Russia's Lavrov urges "strict adherence to 1244"

Russia will not change its position on Kosovo and will not recognize the self-proclaimed state there in the future, he told.

Addressing the ties between Russia and Serbia, the minister described them as "truly good, but with potential to improve in several areas".

"Russia will support all activities that Belgrade intends to undertake within the framework of a political settlement of the problem, based on Resolution 1244. As before, we are sticking firmly to that position, which came to be out of our efforts to contribute to the strengthening of long-germ stability in the Balkans. Guided by precisely this approach, we supported the process of the dialogue between Belgrade and Priština. We are carefully monitoring its course. We appraise that the dialogue was recently suspended due to the destabilization of the situation on the administrative line between Kosovo and the rest of Serbia," Lavrov said.

He also stressed that the Kosovo-related problems take priority:

"As for solving the problems in this Serb province, Russia has not changed its stance. The normalization must be carried out in strict adherence to Resolution 1244. Attempts to bypass that resolution represent a crude violation of international law, and lead to the destabilization of the situation in the Balkans. It's a known fact that we do not recognize the self-proclaimed independence of the so-called republic of Kosovo. Principles of international law will continue to be at the core of Russia's position on how to regulate the Kosovo problem."