MACEDONIAN POLL SHOWS SLAVS FEAR KOSOVO'S INDEPENDENCE, ALBANIANS SUPPORT IT
BBC Monitoring International Reports - July 5, 2007 Thursday

Text of report by Macedonian newspaper Vecer on 4 July

[Report by Goce Mihajloski: "Macedonians Fear Independent Kosovo"]

Macedonians are genuinely afraid of Kosovo's independence. According to the latest opinion poll by Brima Gallup, only 3.1 per cent of [Slav] Macedonians support the province's independence, as against 95.3 per cent of Albanians who support this status. Two years ago, 2.5 per cent of Macedonians were in favour of independent Kosovo.

This is the result of perceptions that such a state would show aspirations towards Macedonia, where the percentage of Albanians is high. Yet, there is a gradual change of opinion towards reducing that fear and mistrust towards Kosovo's independence. This trend is in immediate association with the quality of Macedonia's internal interethnic relations and trust, regional political analyst Mersel Bilalli says.

Two-thirds of the Macedonians want Kosovo to remain a part of Serbia, 30.5 per cent support "an independent republic within Serbia," while 33.9 per cent are in favour of "restoring its former status." Nevertheless, not too many Macedonians - only 18.6 per cent - support the known Serbian position of "more than autonomy, less than independence," which according to Bilalli indicates that the Macedonians' position is not the result of their sympathies for Serbia, as it is sometimes portrayed, but that this reservation stems from their fear and lack of trust in Kosovo.

Skopje's official policy does not correspond with the views of the majority of the citizens. The political elites' consensus is that Martti Ahtisaari's plan, which foresees monitored independence, is a good basis for identifying a final solution to the status. Officials explain that our aspirations to join the EU and NATO serve as the principal motive for our apparent taking sides on this issue.

Yesterday former DPA [Democratic Party of Albanians - PDSh in Albanian] leader Arben Xhaferi, too, reiterated that the UN envoy's plan is the only one that can "apply to Kosovo." In an interview for Tirana Top Channel Television, he warned that failure to grant independence would cause large-scale destabilization.

I support Ahtisaari's plan and I am convinced that the process of defining Kosovo's status will end successfully. The United States plays a very important role in this affair. Although Washington has many other important issues, it does not forget Kosovo, Xhaferi said.

Moreover, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic has warned that "the present moment of resolving Kosovo's status is a delicate period for the region's future." In his view, any solution outside the Security Council would pose an extremely serious threat to the region's peace and stability. He asks Macedonia to be neutral until Kosovo's status has been resolved.

The current moment is delicate not only for Serbia, but also for all the other countries in the region, including Macedonia. We expect maximum restraint, primarily from our neighbours, on the issue of Kosovo's future status, Jeremic said in an interview for Macedonian Radio.

Montenegro, Kosovo's second "independent" neighbour, immediately responded to this appeal, saying that it "would rather not interfere in the Serbian policy on its province."

Source: Vecer, Skopje, in Macedonian 4 Jul 07

Copyright 2007 Financial Times Information
Copyright 2007 BBC Monitoring Service , Source: The Financial Times Limited

Posted for Fair Use only.