Serbia Seeks Delay Of Kosovo Talks

Serbian President Boris Tadic says he will ask the international community to delay further talks on the future status of Kosovo for at least 10 days to allow Serbia's new parliament to convene.

Tadic was quoted by the Beta news agency as saying he seek the delay from the six-country Contact Group -- the United States, Russia, Britain, Germany, France, and Italy.

The next round of United Nations-mediated talks on Kosovo are scheduled for February 13 in Vienna, Austria.

Reports say the inauguration of the new parliament, elected last month, could be held in the coming days and would be followed by the formation of a new government and a new Serbian negotiating team for the Kosovo issue.

Serbian leaders have described as "unacceptable" the recently unveiled UN plan for Kosovo's future, saying it would clear the way for the independence of the predominantly ethnic-Albanian province.

U.S. Kosovo envoy Frank Wisner, who has backed the proposal, is due today to meet with Serbian leaders in Belgrade. Wisner on February 5 met with ethnic-Albanian leaders in Kosovo.

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