PER: Albanians as Majorities and Minorities: A Regional Dialogue
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Subject: PER: Albanians as Majorities and Minorities: A Regional Dialogue
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Original sender: Alex Grigor'ev <[email protected]>
PER: Albanians as Majorities and Minorities: A Regional
Dialogue
PROJECT ON ETHNIC RELATIONS
ALBANIANS AS MAJORITIES AND MINORITIES: A REGIONAL DIALOGUE
November 30-December 2, 2000; Athens, GREECE
The Project on Ethnic Relations continued its Southeast Europe
regional initiative on Albanians and Their Neighbors with a landmark
conference in Athens, Greece. (The first meeting took place in April
2000 in Budapest, Hungary.)
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>From the MINELRES moderator: See the MINELRES posting of 14 September
2000 at
http://racoon.riga.lv/minelres/archive//09142000-14:17:06-20440.html
Boris
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The Athens discussions brought together more than a hundred
participants and observers, representing virtually every political
interest in the Balkans, as well as senior policy-makers from the
international community. The meeting, which took place in the
Vougliameni suburb of Athens on December 1-2, 2000, was entitled
"Albanians as Majorities and Minorities: A Regional Dialogue." The
meeting was arranged with the assistance of the Greek Foreign
Ministry, which assured the security of the participants and meeting
site.
In addition to the presidents of Albanian political parties from
Tirana, Prishtina, Tetovo, Podgorica, and Presevo, some fifty senior
government officials from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Slovakia,
Switzerland, Turkey, United States, Yugoslavia, as well as the United
Nations, Council of Europe, OSCE, European Union, and NATO took part.
(The list of participants is attached.)
Major changes have taken place in the region since the first meeting
in Budapest, including trend-setting local elections in Kosovo,
Albania, Macedonia, and Montenegro. But the major event was the fall
of Milosevic's regime in Yugoslavia as a result of that country's
presidential and parliamentary elections. Milosevic has thus been
removed as the major obstacle to peace in the Balkans. A new
democratically-oriented federal government has been formed in Belgrade
and is slated to win the Serbian parliamentary elections scheduled for
December 23.
Several major regional issues were the subjects of lively, often
heated, debate. But the key questions were the situation in and
future status of Kosovo.
The PER meeting was the setting for the first face-to-face
confrontation between the leaders of the Kosovar Albanians (both
Ibrahim Rugova and Hashim Thaci were present) and members of the new
government in Belgrade since the war in Kosovo. So far the Kosovar
Albanians have spurned Belgrade's offer of direct talks. Thus, the
Athens meeting provided each side with an early opportunity to take
the measure of the other, and to exchange views in a neutral and
non-committal setting. This was one of the most important
contributions of the PER effort. Federal Interior Minister Zoran
Zivkovic represented the Yugoslav Government. Zarko Korac, one of the
leaders of the Serbian Democratic Opposition and Deputy Prime
Minister-designate in the Serbian Government, also took part in the
discussions.
Belgrade authorities reiterated at the PER roundtable President
Kostunica's offer to Ibrahim Rugova to meet to discuss the situation
in Kosovo. Representatives of the Kosovar Albanians responded that it
is too early for such a meeting. (This position also received support
from the leadership of UNMIK.) They said that general elections
should take place in Kosovo and new institutions of government should
be established within the first half of next year. After that, the
new Kosovar institutions will have a full mandate to conduct any talks
with Belgrade or other actors in the conflict.
The Albanian leaders from Kosovo were insistent that the only future
for Kosovo is one of full independence from Serbia and Yugoslavia.
They were supported by the other Albanian politicians from the
region. On the other side, Serbs from both Kosovo and Belgrade were
strongly opposed to independence for Kosovo. They called for complete
fulfillment of the UN Resolution 1244, which they insist leaves Kosovo
within the borders of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. They
emphasized that security should be immediately guaranteed to the
Serbs, Roma and other non-Albanian communities in Kosovo and that
conditions be created for the return of all internally displaced
persons. The Kosovar Serbs called for the release of the Albanian
prisoners who are still being held in Serbian prisons and also called
for the Kosovar Albanian leaders to make public the fate of all those
Serbs who have disappeared in Kosovo since the end of the bombing
there.
All Kosovar Albanian leaders who took part in the meeting agreed that
full protection of rights of minorities in Kosovo must be provided.
Both Kosovar Albanians and Serbs agreed that the status of Kosovo
should be solved by democratic means, though each side understands
these means differently.
Other themes under discussion in Athens were: interethnic arrangements
between the Albanian minorities and the majorities in Macedonia and
Montenegro; the future of Montenegro and the Yugoslav Federation,
democratic change in Serbia; the situation in the Albanian-dominated
Presevo Valley of Serbia; and the requirements for a stable Albania.
Prime Minister Ilir Meta of Albania used the occasion of the PER
meeting to announce that Tirana wishes as soon as possible to
re-establish diplomatic relations between Albania and the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia, which were interrupted during the Kosovo
crisis. Participants from Belgrade replied that they were ready to
re-establish relations soon and that they would turn to the question
within weeks, not months.
Discussing the tense situation in Presevo, where armed Albanians from
Kosovo are conducting cross-border guerilla attacks on Serb
authorities, all participants called for respect for international
borders and for human rights in that part of Serbia. Participants
acknowledged that the problem of Presevo is a complex one that cannot
be solved by the democratic government in Belgrade alone. It will
require cooperation with Albanian leaders in Presevo and in Kosovo,
with the international community, and especially with KFOR and UNMIK.
A serious discussion took place on the issue of the relations between
Montenegro and Serbia and their implications for the future of
Kosovo. Albanians in Montenegro called for a redefinition of their
position in the state of Montenegro, to include formal recognition of
a special status for the Albanian minority, and stated they support
Montenegro's drive for independence. (The Albanians' support for
Montenegrin independence is new since the Budapest meeting, when they
took a neutral stance on the question.)
As the meeting in Athens got underway, a new government was being
formed in Skopje. (Indeed, the arrival of several participants from
Macedonia was delayed because they were voting the question in the
Macedonian parliament.) The formation of a new Macedonian government
that now includes both major ethnic Albanian parties, the Macedonian
participants asserted, reaffirms Skopje's strong commitment to
inter-ethnic cooperation in Macedonia. (However, Albanian
participants from Macedonia insisted that the fact of an interethnic
coalition government falls short of satisfying their demands for a
constitutionally defined special status that would formally spell out
their rights as Macedonia's second nationality.)
The background issue of a "Greater Albania" also ran through the
discussions (although the Tirana leadership and other ethnic Albanian
spokesmen consistently deny that they subscribe to such a concept.)
Albanians, especially from Kosovo, stressed that Albanian nationalism
at the end of the 20th century is different from similar movements of
Serbs or Croats in the former Yugoslavia. If Serbs and Croats in
different countries viewed Belgrade and Zagreb, respectively, as their
national centers, the Albanians are polycentric and consider Tirana,
Pristina, and Tetovo to be their regional centers. Albanian officials
insisted hat Albania has a natural right to care about the future of
Albanians across the Balkans, although they consider the borders in
Europe final and non-changeable. As for the future status of Kosovo,
they said at the Athens meeting that it is up to the Kosovars
themselves and no one else. (This posture seems to represent a shift
from their April statements, which called for a 10-15 year delay
before any effort is made to define the future status of Kosovo.)
One of the main accomplishments of the Athens meeting is that it
provided an opportunity for "reality-testing" among political leaders
with varied and often diametrically opposed visions for the future of
the region and their places in it. The intensive dialogues made
possible by PER are intended to illuminate different versions of that
future and to encourage the actors to consider them in the company of
their neighbors.
The meeting in Athens was a subject of significant media coverage in
Athens, Belgrade, Pristina, Tirana, Skopje, other capitals of the
Balkans and was reported by the major international wire news
services.
PROJECT ON ETHNIC RELATIONS
ALBANIANS AS MAJORITIES AND MINORITIES: A REGIONAL DIALOGUE
November 30-December 2, 2000
Athens, GREECE
Participants
Republic of Albania
Ilir Meta, Prime Minister
Paskal Milo, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Fatos Nano, President, Socialist Party
Genc Pollo, Member, Parliament (Democratic Party); Member, Foreign
Relations Committee, Parliament
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bisera Turkovic, Minister for European Integration
Republic of Bulgaria
Kiril Topalov, Ambassador to Greece
Republic of Croatia
Josip Paro, Assistant Foreign Minister
Hellenic Republic
Dimitri Eliopoulos, Ambassador to Albania
Georgios Kaklikis, Ambassador; Head of the Liaison Office in Skopje
Evangelos Kofos, Balkan Area Senior Adviser, Hellenic Foundation for
European and Foreign Policy
Angeliki Laiou, Member, Parliament of Greece; former Deputy Minister
of Foreign Affairs
Alexandros Mallias, Ambassador; Director, South Eastern Europe
Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
George Papandreou, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Alex Rondos, Special Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs;
General Director, International Development Assistance Directorate,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Michael Spinellis, Ambassador to Yugoslavia
Republic of Hungary
Janos Huszar, Southeastern Europe Department, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs
Csaba Tabajdi, Member, Hungarian Parliament; Deputy Head, Hungarian
Socialist Party Faction
Italian Republic
Roberto Toscano, Director, Policy Planning Staff, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Jordan Boshkov, Chairman, Foreign Relations Committee, Parliament
Nikola Dimitrov, National Security Adviser to the President of the
Republic
Imer Imeri, President, Party for Democratic Prosperity
Arben Xhaferi, President, Democratic Party of Albanians
Romania
Gheorghe Magheru, Director, Directorate for Relations With EU
Candidate Countries, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Russian Federation
Olga Kolpakova, Desk Officer for Albania, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Slovak Republic
Eduard Kukan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia; Special Envoy
for the Balkans of the United Nations Secretary General
Switzerland
Maria Luisa Caroni, Ambassador to Greece
Didier Chassot, Desk Officer for Southeast Europe, Federal Department
of Foreign Affairs
Republic of Turkey
Ali Tuygan, Ambassador to Greece
United States of America
Steven Burg, Professor, Brandeis University
Nicholas Burns, Ambassador to Greece
Chris Dell, Head, US Mission in Kosovo
Michael Einik, Ambassador to Macedonia
Thomas Greenwood, Director, Southeast European Affairs, National
Security Council, The White House
Ralph Johnson, Principal Deputy High Representative of the United
Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Joseph Limprecht, Ambassador to Albania
Larry Rossin, Office of South Central European Affairs, Department of
State
Susan Woodward, Member, PER Council for Ethnic Accord; Senior Research
Fellow, Center for Defense Studies, King's College, University of
London
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Republic of Montenegro
Ferhat Dinosha, Member, Parliament of Montenegro
Miodrag Vukovic, Chairman, Executive Board, Democratic Party of
Socialists; Adviser on Constitutional and Legal Issues to the
President of Montenegro; Chairman, Committee on Political System,
Justice, and Administration, Parliament of Montenegro
Republic of Serbia
Riza Halimi, President, Party for Democratic Action; Mayor, City of
Presevo
Tahir Hasanovic, Secretary General, New Democracy Party
Dusan Janjic, Member, PER Council for Ethnic Accord; Director, Forum
for Ethnic Relations
Zarko Korac, Deputy Chairman, Chamber of the Republics, Yugoslav
Federal Parliament; President, Social Democratic Union
Zoran Zivkovic, Minister of Internal Affairs, Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia; Vice President, Democratic Party
Kosovo
His Grace Artemije, Bishop of Raska and Prizren
Skender Hyseni, Adviser to the President, Democratic League of Kosova
Oliver Ivanovic, President, Executive Board, Serbian National Council
(Kosovska Mitrovica)
Hajredin Kuci, Vice President, Democratic Party of Kosova
Ibrahim Rugova, President, Democratic League of Kosova
Veton Surroi, Editor-in-Chief, Koha Ditore
Hashim Thaci, President, Democratic Party of Kosova
Momcilo Trajkovic, President, Serbian Resistance Movement; Coordinator
for Kosovo and Metohija, Serbian Democratic Opposition
Rada Trajkovic, Member, Kosovo Transitional Council
Council of Europe
Hans-Peter Furrer, Director General, Political Affairs
European Union
Catherine Boura, Policy Unit, Council of the European Union
Italian Social Sciences Council
Alessandro Silj, Secretary General; Director, Eurobarometer Southeast
Europe Program
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Mihai Carp, Member, Balkans Task Force, International Staff
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
Gert Ahrens, Head, OSCE Presence in Albania
Daan Everts, Head, OSCE Mission in Kosovo
Adrian Severin, President, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
Project on Ethnic Relations
Alex Grigor'ev, Program Officer (USA)
Allen Kassof, President (USA)
Ferenc Melykuti, Director, PER Office in Hungary
Andrzej Mirga, Chairman, PER Romani Advisory Council; Co-Chair,
Council of Europe Specialist Group on Roma/Gypsies (Poland)
Livia Plaks, Executive Director (USA)
United Nations
Jock Covey, Deputy Head, UN Mission in Kosovo; Deputy Special
Representative of the UN Secretary General
Bernard Kouchner, Head, UN Mission in Kosovo; Special Representative
of the Secretary General
Advisers and Observers
Goran Aleksic, First Secretary, Embassy of the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia in Greece
Lyudmil Angelov, Counselor, Embassy of Bulgaria in Greece
Atanas Atanasov, First Secretary, Embassy of Bulgaria in Greece
Oleg Bredikhin, Attach�, Embassy of Russian Federation in Greece
Koco Danaj, Political Adviser to Prime Minister of Albania
Felina Danalis, Adviser, Department of International Development
Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece
Edmond Haxhinasta, Diplomatic Adviser to Prime Minister of Albania
Emmanuel Kakavelakis, Protocol Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of Greece
Jacci Knappenberger, Executive Officer, Office of Principal High
Representative of the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Haralambos Kondonis, Adviser on Balkan Affairs, Department of
International Development Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of
Greece
Marilena Koppa, Lecturer on International Relations, Panteion
University of Athens
Roussos Kunduros, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece
Miroslav Lajcak, Chief of Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
of Slovakia
Maria Marinaki, South Eastern Europe Department, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of Greece
Shaban Murati, Director, Analysis and Prognosis Department, Ministry
of Foreign Affairs
Hakan Olcay, First Counselor, Embassy of Turkey in the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia
Alexandra Papadopoulou, Head of Liaison Office of Greece in Pristina
Sophia Philippidou, Second Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of
Greece
Jean-Maurice Riperp, Ambassador of France to Greece
Kastriot Robo, Ambassador of Albania to Greece
Rev. Father Simeon, Adviser to Bishop Artemije
George Sparos, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece
Dragan Sutanovac, Special Adviser to Minister of Interior of FRY
Angelos Syrigos, Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece
Sotiris Valden, Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece
Vsevolod Tkachenko, Counselor, Embassy of Russian Federation in Greece
Alexandros Yannis, Adviser to the Special Representative of the UN
Secretary General in Kosovo
_________________________________________
Alex N. Grigor'ev
Program Officer
Project on Ethnic Relations (PER)
15 Chambers Street
Princeton, NJ 08542, USA
Telephone. 609-683-5666
Facsimile. 609-683-5888
Electronic mail:
Office: [email protected]
Personal: [email protected]
World Wide Web: www.netcom.com/~ethnic/per.html
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