VOA常速英语2007年-Future Kosovo PM tells Serbs 'Don't Fear Indepe

By Stefan Bos
Budapest
10 December 2007

Kosovo's incoming Prime Minister Hashim Thaci has urged the province's minority Serbs not to be afraid of independence that the ethnic¹-Albanian majority wants to declare soon. Stefan Bos reports for VOA from Budapest, EU foreign ministers are discussing the future of Kosovo, after the passing of a deadline for international mediators to reach an agreement.

The European Union's foreign ministers have gathered in Brussels to try to formulate² a common position on the future status of Serbia's Kosovo Province, where a restless government in the mostly ethnic Albanian area has made clear it wants to declare independence from Serbia before May.

The three international mediators, the European Union, Russia and the United States have failed to negotiate a deal between Kosovo's leadership and the Serbian government in Belgrade by a December 10 deadline. Russia has proposed new negotiations³ between its ally Serbia, which strongly opposes independence, and the provincial⁴ government, but the European Union and the United States believe it is time to settle the issue.

While most EU nations support independence, some are reluctant.

Slovakia and Romania, which have large ethnic-Hungarian minorities, fear that backing Kosovo's bid could set an international precedent⁵ and boost separatist sentiments in their own countries and across Europe.

Similar concerns have been expressed by Greece and Spain, which have seen years of attacks by separatist organizations. The divided island of Cyprus is insisting that Kosovo's sovereignty must be backed by a U.N. resolution.

But Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt is optimistic that the European Union will achieve unity⁶ on Kosovo.

"Oh I think we can. Virtual unity. I think there is one country that is very firm and saying that we cannot move forward without the decision of the U.N. security council. I can well understand that position," he said.

Yet, European diplomats⁷ agree there is little time for talks left.

Kosovo's outgoing Prime Minister Agim Ceku has told EuroNews Television that the province's government wants to declare independence very soon.

"We think that [the] Troika process and Ahtisaari package are a reasonable base for a declaration of an independent Kosovo. This declaration must happen immediately and has to be permanent," he said.

About 16,000 NATO-led peacekeepers are in Kosovo to prevent possible new clashes between the ethnic-Albanian majority and minority Serbs if independence is declared.

Kosovo's future prime minister, Hashim Thaci, told the British Broadcasting Corporation that the 100,000 Serbs still living in the region have nothing to fear.

"I will work very hard with them. I will go to visit them. To speak with them. Hand to hand, and home to home. And I will discuss with them that they do not need to be afraid from the independence of Kosovo. Because the independence of Kosovo will be a positive decision for everybody and it will be not just something positive for Albanians," he said.

Not everyone finds these words of the former guerilla commander re-assuring. Kosovo's Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic warns of more bloodshed.

"Serbs should response somehow. That means in a very small piece of land you will have two armies, keeping the finger on the trigger," he said.

That worries international peacekeepers who have been in Kosovo since 1999 when NATO forced Serb troops to end a brutal⁸ crackdown on independence seeking ethnic Albanians. They are expected to stay for some time in Kosovo, which is seen by Belgrade as the cradle of Serbian culture and religion, and claimed by Pristina as the ethnic-Albanians' historic heartland.

1 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

2 formulate   

v.用公式表示；规划；设计；系统地阐述

参考例句：

• He took care to formulate his reply very clearly.他字斟句酌，清楚地做了回答。
• I was impressed by the way he could formulate his ideas.他陈述观点的方式让我印象深刻。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

5 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

6 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

7 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。