By Daisy Ayliffe - 13th July 2006
The troubled Kosovo dossier will be on the table at Monday’s meeting of EU foreign ministers.
Before lunch on Monday EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will present their latest report on progress in Kosovo.
The document is the last in a series of reflections on the EU’s role in the province.
“The paper will set out the importance of respecting the EU perspective,” a European commission source told reporters on Friday.
“It will also signal to Kosovo that its future lies in the Stablisation and Accession Agreement (SAA) with the EU.”
But with talks on the provinces future progressing slowly, officials are set to express concern that key deadlines are slipping.
Marti Ahtisaari, the UN's chief negotiator had said he planned to finish his job before his contract ends in November – but it is now unclear whether a political settlement will be possible by the end of the year.
Fundamental disagreements between Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority and the Serbian minority are taking a heavy toll.
“The end of this autumn remains the time limit, but we are not sure this can happen," Finnish prime minister Matti Vanhanen told reporters earlier this week.
As the current holder of the rotating EU presidency, the Finns are not optimistic about sealing a deal before handing over to Germany at the end of the year.
"After meeting various international factors, I got an impression that the process may be postponed until sometime next year," Finnish foreign minister Erkki Tuomioja added.
In attempt to speed up the process, Ahtisaari is expected to bring together leaders of Serbia and Kosovo in the last week of July.
Western Balkans focus
In the margins of Monday’s gathering in Brussels, there will also be a statement on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s progress in ongoing SAA talks.
Brussels will call on Bosnia to step up the pace of administrative and police reforms.
A key announcement on Serbia’s EU future is also expected on Monday evening.
Brussels has said SAA talks could restart if Belgrade proves it is doing its best to catch the war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic.
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