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SENATE RESOLUTION 135--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT THE
UNITED STATES SHOULD SUPPORT INDEPENDENCE FOR KOSOVO
(Senate -March 29, 2007)
--- Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself, Mr. Biden, Mr. McCain, and Mr.
Smith) submitted the followoing resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 135
Whereas the United States has enduring national interests in the
peace and security of southeastern Europe, and in the greater
integration of the region into the Euro-Atlantic community of
democratic, well-governed states;
[Page: S4216] Whereas, in March 1999, the United States, along with
other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO),
commenced military action aimed at ending Slobodan Milosevic's brutal
campaign of ethnic cleansing against the people of Kosovo;
Whereas that military action resulted in the defeat of Serb forces
and the creation of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo, an interim
United Nations administration that governs Kosovo, and which ended,
de facto, the sovereignty that was previously exercised by the
Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia over Kosovo;
Whereas the men and women of the Armed Forces of the United States
have served bravely in Kosovo since 1999, and their presence and
participation in the NATO-led Kosovo Force has been indispensable in
protecting the people of Kosovo and stabilizing the region;
Whereas United Nations administration was never intended nor
understood as a permanent solution to the political status of Kosovo;
Whereas, in light of NATO's military intervention in Kosovo and
the United Nations trusteeship established in Kosovo pursuant to
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999), the
international community has recognized the political circumstances in
Kosovo as unique, and the settlement of Kosovo's status therefore
does not establish a precedent for the resolution of other conflicts;
Whereas continuing uncertainty about the status of Kosovo is
unacceptable to the overwhelming majority of the inhabitants of
Kosovo, inhibits economic and political development in Kosovo, and
contributes to instability and radicalism in both Kosovo and Serbia;
Whereas, in 2005, the United Nations Secretary-General appointed
the former President of Finland, Martti Ahtisaari, as United Nations
Special Envoy for Kosovo to develop a comprehensive settlement
proposal to resolve the political status of Kosovo;
Whereas, in March 2007, after 14 months of intensive diplomacy,
Special Envoy Ahtisaari submitted to the Security Council a
comprehensive settlement proposal that would result in supervised
independence for Kosovo, with robust protections for the rights of
minorities; and
Whereas Special Envoy Ahtisaari has explored every reasonable
avenue for compromise in the course of his diplomacy and has stated
that further negotiations would be counterproductive: Now, therefore,
be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) the United States should support the independence of Kosovo
in accordance with its currently constituted borders, a resolution
that represents the only just, sustainable solution for an
economically viable and politically stable Kosovo;
(2) the United States should, in consultation and cooperation
with its allies, vigorously and promptly pursue a United Nations
Security Council resolution that endorses the recommendations of
United Nations Special Envoy for Kosovo Martti Ahtisaari;
(3) in the absence of timely action by the United Nations
Security Council, the United States should be prepared to act in
conjunction with like-minded democracies to confer diplomatic
recognition on, and establish full diplomatic relations with, Kosovo
as an independent state, much as the United States worked in
cooperation with like-minded democracies to protect the people of
Kosovo in 1999;
(4) the United States should oppose any delay in the resolution
of the political status of Kosovo as counterproductive, potentially
dangerous, and likely to make the achievement of a lasting settlement
more difficult;
(5) the United States should work together with the European
Union as a full partner in supporting the political and economic
development of an independent Kosovo;
(6) the United States should support the integration of Kosovo
into international and Euro-Atlantic institutions, including its
timely admission to the Partnership for Peace program of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), with the ultimate goal of full
membership in NATO;
(7) the United States should reaffirm its commitment to
southeastern Europe, including the continuation of the military
mission in Kosovo to deter and disrupt any efforts by any party to
destabilize the region through violence;
(8) the Government of Kosovo should exercise responsible
leadership under supervised independence and thereby accelerate the
transition to full independence, taking particular care to reassure,
protect, and ensure the full political and economic rights of Serb
and other minority communities in Kosovo;
(9) the Government of Kosovo should make every reasonable effort
to develop a cooperative relationship with the Government of Serbia,
in recognition of its legitimate interests in the safety of the Serb
population in Kosovo and in the protection and preservation of the
patrimonial sites of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo; and
(10) the Government of Serbia should exercise responsible
leadership and seize the opportunity and the imperative presented by
the independence of Kosovo to end the dark chapter of the 1990s and
focus its energies toward achieving a prosperous and peaceful future
through regional cooperation and integration into Euro-Atlantic
institutions, including NATO and the European Union, and toward the
establishment of open, constructive relations with the government of
Kosovo.
END
All rights reserved The Library of Congress Thomas 2007
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