MOSCOW, May 21 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is not happy with some UN Security Council members' plans to approve proposals put forward by a UN envoy for Kosovo, the foreign minister said Monday.
A draft UN Security Council resolution on Kosovo calling for the independence of Yugoslavia's breakaway province was submitted by France, the U.K., Germany and the United States and is based on the plan proposed by UN special envoy Martti Ahtisaari, which would eventually grant Kosovo the independence sought by its Albanian majority.
"The resolution proposed by the Western nations which approves the [Marti] Ahtisaari plan for Kosovo, cancelling Resolution 1244, does not satisfy us," Sergei Lavrov said.
Adopted in 1999, Resolution 1244 determined to resolve the grave humanitarian situation in Kosovo and to provide for the safe and free return of all refugees and displaced persons to their homes, a requirement still far from being fulfilled.
Kosovo, which has a population of two million, has been a UN protectorate since NATO's 78-day bombing campaign against the former Yugoslavia ended a war between Serb forces and Muslim Albanian separatists in 1999.
While the Albanians have since demanded full independence, the sizeable Orthodox Serb minority has complained that their lives and holy places would be at risk under the proposed setup.
Russia has repeatedly stated it will only support a deal respecting the interests of all the parties concerned.
Serbia is strongly opposed to independence for the province, but the United States and the European Union have expressed support for its sovereignty.
