The issue of demarcation of the border with Macedonia should be part of the package for resolving of the status of Kosovo. This is the official position of both Macedonia and UNMIK. The Kosovo authorities, who until now insisted on the border issue being discussed after Kosovo receives independence, now agree to the demarcation being "within the context of the status".

Macedonian Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki met with Steven Shook, deputy chief of the UN mission in Kosovo, and Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku in Pristina yesterday.

"No one is satisfied with the postponing of the resolving of the status of Kosovo. Macedonia's position is that this issue should be closed successfully in a manner that will be proposed by UN Special Representative Martti Ahtisaari, toward the end of January or beginning of February. Stability in the region is most important. We expect the demarcation of the border to be mentioned in the technical section of the UN resolution on the final status of Kosovo," Milososki said.

Responding to a Kosovo journalist's question on whether he expects the UN resolution to confirm the border agreement between Skopje and Belgrade and whether the border should be defined with a new agreement between Macedonia and Kosovo, Milososki said that the UN already accepted the international validity of the border agreement and that there is no need for new agreements.