RI throw weight behind Serbia's move on Kosovo

Tony Hotland , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 03/28/2008 1:39 AM

Indonesia threw its weight Thursday behind a push by Serbia at the UN General Assembly to allow a legally-binding opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia, Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said.

"We welcome the determination on the part of Serbia to push for dialogue and negotiations to solve the problem of Kosovo ... as well as the idea to table a resolution at the UN General Assembly to request the advisory opinion of the ICJ on the question of legality of the unilateral declaration of independence," he said.

Hassan was speaking after meeting with his Serbian counterpart Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, who is on a one-day visit to court Indonesia, an elected member of the UN Security Council.

"We agreed to have close consultation on the way Indonesia could play a constructive role in that process," Hassan said.

Serbia, backed by its ally veto-wielding Council member Russia, has said it will not recognize Kosovan independence, declared last month.

The United States and many members of the European Union, which Serbia is seeking membership with, have recognized Kosovo.

Indonesia has yet to either recognize or oppose the declaration, but Hassan said it "strongly urges solutions be found by peaceful means through dialogue and negotiation".

In response, Jeremic said Serbia appreciated Indonesia's position.

He said the conflict between Serbia and Kosovo was not a religious issue, but was purely politics.

"It's a fact the majority of the people in Kosovo are Muslims and the majority of the people in Serbia outside Kosovo are non-Muslims. But it is an issue of ethnic Albanians in Serbia who are seeking independence, unfortunately in a unilateral way," he said.

Indonesia is home to the world's largest Muslim population.

Jeremic said Serbia wanted to govern ethnic Serb areas in Kosovo under an interim agreement with the UN mission there to avoid violent conflict.

The two ministers also signed a joint bilateral commission between the two countries on Thursday, in a move to encourage prosperous trade and investment cooperation as well as interaction between people from both nations.

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