The status of the UN-run Serbian province of Kosovo-Metohija, whose ethnic Albanians are demanding independence, is in the balance because Russia is threatening veto.  Some western nations have been trying to push a draft resolution in the Security Council to implement key provisions of UN mediator Martti Ahtissari's plan to grant "supervised independence" to Albanians living in the Serbian province of Kosovo-Metohija.

Friday, they ran into opposition from Moscow, which had said it would use its power of veto and block the move. Faced with Russian and Belgrade’s opposition the United States and its European allies decided not to have vote on independence in the UN SC and said they would hand the issue back to a six-nation Contact Group. Meanwhile, Agim Cheku, Kosovo Albanian leader announced that he would proclaim Kosovo’s independence unilaterally on November 28.

The news is that Condoleezza Rice, the American Secretary of State, will ask the leaders of Kosovo not to do anything rash. European foreign ministers are also expected to discuss the crisis in the upcoming days. The international Contact Group, which includes the United States, Britain, France and Russia, will discuss what to do next on Wednesday.

James Jatras, director of the American Council for Kosovo, a lobby group based in Washington DC, believes that Washington does not have strong enough support of the European countries for this crucial move.

“If they were determined to try to impose the solution outside the Security Council,” Jatras said, “they would have gone forward with the vote knowing that the Russians would have vetoed it. They would use that as a pretext to say: ‘Now, you see we don’t have any other choice but to try some other way.’

The fact that they did not even do that but rather they pulled back is to me an indication that they don’t have enough strength and the Washington government cannot count on the support of the European countries for a solution outside the Security Council. It means they are taking a step back. They may even go back to blabbing for a while in the Contact Group to figure out what their next step is.”

Jatras doesn’t believe that the Kosovo issue can be settled outside the UN Security Council.

“Certainly it cannot be settled in the Contact Group. Solana said the other day they would figure out something outside of the Security Council and go to the Contact Group. How can the Contact Group settle anything? There is no standing of a Contact Group under any concept of the international law,” explains Jatras.

“The Contact Group has no weight to supplant the statement from the Security Council in the Resolution 1244. It is simply an informal talk shop. They would have to go back to the Security Council or find some pretext for the unilateral declaration on independence and see whether Washington can force that through against the Russian opposition and cause a complete confusion among the Europeans.”

Jatras had said on Ottawa’s CKCU “Monday’s Encounter”this week, that Ceku was coming to Washington in the near future to see what their next move would be.

“Frankly, the big question here is: Is Bush Ceku’s hostage, or is Ceku Bush’s hostage? It is not entirely clear if Bush is now in the position where if Ceku goes ahead with the declaration on independence, will he feel bound to recognize it? To the contrary, is Ceku in the position where he cannot move forward without Bush giving him a green light? It is becoming very clear with the more general collapse of the authority of the Bush administration, not only internationally but also even domestically, that they are going to have trouble delivering promises they had made to Albanians all these years. The latest developments in the Security Council show that neither Moscow nor Belgrade are letting any kind of trickery get pass them. I am glad to see that Belgrade appears to be very united on a very clear and principled position, which will be clearer in any further negotiation that takes place now,” concluded Jatras.