British FM Says Kosovo Cannot Be Split To Resolve Disputes

Kosovar Prime Minister Hashim Thaci (right) and British Foreign Secretary William Hague attend a news conference after their meeting in Pristina on October 25.

Britain's foreign secretary has said Kosovo cannot be split along ethnic lines as a way to resolve the dispute over the territory.

William Hague, who met in Pristina with Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci on October 25, told reporters after the meeting that "the map is finished in Southeastern Europe."

Hague also urged Belgrade and Pristina to resolve their differences quickly as the European Union makes a new push to improve ties between Serbia and what it says is its southern province.

The British foreign minister is due to meet Serbian officials later on October 25.

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic has in the past suggested Kosovo's Serb-dominated north should join Serbia in exchange for Belgrade recognizing Kosovo as a state.

But Kosovar leaders, including Thaci, have rejected the idea.

Based on reporting by AP and Reuters