63rd UN General Assembly begins in New York
The 63rd General Assembly of the UN is opening on Tuesday in New York, and its agenda should include Serbia's initiative to ask the International court of Justice (ICJ) for opinion on the legality of Kosovo's unilaterally declared independence
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, September 16, 2008
The decision on whether Serbia's initiative will be added to the agenda will be made by the General Committee at a meeting Wednesday.
Serbia's request to add the initiative on Kosovo to the agenda says that the declaration of independence has given rise to a series of controversies and divides within the international community and that the ICJ's opinion will greatly help to alleviate tensions, since the court is the supreme judicial organ of the UN.
Serbian President Boris Tadic on Monday voiced his expectation that the UN General Assembly would accept Serbia's initiative.
Tadic said he believed that Serbia had an excellent chance that the Court would issue an opinion in line with its stands and that the new stage of resolution of the future status of Kosovo, which takes international law into account, would then start.
"I hope we will be in a situation to have a vote at the General Assembly on the initiative of Serbia, which will result in a decision of the UN Assembly that the International Court of Justice must issue an opinion," Tadic said.
The Serbian president said that this decision would improve the international credibility of Serbia - "a country that does not defend its integrity by force, but by democratic and legal principles".
"This would be an important quality step forward in comparison with the policy of the 1990s and in that sense Serbia would secure its European future, but by defending its dignity, it would also secure the country's integrity and sovereignty in Kosovo and the rights of our citizens in Kosovo which are without any doubt threatened now," Tadic said.
