Cryptic Invitation Finally Arrives to Belgrade
Cryptic Invitation: Time and Place Alone
The invitation sent to Belgrade and Pristina states that the new phase of negotiations on the future status of Kosovo and Metohija will begin in Vienna on Aug 30, confirming the expected date and place but giving no details about the timetable, the agenda or the expected level of the delegations taking part in this stage of negotiations.
Sources close to the Foreign Ministry in Belgrade could not tell from which address the invitation had been sent, which, as assessed by Serbian officials, creates further confusion ahead of the first meeting in the new phase of the negotiating process.
The missing elements — the expected political level of the delegations and the timetable for the meeting, were key to determining who will represent Serbia at the Vienna negotiations, Belgrade sources close to the authorities told Tanjug.
Kosovo Albanian separatist representative Fatmir Sejdiu in Pristina announced on Wednesday evening that the invitation had arrived, and the Serbian Foreign Ministry received the invitation today.
The brief, enigmatic piece of paper fails to state the issues that will be on the timetable of the renewed negotiations planned to last 120 days according to Western announcements, or what is the expected level of the two delegations.
According to Tanjug, the dilemma regarding the agenda and delegation composition may be resolved by the German diplomat and European Union representative in the negotiations Wolfgang Ischinger, who will discuss the modalities of the negotiations with Albanian separatists in Pristina today and tomorrow.
Serbian representatives have sent to the negotiating ‘troika’ detailed proposal for the rules of upcoming negotiations and both the comprehensive and summarized versions of official Serbian platform for resolving the status of the southern province on August 10.