of legitimacy. Membership will always elude it. Consent will never be given. Kosovo shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Thank you for your attention.

Address Before the United Nations Security Council
by H.E. Mr. Vuk Jeremić
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia

New York, 14 February 2008

Mr. President,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

There was a time when the final authority of the United Nations Security Council was not fully respected, when its ultimate legitimacy was discounted, and when its capacity to act was restricted. That time was the Cold War, and that time has passed.

Today, we no longer view international politics as a winner-take-all contest.

The Security Council—and the United Nations system as a whole—is once again the crucible of human hope for peace and security, the focal point of trust, and the center of our confidence in the concord to come.

Today, we embrace the global diversity of views. We believe it makes us stronger as a world community. And we judge that the world is a better place, full of the possibility that comes with the secure knowledge that our destiny is inexorably tied to one another’s.

Mr. President,

Since the democratic overthrow of the regime of Slobodan Milosevic in October 2000, the citizens of our country have regained their freedom and started enjoying the benefits of peace. We have toiled unceasingly to provide a prosperous future for all, under the roof of a united Europe. And we have done so while working hard to advance reconciliation with our neighbors—a cornerstone of our policy to break with the legacy of the Balkans’ recent past.

For the first time in history, the region is well within reach of the point of no return.

Our success to date has been a great victory for all who believe that belonging to Europe is good for Serbia, good for the Balkans, good for all the nations of the Old Continent.

And yet, Excellencies, we have been informed of a deliberate intention to dramatically set back progressive development throughout the region. If allowed to stand, the adverse consequences for not only the Western Balkans, but the world community as a whole, will be grave.

The imminence and scope of this threat brings me here before you this afternoon, as does the expectation that by working together, we can avert a disaster of unfathomable proportions.

Mr. President,

We have received reliable information that the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of our southern province of Kosovo and Metohija, under interim UN administration, intend to unilaterally and illegally declare independence from the Republic of Serbia in the coming days.

Such an illegitimate declaration by the authorities in Pristina would brutally violate Security Council Resolution 1244’s reaffirmation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a member-state of the United Nations, in this case, the Republic of Serbia, which includes—quite explicitly, according to the text of the resolution and our own Constitution—our province of Kosovo and Metohija.

Mr. President,

The Security Council, together with each and every member-state of the United Nations, has a Chapter VII obligation—a binding obligation—to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia. This is the plain language of Resolution 1244, and we expect, Mr. President, the Security Council to honor the demands of international law, the requirements of international justice, the principles of the United Nations Charter, and the very language of this Council’s Resolution, as you consider how to respond to the hostile intent of the authorities in Pristina.

Mr. President,

The Republic of Serbia shall not tolerate such an illegal act of secession. If forced to react to events beyond our control, our Government and National Assembly will declare the actions of the authorities in Pristina null and void. And we shall undertake all diplomatic, political, and economic measures designed to impede and reverse this direct and unprovoked attack on our sovereignty.

I must add, Mr. President, that as a responsible member of the international community committed to the peaceful and negotiated resolution of disputes—and as a dedicated aspirant to membership in the European Union—the Republic of Serbia will not resort to the use of force. For violence cannot bring a peaceful settlement to the Kosovo crisis. That is why even in this troubled hour, we repeat our call upon the authorities in Pristina to publicly and unambiguously commit to the process of seeking a compromise solution to the future status of our southern province.

Together, acting with forethought and prudence, Pristina and Belgrade, with the support of this Council, can still avoid setting a precedent that will do irreparable harm to the international system. The precise nature of this precedent must be spelled out.

The unilateral and illegal declaration of independence of Kosovo from Serbia by the authorities in Pristina would constitute nothing less than the forcible partition of a sovereign member-state of the United Nations. The direct and immediate consequence of this act would be the destruction of the first principle of the United Nations, namely the sovereign equality of all member-states.

Such a precedent, imposed on the world community, would echo far, far away, into every corner of our globe. For we would discover that the rushing river of self-determination has become an uncontrolled cascade of secession.

We all know that there are dozens of Kosovo-s throughout the world, just waiting for secession to be legitimized, to be rendered an acceptable norm. Many existing conflicts would escalate, frozen conflicts would reignite, and new ones would be instigated.

Mr. President,

Let me be very clear. The Republic of Serbia shall never accept any violation of its territorial integrity. We shall never recognize Kosovo’s independence. We shall not waiver, we shall not yield, should this cowardly act proceed unchecked. Not now. Not in a year. Not in a decade. Never. For Kosovo and Metohija shall remain a part of Serbia forever.

Make no mistake, Excellencies, the Kosovo Albanians are about to throw down the gauntlet. They have committed themselves to a course of action that would constitute an unprecedented, express and deliberate violation of the United Nations Charter, international law, and the powers of the Security Council itself.

Mr. President,

This is what we believe is required.

First, that the Security Council take effective action to ensure that all provisions of the United Nations Charter and Resolution 1244 are fully respected. Therefore, the Security Council must urgently act to condemn the clear intent of the authorities in Pristina to unilaterally, illegally, and illegitimately declare independence from the Republic of Serbia. Additionally, the Security Council must reaffirm the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia, including Kosovo.

Second, that the Secretary-General and his Special Representative in Kosovo exercise their authority in this matter. Special Representative Joachim Ruecker must receive clear and unambiguous instructions to make swift use of his reserved powers, as enumerated in the Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government in Kosovo, and, in the event of a declaration of independence by the province’s Assembly, proclaim this act to be null and void. He must also be instructed to dissolve the Kosovo Assembly, on the grounds that declaring independence is not in conformity with Resolution 1244. He has this power. It has been used before. He must be make full use of it once more.

Third, that the international security presence in Kosovo, identified by the acronym KFOR, continue to abide by the legal framework for its operation, in conformity with paragraph 9 of Resolution 1244, and remain status-neutral. Continuing to adopt this approach ensures that all residents of our southern province will remain receptive to its mission to safeguard their lives and property.

KFOR must, Mr. President, demonstrate particular sensitivity toward the Kosovo Serb community, as well as to the clerics of the Serbian Orthodox Church and their monasteries, some of which have been placed on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage Sites, and alarmingly, on its List of World Heritage in Danger. These holy sites stand at the foundation of Serbian identity. They are not simply buildings or mere monuments. They constitute an essential link to the living tradition of Serbia today.

The Republic of Serbia is confident that KFOR has the capacity to prevent a repeat of the ethnic cleansing against the Serb population that took place in the latter half of 1999 and in March 2004, and to protect my nation’s religious heritage against further destruction and cultural cleansing.

Fourth, Mr. President, that the European Union too continue to fully respect all the provisions of Resolution 1244—in particular those related to the authority vested in the Security Council (paragraphs 5 and 19).

Let there be no doubt: the Republic of Serbia welcomes as a matter of principle any demonstration of Europe’s deepening commitment to the Western Balkans. And for that reason, we welcome the EU’s desire to increase its presence in our southern province.

But in order for the EU-led mission to Kosovo to acquire the full international legitimacy so crucial to the fulfillment of its mission, it must first seek a mandate from the Security Council.

Excellencies,

We do not believe opportunities for negotiations are exhausted, because we believe it is never too late to work towards a solution that leads to regional peace and stability.

We do not believe it is ever too late to negotiate about the future—especially when it’s a future we all share.

Is it too late to talk of peace in the Middle East, in Africa, or anywhere else in the world for that matter? Should we just give up—and in the process resign ourselves to the defeat of principles that form the core of what binds us together?

Walking away is not a legitimate option, for it means that we, as a world community relegate ourselves to the fatalism of the past. It means that we are ready and willing to sacrifice geo-strategic priorities on the altar of the communal aspirations of Kosovo Albanians. And it means that we would consciously avert our gaze from the main goal: a European future for all the Western Balkans.

Mr. President,

We have gathered today primarily to address the question of the status of Kosovo. I am here to advise you clearly, and before history, of the status of the whole of Serbia as well.

I intend on setting the record straight, and I intend on being both blunt and undiplomatic.

My nation has suffered enough by being demonized for the 1990s. We are tired of seeing people hide behind the past to justify the abuse of our country today.

That is why we cannot allow a series of lies to be perpetuated into the history books that Serbia has been obstructionist, that Serbia never really negotiated, that Serbia is still a nationalistic country trying to oppress minorities. That Serbia is the cause of the present troubles.

Yes, Mr. President, I have heard these and many more such accusations. And I have heard them from people who should know better. Much better.

In back rooms and hallways, Excellencies, you have been told that every avenue has been exhausted. That a solution must be imposed, for negotiations have not born fruit.

What has transpired in the last two years has not been a negotiation. It has been an exercise in which the end result was made known to all in advance.

The last two years is a record of failure of those who wanted to impose solutions with callous disregard for the most elementary precepts of international law and democratic values.

The record of the last two years is also an indictment of a process that ought to have brought peoples together, but instead forced them apart.

Excellencies, Serbia will not accept responsibility for this abject failure. History will judge those who substituted polemics for principles, and diplomatic theatre for visionary statesmanship.

Mr. President,

I appeal to all the members of the Security Council, as well as all the member-states of the United Nations, to continue to respect, in this time of crisis, the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Serbia.

We say to you, with the certainty and fortitude of a unified nation: Serbia will never forget.
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The preservation of a Serbia whole and free, integrated into Europe and engaged with the world, is the basic tenet of our national interest. This will not change.
____

We have made our choice. Now is the time for the Security Council to choose, and for the member-states to choose—to choose whether to join us in a defense of the principles we all revere.

For that is the issue before you: whether to destroy or to preserve the sacrosanct character of basic solidarity between sovereign states, the common denominator of the world community.
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A moment such as this defines paths of nations. We are a nation, Mr. President, that has struggled over the course of many centuries to defend its freedom, to establish its democracy, and to build its just society.

So it has been, so it is, and so it will be. And so will be Kosovo. Ours to the end. Kosovo will remain a part of Serbia forever.
____

Thank you, Mr. President, for having given me the opportunity to address this Council at a time of great consequence for us all.

Excellencies,

Dear Friends,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my distinct pleasure to address here today this country’s premier institution of global affairs.

Let me begin by saying that this has been a day of accomplishment. My meetings with Foreign Minister Kubiš and Mr. Boris Zala, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Narodna rada Slovenskej Republiky, together with his colleagues, were highly productive. I look forward to continuing to broaden and deepen our bilateral relations in the months and years to come. The Slovak Republic is in many ways a model transition success story, and I thank you for your support of our goal of quickly joining you in the European family of nations.

____

I just came from the opening of an exhibition of ethnic-Slovak naïve art, on loan from the Pavel Babka International Ethno Center, located in the northern Serbian town of Kovačica. This multi-ethnic, heterogeneous community is a living testament to the bridge-building that our two nations have been engaging in for many centuries.

Another thing that we have in common is the heritage of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the enlighteners and evangelists of the Slavs. They passed through here just as they passed through my country, leaving a permanent mark on the character of our ancestors. Their accomplishments continue to provide the thread that has woven a fabric of understanding between our two peoples for a very long time.

The character of our nations has also been formed by another common feature, the Danube. This mighty river flows through our capital cities, capturing the profound sense of shared destiny which unites all the nations that have been touched by its majesty. Bratislava was even called Istropolis, meaning Danube City in Greek, during the Renaissance. Our river has been a constant, vigilant witness to the ebb and flow of European history.

And it is history—or perhaps more accurately—historical change—that is the main theme of my remarks to you this afternoon.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In Serbia today, we hear history’s whisper, just as the people of Bratislava did in 1988 during the sviečkova demonštracia or the Candle Demonstration—just as our people did on October 5^th 2000, when we peacefully overthrew the nationalist tyranny of the 1990s.

We hear history’s whisper telling us of the generational choice we face in the runoff presidential election to be held this Sunday.

We find ourselves in a time of great decision. For make no mistake, this election is a referendum, a Referendum on Europe. Each citizen of Serbia will be called on to make a clear and compelling choice, a fundamental choice.

The presidential election is not primarily about the speed of change. It’s about the direction of change: to walk forward to our European future, or to walk backwards towards self-isolation.

The result will be very close. The election has been hard-fought. The discourse has been emotional and polarizing.

This is natural, for times of historical choice are in fact moments in which the dreams and demons of a society are ventilated. But it is also a moment in which the political leadership is tested to contain the demons and to give substance to the dreams—to remind those who have forgotten what it was like in our part of the world during the 1990s, and how it has been since: far from perfect, but immeasurably better.

I deeply believe that our citizens will make the responsible choice when they cast their vote the day after tomorrow. I strongly believe they will choose to embrace the promise of a better life—that they will choose to walk through Serbia’s open door to Europe, bringing untold prosperity not only to our country but to all the Western Balkans.

Starting Monday, with victory secured in Serbia’s Referendum on Europe, together, Serbs, Slovaks, and all other European nations can begin to implement the final stage in fulfilling the dream of generations of making our continent whole, free and at peace.

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That is what the European Union is really about. It’s the antidote to isolation, protectionism, fear, extremism, and war. It brings us together, expands our markets, points to a more prosperous tomorrow, solidifies the gains made, and teaches us how to solve our differences in line with the enlightened aspirations of humankind, instead of giving in to our basest instincts.

That is why, in short, the European Union is truly an amazing accomplishment—a grand experiment in forging a new direction.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Created in the years after the deadliest conflict the world has even witnessed, the European Union brings together nations that fought innumerable wars against each other for more than a millennia into a union of peace, security, and prosperity, the EU has done more to advance the agenda of what your greatest poet, Jan Holly, called “remembering the future”, than any other political exercise in history—to construct, and to integrate, and so to grasp the infinite opportunities that the 21^st century offers to the bold, and to the visionary.

The EU is about living together in a community of shared values. It brings to the world stage a common heritage, and galvanizes us all to address our common problems in a uniquely peaceful way.

That is a reason why I enthusiastically welcome the invitation to sign, on February 7^th, the Political Agreement for Cooperation Between the European Union and Serbia.

This historical agreement will provide a comprehensive framework for the EU-Serbia relationship designed to accelerate my country’s progress toward EU membership.

It strengthens the vision of a European Serbia by transforming it into something very concrete, tangible, unmistakably real, by expanding the scope and increasing the intensity of economic, social and political cooperation. It will increase the educational opportunities for many thousands of young Serbs to study at European universities. And it will strengthen the momentum for the successful conclusion to an agreement on visa-free travel by year’s end.

____

Before proceeding with the remainder of my remarks, I want to say something very personal to you on the question of Serbia’s European identity. For a period of 500 years, we were outside of the mainstream of Europe. The significance of this period of our history—the Ottoman occupation—is something that I think is sometimes underappreciated.

It’s not just that we were subjugated by a foreign empire, that we had no country, no sovereignty, no present, but just a past to act as a guidepost.

It’s that our subjugation cut us off from our common European civilization. Our lands were considered beyond the frontier of Europe. And then, in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, we worked very, very hard to be accepted once more into the European family of nations. We succeeded, at mind-boggling human and material cost. Sometimes we made mistakes as we walked down the path history had laid out for us. But we made it.

And then the 1990s took it all away.

But now we have a chance to restore our dignity not only as Serbs and democrats—but as Europeans. We get to belong, we get to remember the future, to come back to Jan Holly’s words.

This sense of belonging—of returning to the European cradle, of not just remembering but assuring our future—is something that is of vital importance for the consolidation of our identity.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

This truly historic sense of purposeful belonging to Europe is being severely tested by some in the international community who wish to encourage the Kosovo Albanians to declare independence from Serbia. Such a blatant violation of international law could severely—perhaps fatally—undermine the tremendous democratic progress Serbia and the Western Balkans as a whole have made in past few years.

It could brings us back full circle to 1989—a year of great change for Central and Eastern Europe, but a year of descending darkness for the Western Balkans.

In the eyes of too many of our citizens, it could pit us against Europe once again. It could create a gap of understanding, and reverse the consolidation of the sense of solidarity so vital to our future, by striking at the very center of our identity as Europeans.

But not only that, the independence of Kosovo against the sovereign will of the Serbian people could freeze the completion of the generational transformation of regional security efforts, setting the stage for dangerous concepts of isolated national defense to return to the surface.

Moreover, regional integration could give way to the erection of walls against cooperation—economies would spiral into recession, perhaps depression.

And the politics of transformational change could be replaced by a politics of generational resentment throughout the region.

This short-sighted approach by some outside actors to the drama of the Western Balkans could, far from weaving us into the mainstream fabric of contemporary Europe, tear us away from the prospect of closing the book of strife and conflict for good.

Let me tell you why.

It is impossible to over-state the emotional impact that the forcible partition of Serbia—which is what the independence of Kosovo is tantamount to—would have on our citizenry.

To those who say, in effect, cut off Kosovo like you would an appendix, I reply that, with all due respect, Kosovo is our heart, it is our Jerusalem. It is the crux of our historical identity, it’s what kept us going for 500 years.

The forceful partition of Serbia would not result in, as some have suggested, a Balkan version of the Velvet Divorce. It would rather be like cutting off the hand of Peter to feed Paul, as the expression goes.

Moreover, forcibly partitioning Serbia would fundamentally overturn a core tenet of the international system established in 1945, strengthened in Europe by the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, and reaffirmed countless times since the end of the Cold War.

The precedent that would be created would give great hope to secessionists everywhere, from the Basques in Spain and the Taiwanese in China, to the Kurds in Iraq and the Luos and Kalenjin in Kenya, to say nothing of the strong pressures that would be felt for a bloody re-drawing of borders throughout the Western Balkans.

Such a myopic vision of the way forward—such a tendency to view Kosovo’s future status primarily through the lens of political expediency—is truly disappointing.

I have to be honest. I fail to understand why some are willing to sacrifice Europe’s ultimate geo-strategic priority in the Western Balkans—cementing peace and stability that leads to accelerated EU accession for all—on the altar of the communal aspirations of the Kosovo Albanians.

____

Yes, we all know that some negotiations did take place, and that no agreement was reached. So some argue that the time for constructive talks is over and the time for unilateral action is now.

But these negotiations were not conducted on the basis of good faith. It is true that the Contact Group Troika acted as an honest broker. And we are very grateful for their serious, sincere effort. But the process suffered from a fatal flaw.

Constant external disturbances in the form of public messaging which basically announced that the province’s independence would be imposed if no agreement was reached by an arbitrary, pre-set deadline.

In effect, the Kosovo Albanians were told that they would get everything they wanted if they didn’t compromise—hardly the sort of inducement that could lead to a negotiated settlement, wouldn’t you say?

____

Opportunities for negotiations are not exhausted. Because if we say they are, then it means that everyone has decided to just sit back and wait for the disaster to strike.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The time is now for all the stakeholders involved in the future of the Western Balkans to constructively make use of the weeks and months to come—and to do so in the spirit of cooperation and partnership, informed by the values and aims that we share.

Let’s re-double our efforts.

Here is what I propose: that, for the first time since the future status process began, a symmetrical set of incentives for both sides to reach a negotiated, mutually-acceptable agreement, be put on the table.

It’s not that we are asking for more of the same, for more time. What we’re asking for is quality time. So that no one from Pristina feels confident to say, as was done during the final round of the talks, that the Kosovo Albanians do not want to negotiate status. We have to work together to find a way to change the psychological mindset—ever-present amongst the Kosovo Albanians—that says “what’s mine is mine, what’s yours is negotiable.”

To facilitate an agreement, Serbia is prepared to narrow the traditional definition of sovereignty. We are willing to ensure that Kosovo has the broadest possible autonomy one can imagine, while remaining with Serbia under a common sovereign roof. We have no interest in ruling over the Kosovo Albanian community: we do not want to tax them, nor to police them, nor to have their judicial or their educational systems re-integrated into ours. Our currency does not have to have a presence in Kosovo. Our military would not have to be there, either. And we would not interfere with their relationship with international financial institutions; with them having separate representation in international sporting federations; or even with them having some sort of representation abroad.

Can you think of another country that would be willing to go that far? And still Pristina refuses to relax its maximalist demand for independence in defiance of the Security Council, and in defiance of international law. Is it reasonable to reward this uncompromising position?

Only a solution that is acceptable to both sides can be viable, sustainable, and lasting. And that means that the way forward lies in embracing European principles such as compromise, concession, and consensus-building, by engaging in a process of deliberate, patient, and sustained, good-faith negotiations until a compromise is struck. For it is never too late to negotiate about the future—especially when it’s a future we all share.

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Giving up is not the European way, history’s whisper reminds us.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

You have heard our vision of the direction of change for the Western Balkans, of our vision of how to restore for good the European spirit of Serbian identity, to be achieved after a “yes” vote on the Referendum for Europe that will take place in Serbia in two days time.

By remembering the future—in the words of the Svatopluk—as we consolidate the promise of Europe in the Balkans, we believe we can avoid stepping into the Kosovo independence chasm before us all.

We believe we can achieve an equitable peace, a compromise solution.

We believe this is possible because we believe in Europe, and because we believe in fulfilling the democratic potential of our country.

We honor its past and have faith in its future. And we reject the views of those of little faith who, by their pessimism about a common European identity, diminish Serbia’s present, betray our past, and deny us our future.

Thank you very much.