PRISTINA (Serbia): Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci meets top European Union and Nato officials this week in the hope of securing a timetable for the province’s independence from Serbia within the next two months.

Diplomats say discussions in Brussels will cover the timing and coordination of what is being called the “CDI” — Coordinated Declaration of Independence — and which the United States is pushing for February, March at the latest.

“Everything will be clarified after the visit to Brussels,” Thaci said late on Monday. “I believe we will soon announce the date, but everything will be coordinated with Washington and the European Union.”

The major Western powers are waiting for the outcome of a Feb 3 run-off for the Serbian presidency before giving the green light to Kosovo’s 90-per cent Albanian majority to secede, almost nine years after Nato drove out Serb forces and the United Nations took control.

The vote pits pro-Western incumbent Boris Tadic against nationalist Tomislav Nikolic — who came top in Sunday’s first round — and could decide whether Serbia stays on the path to EU membership or drifts towards Russia, the country’s key ally in its bid to hold onto Kosovo.

“That’s Serbia’s choice,” Thaci said. “I will confirm in Brussels that Kosovo is ready and united to declare independence and I will demand joint recognition by the US and EU so we can successfully finalise this process together.”

Diplomats say Washington is pressing for recognition in February. But some EU members would rather wait until March, still concerned at the inevitable political fallout in Serbia and anxious to give Tadic time if re-elected.

A senior Western diplomat said, “Easter is the cut-off date.” Easter falls on March 23.Thaci is due to meet EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn and senior Nato officials during talks on Wednesday and Thursday.

The EU is preparing to deploy a 1,800-strong police and supervisory mission, taking on much of the role of the UN mission that has run Kosovo since 1999. The deployment could be ratified at a meeting of the 27 EU foreign ministers on Feb 18.

A former guerrilla commander who fought to end a decade of Serb repression under late strongman Slobodan Milosevic, Thaci took office this month with a pledge to lead Kosovo to independence “within weeks”.

Nato bombed in 1999 to end the killing and ethnic cleansing of Albanians by Serb forces trying to crush Thaci’s guerrilla army. Kosovo’s 2 million Albanians reject a return to Serb rule, but Russia has blocked secession at the UN Security Council.

After almost two years of inconclusive negotiations, the major Western powers say they will move ahead with a plan for independence supervised by the EU. A majority of EU members are expected to recognise Kosovo, but some remain reluctant.

In Berlin to meet foreign ministers of Germany, Britain and France, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged European allies on Tuesday not to put off “tough decisions” on Kosovo.

“There is some danger in continuing to wait for what needs to be done, which is to resolve the status of Kosovo,” she said.

“I think obviously it would be good to have an outcome of the Serbian elections,” she said. “But at a point, we are going to have to take tough decisions and putting off tough decisions does not make tough decisions easier,” she added.—Reuters