PRISTINA -- The deployment of the European Union's rule-of-law mission in Kosovo, known as EULEX, has run into difficulties.
A six-point compromise plan put forward by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon saved the mission, but weakened the EULEX mandate in Serbian-majority regions in the north. Kosovo, meanwhile, has said the six-point plan threatens its sovereignty by diluting its central institutions.
RFE/RL correspondent Zijadin Gashi sat down with Hashim Thaci, the prime minister of Kosovo, to discuss the EULEX mission, as well as the plan put forward by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, which foresees supervised independence for Kosovo but which has not yet won Security Council approval.
RFE/RL: Mr. Prime Minister, after EULEX's deployment, Belgrade is requesting the implementation of the six-point plan drafted by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. What would be your response?
Hashim Thaci: The six-point plan is nonexistent. It doesn't exist in any document, on any table, in the vocabulary of any politician or in any kind of circumstance that can be regarded as our priority or an international priority. It is included in the report of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, just the same as the document of the Republic of Kosovo. But in the obligatory sense, it is nonexistent.
We also have the presidential statement of the secretary-general, which is a very general statement. So this issue of six points, it's a closed issue and as such it will not be on the agenda in the future in Kosovo.
RFE/RL: How much do you believe EULEX will help the rule of law all over Kosovo, including in the north?
Thaci: After nine years of waiting, the civil international authority began to deploy its authority in the north, and soon this authority will be also deployed by Kosovo's institutions also. There won't be any more illegal parallel structures. Instead, there will be integration of the Serbian community into society, as well as in the institutions. And this is a huge contribution that is happening at the end of this year.
RFE/RL: Do you believe the EU's mission will manage to extend constitutionality in the northern part of Kosovo?
Thaci: The EU mission was invited by the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo; it is therefore welcomed by us and all the citizens. It will fulfill its role in accordance with the mandate given to it, as it is a counseling mission and not a parallel mission with Kosovar institutions. We have very good cooperation with it.
RFE/RL: Within the Ahtisaari package, there are solutions foreseen for the Serbian community and the north in general. Is this offer enough? Do Kosovar institutions have any other plans for the north?
Thaci: Kosovar institutions will not offer anything less or anything more. They will completely respect the document of President Ahtisaari and the constitution of the Republic of Kosovo.
A six-point compromise plan put forward by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon saved the mission, but weakened the EULEX mandate in Serbian-majority regions in the north. Kosovo, meanwhile, has said the six-point plan threatens its sovereignty by diluting its central institutions.
RFE/RL correspondent Zijadin Gashi sat down with Hashim Thaci, the prime minister of Kosovo, to discuss the EULEX mission, as well as the plan put forward by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, which foresees supervised independence for Kosovo but which has not yet won Security Council approval.
RFE/RL: Mr. Prime Minister, after EULEX's deployment, Belgrade is requesting the implementation of the six-point plan drafted by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. What would be your response?
Hashim Thaci: The six-point plan is nonexistent. It doesn't exist in any document, on any table, in the vocabulary of any politician or in any kind of circumstance that can be regarded as our priority or an international priority. It is included in the report of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, just the same as the document of the Republic of Kosovo. But in the obligatory sense, it is nonexistent.
We also have the presidential statement of the secretary-general, which is a very general statement. So this issue of six points, it's a closed issue and as such it will not be on the agenda in the future in Kosovo.
RFE/RL: How much do you believe EULEX will help the rule of law all over Kosovo, including in the north?
Thaci: After nine years of waiting, the civil international authority began to deploy its authority in the north, and soon this authority will be also deployed by Kosovo's institutions also. There won't be any more illegal parallel structures. Instead, there will be integration of the Serbian community into society, as well as in the institutions. And this is a huge contribution that is happening at the end of this year.
RFE/RL: Do you believe the EU's mission will manage to extend constitutionality in the northern part of Kosovo?
Thaci: The EU mission was invited by the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo; it is therefore welcomed by us and all the citizens. It will fulfill its role in accordance with the mandate given to it, as it is a counseling mission and not a parallel mission with Kosovar institutions. We have very good cooperation with it.
RFE/RL: Within the Ahtisaari package, there are solutions foreseen for the Serbian community and the north in general. Is this offer enough? Do Kosovar institutions have any other plans for the north?
Thaci: Kosovar institutions will not offer anything less or anything more. They will completely respect the document of President Ahtisaari and the constitution of the Republic of Kosovo.