Serbia's Parliament Calls For New Talks On Kosovo

The head of the Serbian legal team for the ICJ, Dusan Batakovic, addresses the extraordinary parliament session in Belgrade on July 26.

Serbia's parliament has backed a government move seeking new talks on Kosovo at the United Nations.

After a 12-hour debate called to discuss a UN court ruling last week on Kosovo's independence declaration, the parliament adopted the motion with 192 votes for, 26 against, and two abstentions.

Lawmakers held an extraordinary session after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on July 22 that Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence from Serbia did not violate international law.

Then earlier on July 26 the EU offered to mediate talks between Serbia and Kosovo, as future members, in Brussels.

Serbia has vowed to pursue its fight at the UN General Assembly to reopen negotiations on the status of Kosovo, despite the ICJ's verdict, saying it will submit a draft resolution calling for talks.

Sixty-nine countries, including the United States and 22 out of 27 member states of the EU, have so far recognized Kosovo as an independent state.

compiled from agency reports