ENGLAND: BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY ROBIN COOK PRAISES THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY'S EFFORTS TO BRING SERBS AND ALBANIANS TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE
Record ID:
222914
ENGLAND: BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY ROBIN COOK PRAISES THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY'S EFFORTS TO BRING SERBS AND ALBANIANS TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE
- Title: ENGLAND: BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY ROBIN COOK PRAISES THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY'S EFFORTS TO BRING SERBS AND ALBANIANS TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE
- Date: 5th February 1999
- Summary: LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM (FEBRUARY 5, 1999) (REUTERS) 1. TV BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY ROBIN COOK WALKING UP STAIRS AT HIS LONDON RESIDENCE 0.08 2. MCU (English) COOK : "We have two strengths when we go to these talks in Rambouillet. The first is that we go with the backing of a united and determined international community, and I'll be taking that message to both sides. The second is that we have achieved a first, that is to bring both sides together, that has never actually happened throughout the history of this conflict. But there's still some hard, tough bargaining to go. As I said in parliament, I can't guarantee these talks will succeed. I can guarantee we'll give it our best, and we'll go there with real determination. (REPORTER'S QUESTION) COOK: At the start of negotiations we'll be giving both sides two documents, first of all a simple, straightforward statement of principles - sticking by the ceasefire, making sure the proposals for Kosovo are democratic, supervised by the international community, and provide for a self-governing Kosovo, and that there'll be a three-year interim period at the end of which there can be a review of the final status of Kosovo. Those statements of principles will be accompanied by a much more detailed framework document, which a lot of work has gone into by the Contact Group and by others. We now want both sides to show the same work, the same commitment, to try and make sure they negotiate in good faith to reach agreement on that document." (REPORTER'S QUESTION) COOK: "We are willing to commit ground troops, along with our allies, in order to provide the stability in which a political settlement could take root, but that does depend upon both sides reaching that political settlement, and that's the first stage. If we can achieve that, then we can look at the issue of ground troops and see if there's the agreement there. Frankly, I think it might be in the interests of both sides, including Belgrade, if there were stability in Kosovo so that both sides could stop the conflict with confidence that the ceasefire would stick. (Q. But that's a separate agreement, it's not a precondition for the overall agreement?) I think we've got to be very careful as we go into these talks that we don't set too many preconditions, otherwise the talks don't begin, you spend your time arguing about the preconditions. First of all, let's get the political settlement, let's get an agreement on what the Kosovo of the future could look like, and what would be the best way of solving the conflict, rather than by carrying on the conflict. Neither side can win the conflict - the Kosovo Liberation Army can't throw the Yugoslav army out of Kosovo, and Belgrade can not win a guerrilla war against the great majority of the population. It's in both their interests to achieve a solution. If we get that solution, then we're willing to help both sides with an international presence". (REPORTER'S QUESTION) COOK:" We go there to try and succeed. I can't guarantee success, and it'll be down to both sides whether they come in good faith, and whether they're both willing to stop the fighting. If they are, we're willing to help them, we're going to go there in order to give them a message that they have to stop the fighting, they can not win by military action, they can only find a way out of this conflict by a process of negotiation and dialogue of the kind we've offered them. We're going to focus on trying to make a success of this, we're not going to go with an expectation of failure, although we know it's going to be tough and hard". 3.48 3. SV COOK SEATED WITH REPORTER 3.54 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 20th February 1999 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- City:
- Country: United Kingdom
- Reuters ID: LVAE967BHQBZFVS8G6FYDMWGSZO8
- Story Text: British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook has hailed the
upcoming Kosovo peace talks as the first time the warring
parties have agreed to come to the negotiating table, but
warned there is still a long way to go before a peaceful
resolution can be reached.
Speaking in London on Friday (February 5) Cook praised
the international community's efforts to bring Serbs and
ethnic Albanians together to thrash out a peace settlement.
The Kosovo peace conference will open outside Paris on
Saturday with U.S.envoy Chris Hill heading the West's
negotiating team in the Rambouillet chateau.He will be
flanked by European Union's Kosovo envoy Wolfgang Petritsch
and Russian envoy Igor Magorsky and together they will work
hard at reconciling the two sides.
The Foreign Secretary also repeated the Britain's
commitment to place ground troops, together with the allies,
in an effort to guarantee peace in Kosovo.But that depends on
the two sides reaching an agreement, he said.
Cook and French Foreign minister Hubert Vedrine will put
the heavy political pressure on the Serbs and the sepearatist
ethnic Albanians to end the violence in Kosovo.
The Anglo-French axis on Kosovo follows a bilateral summit
in Saint Malo in December when the two countries committed
themselves to promoting a bigger role for the European Union
in defence planning and possible military action.
Belgrade is due to name its delegates to Rambouillet on
Friday.
- Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None