There are other possibilities for settling Kosovo's status issue if it cannot be settled at the Security Council, the special envoy of EU president Portugal, Antonio Tanger Correa, said on Thursday.
Do not be disappointed because there is no Security Council resolution. I don't think that's a disaster. On the contrary, we have a solution and we will adopt it very soon within the Contact Group, Correa said after meeting Kosovo President Fatmir Sejdiu.
Correa said Portugal was committed to resolving the Kosovo status issue and underlined that its president, premier and foreign minister were very engaged in the process.
He said the Contact Group agreed on a short period for negotiations at which the two sides could find a solution.
Correa announced that next week EU foreign ministers would discuss Kosovo and decide on the next steps.
We have to exploit all the possibilities of dialogue. This is the last attempt to reach an agreement. A solution has to be found, the sooner the better, he said.
The leader of the opposition Reformist Party ORA and a member of the Kosovo negotiating team, Veton Surroi, said the Kosovo Assembly should proclaim the province's independence before Christmas.
He told the press it was clear that finding a solution at the Security Council was unlikely and that it was up to the international community to determine the deadline for settling the Kosovo status issue.
Surroi underlined the importance of constant cooperation between Kosovo and the international community.