Kosovo extremist PM vows to apply new constitution

June 03, 2008 4:50 PM

BELGRADE, Jun 03, 2008 (Xinhua via COMTEX News Network) -- Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said on Tuesday that the new constitution would be valid in the entire territory of Kosovo despite the looming threat of division along ethnic lines.

Thaci told a government session that all Kosovo institutions would function in keeping with the new constitution as of June 15, when the constitution takes effect, the Serbian official news agency Tanjug reported.

"The new Kosovo institutions are ready to take on full responsibility in cooperation with international institutions so that the country will function completely in each of its segments, " Thaci was quoted as saying.

Kosovo, which is dominated by ethnic Albanians, unilaterally declared independence from Serbia with Western backing on Feb. 17. It has been run by the UN mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) since 1999, when NATO bombing forced the Serbian government to end its crackdown against pro-independent Albanian guerrillas and pull its troops out of Kosovo.

According to the UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari's plan for " supervised independence," the UNMIK is due to hand over its remaining powers to Kosovo's local authorities and the new EU-led police and supervisory mission (EULEX) by June 15.

However, Serbia and the some 120,000 Kosovo Serbs rejected Kosovo's independence and the deployment of the "illegal" EU mission without the UN authorization.

Thaci also asked all government ministers to be ready to accept their new mandates envisaged under the new constitution.

On April 9, Kosovo's parliament adopted the new constitution, which stipulates the establishment of a Foreign Ministry, Defense Ministry, security force, constitutional court and intelligence agency.

Thaci expressed optimism regarding the imminent clarification of the issue of the international presence in Kosovo.

There are certain dilemmas over the transfer of authority between the UNMIK and the EULEX, Thaci said, adding that he hopes Kosovo will have only one international decision-making center.

The UNMIK has said it is awaiting instructions from its headquarters in New York about how to carry out the transition, but it is certain to remain in northern Kosovo, where ethnic Serbs inhabit in large numbers, for some time under current the UN Security Council Resolution 1244.