Global Policy Forum

By Gabriel Partos

Back in October last year, senior politicians from Serbia and Kosovo met for the first time since the end of the war in 1999. However, the meeting, in Vienna, ended without any direct dialogue.

Talks are now being held in the Kosovar capital, Pristina, on Thursday. The talks are to do with co-operation in the area of energy - one of four areas of practical concern that will be discussed in the coming months. But the more sensitive issue of Kosovo's status - whether it should remain part of Serbia and Montenegro or become independent - will not be on the agenda.

There have been no substantive talks between officials from Serbia and the predominantly ethnic Albanian-inhabited Kosovo since the war of 1999 which ended with the loss of Belgrade's effective control over Kosovo. Since then Kosovo has acquired a considerable degree of self-government under a United Nations administration, known as UNMIK, while formally remaining part of Serbia and Montenegro.

The talks were initially launched amidst much publicity, in the presence of Serbia's and Kosovo's leading politicians who were joined by prominent European Union and Nato figures. But it has taken almost five months to get down to serious business.

Slow progress

The delay has been due, in part, to a prolonged government crisis in Serbia. A new minority administration has only just emerged in the country in the wake of December's inconclusive parliamentary elections.

There were other reasons, too, for the slow pace of progress. There was a reluctance among some of the would-be participants to commit themselves and a dispute over when and where the talks should be held. "It shows how difficult it must have been for those parties to accept to sit at the same table, and discuss things. " says UNMIK's spokesperson, Izabella Karlowicz. "But it also shows that there's commitment on both sides, and they accept that it is necessary to move on and start talking."

Practicalities

The talks that open on Thursday will deal with issues of co-operation over energy as Kosovo relies on supplies from Serbia. Next week negotiations will also get under way on tracing missing persons. After that negotiations are due to centre on helping the return of Serb refugees to Kosovo and improving transport links.

What these four strands of discussions have in common is that they are all related to practical issues, rather than the question of Kosovo's future status. They involve experts, not politicians.

The series of talks, which are to be held in Pristina and Belgrade, are open-ended. No firm agenda has been agreed and there is no time limit to how long they will go on. Other topics, lying outside the four strands already approved, may also be discussed.

Independence

Kosovo's ethnic Albanians, who make up over 90% of the population, are overwhelmingly committed to Kosovo's independence. And they want it as quickly as possible. But they are aware that UNMIK has set a tough set of standards Kosovo has to reach in terms of establishing or consolidating democracy, inter-ethnic tolerance and the rule of law before talks on Kosovo's status can start.

A willingness to take part in the current negotiations and make them work is one of the standards by which the international community will judge whether conditions are ripe for talks to settle Kosovo's long-term future.

Kosovo's President, Ibrahim Rugova, is firmly in favour of participation. But not all ethnic Albanian politicians share his view. In the meantime, Belgrade is eager to engage in talks at all levels in the hope of halting what it sees as Kosovo's drift towards independence under the UN administration.

Kalashnikov

But the emergence of the nationalist Vojislav Kostunica as Serbia's prime minister will not make any negotiations easy. During the Kosovo conflict Mr Kostunica was photographed brandishing a Kalashnikov assault rifle while visiting a Serb-inhabited area in the province.

While presenting his new government to the Serb parliament on Tuesday, Mr Kostunica revived the idea of Kosovo's sub-division of the country along ethnic lines - with the entity remaining part of Serbia and Montenegro. But it is not a solution that has gone down well with UNMIK which is committed to creating a multi-ethnic society. Indeed, the Kosovar delegation at the talks on energy includes an ethnic Serb.

Distrust

Given the history of mutual animosity and suspicions, the talks may drag on for many months. But in some areas, where a deal could bring mutual benefits, enlightened self-interest may produce results earlier than expected.

Ultimately, though, these talks are little more than a dress rehearsal for future negotiations on how Kosovo should to fit into the Balkans of the 21st century.