Wolfgang Ischinger, envoy of European Union (EU) for the Kosovo issues, said on Thursday in Vienna that the Serb and Kosovo Albanian delegations would hold direct talks on the future status of Kosovo.

The troika, made up of three envoys respectively from the EU, the United States (US) and Russia, held the talks on the future status of Kosovo separately with the Serb and Kosovo Albanian delegations on Thursday in Vienna.

Ischinger told the media after the meeting that the atmosphere in the meeting was "constructive and friendly."

He said that the talks would hold on before the troika submit the relevant report to Ban Ki-Moon, the secretary-general of the United Nations, on Dec. 10, adding that the Serb and Kosovo Albanian had promised the troika that they would not damage the talks until Dec. 10.

He also excluded the possibility of dividing Kosovo into two, stressing that complying with the principle, established by the international contact group, constituted of the US, Russia, Britain, France, Germany and Italy, the troika did not list such possibility in the agenda, and neither the Serb nor Kosovo Albanian delegations mentioned such possibility.

The spokesman of the Kosovo Albanian delegations expressed the satisfaction with the talks, adding that the Kosovo Albanian delegations aimed to bring forward advice for promoting the good relations of neighborhood with Serbia to the Troika, and as an independent country to cooperate with Serbia in all mutual interested fields.

Vuk Jeremic, foreign minister of Serbia, said after the talks that Serbia would commit itself to a transigent plan, which must comply with the international law and be in favor of the regional peace and stability.

The former UN's special envoy to Kosovo, Ahtisaari referred a comprehensive proposal on the future status of Kosovo granting internationally monitored independence to the province in March, which was the basis for the drafts of resolution by the United States and other Western countries, but was repeatedly criticized by Serbia and Russia as being partial toward the Kosovo side.

Due to the opposition of Russia, the United States and other Western countries decided not to refer their draft for the future status of Kosovo to the Security Council on July 20, and chose to impel for negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo with time limitations.

The international contact group decided to build troika to impel new round talks, and submit report on the talks to the secretary-general of the UN on Dec. 10.

The envoys of the troika said in Pristina, capital of Kosovo, on Aug. 1 that the new round talks on the future status of Kosovo started after they had visited Belgrade and Pristina.

(Xinhua News Agency August 31, 2007)