Kosovo ready for talks with Serbia, excluding status and division

Kosovo officials say they are ready for talks with Serbia, but vowed not to discuss Kosovo’s status. Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuci said on Monday (September 13th) that parliament must authorise the talks. “Three things are important for Kosovo institutions — the participants in these talks, topics that will be discussed and the timing of the talks. We will be very constructive and will co-operate with the international community,” Kuci said. Prime Minister Hashim Thaci has ruled out including northern Kosovo, while opposition parties say that Kosovo’s political status, its territorial integrity and the special status of the north are three topics that are off the table. But newspapers quote unnamed diplomatic sources as saying that the north’s issues, such as customs points, courts, and the rule of law, will be part of the dialogue.