PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) 鈥 Kosovo on Friday criticized the Council of Europe 's decision against holding a vote on its membership, saying it deprived its people and especially its ethnic minorities of democratic tools offered by the continent鈥檚 top human rights body.
Kosovo鈥檚 membership was not on the agenda of the council's foreign ministers meeting after some members had required Kosovo to create an association of Serb-majority municipalities in the country's north before a vote could take place. Kosovo fears such a setup could turn into another with broad autonomy. Republika Srpska is the name for the part of Bosnia-Herzegovina run by ethnic Serbs.
Kosovo's Foreign Minister said some countries chose to side with Serbia after 鈥渁 lobbying campaign against Kosovo鈥檚 membership.鈥
That deprived "the Republic of Kosovo鈥檚 citizens of their rights and possibilities offered by the mechanisms of such an organization, especially for ethnic minority communities and other marginalized ones,鈥 she said.
A day earlier the minister made to convince Western powers to hold a vote, sending a letter to Theodoros Rousopoulos, the head of the Council of Europe鈥檚 Parliament Assembly. It offered a draft bill Kosovo is working on outlining its proposal on Serb-majority municipalities to Kosovo鈥檚 Constitutional Court by the end of May.
That was not taken into consideration and 鈥渃onsequently that letter and offer loses actuality and relevance,鈥 she said.
has decried the last-minute requirement regarding the association of Serb communities before a vote, saying it fulfilled all the criteria for the council鈥檚 membership.
The council鈥檚 political affairs committee in March and a vote at its parliamentary assembly in April approved Kosovo鈥檚 membership and the foreign ministers鈥 vote is the last step before Kosovo can be invited to join the Council of Europe.
鈥淭he Republic of Kosovo鈥檚 membership cannot be stopped even if it is delayed because of any of Kosovo鈥檚 opponents or Serbia鈥檚 lobbying,鈥 Gervalla-Schwarz said.
The association is a main requirement for Kosovo in its .
The association would coordinate work on education, health care, land planning and economic development in the Serb-majority cities and towns and serve as a bridge with the Kosovo government.
Kosovo has been reluctant to move forward with it despite assurances from the United States and the European Union.
The establishment of the association was first agreed on in Brussels in 2013 and approved by the Kosovo parliament. But Kosovo鈥檚 Constitutional Court later deemed it unconstitutional, saying it was not inclusive of other ethnicities and could entail executive powers.
The Constitutional Court must now decide whether a new draft would be in line with Kosovo鈥檚 constitution. No new draft has been agreed on so far.
The normalization talks between Kosovo and Serbia have failed to make progress and Brussels has warned both that refusal to compromise . Serbia doesn鈥檛 recognize its former province of Kosovo鈥檚 formal declaration of independence in 2008.
The killed about 13,000 people, mostly Kosovo Albanians. In 1999, a 78-day NATO bombing campaign ended the war and Serbian forces were pushed out.
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Semini reported from Tirana, Albania.
