yugoslavias implosion

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haven or protection zones’ around them, as mentioned by the Eide
report.” 466 The proposal also envisaged restitution of Serbian Orthodox
property that had been confiscated in the post–World War II
nationalization.
The Kosovo Assembly adopted a resolution heralding its position
in negotiations. The most prominent representatives of Kosovar
Albanians insisted on independence. Albanians were trying
to accommodate the demands of the international community by
working on decentralization, but not in the ethnic sense on which
the Serbs insisted. Although the international community had
renounced the “standards before status” policy, it reiterated its ambition
to insist on standards during status-related negotiations.
Martti Ahtisaari, the un special envoy for resolution of the
future status of Kosovo, began his tenure in 2005 with a tour of
regional countries interested in an imminent settlement of Kosovo’s
status. In an interview he remarked, “To achieve progress in implementation
of standards we need both the readiness of Albanians in
Kosovo and cooperation of the minority groups, including Serbs.”
He also made it clear that the international community would
remain in Kosovo regardless of the final status and quoted numerous
reasons to do so, notably, to ensure multiethnicity, the establishment
of mechanisms for the protection of human rights and the repatriation
of displaced persons and refugees. He added that once the issue
of Kosovo was resolved, the eu would continue to play a major role
in the region, because of which a “representative of Brussels should
be a member of my team.” 467
466 Kai Aage Eide Report on a comprehensive view of the situation in Kosovo, October 7, 2005 .
467 http://kosovonewsandviews .blogspot .com/2005