UN SPECIAL ENVOY VISITS BELGRADE

BELGRADE, June 4 (Hina) - Edward Kukan, special envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the Balkans, and the highest Yugoslav officials discussed in Belgrade on Monday the situation in Kosovo in the light of a constitutional framework for Kosovo and elections which have been scheduled for the end of the year. Kukan will meet UN officials and Kosovo Albanian and Serb representatives in Pristina on Tuesday. The office of Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica issued a statement saying the meeting tackled the issues which negatively affect "not only the normalisation of the situation in Yugoslavia but peace and stability in the region as well." According to the statement, Kostunica told Kukan the constitutional framework for local self-government would give Kosovo the elements of statehood, which, he said, was contrary to UN Resolution 1244 on Kosovo. Kukan also met Prime Minister Zoran Zizic whom he conveyed the stance of the international community that the problem of Kosovo was crucial for stability in the region. The Yugoslav prime minister said that "despite drawbacks of the constitutional framework and poor conditions for the elections, there is an interest in overcoming the situation to the benefit of Kosovo communities and for the sake of stability in Yugoslavia and the Balkans." The UN envoy and the Yugoslav officials also discussed the country's cooperation with the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague but the statement contained no details about that topic. (hina) rml