Kosovo, Serbia at impasse

(CNN) -- An international group of mediators has failed to help Kosovo and Serbia reach an agreement over Kosovo's status, according to a report released Friday from representatives of the European Union, the United States and Russia.

"Neither party was willing to cede its position on the fundamental question of sovereignty over Kosovo," the statement from the mediators said of four months of talks between the governments in Pristina, Kosovo, and Belgrade, Serbia.

The United Nations has administered Kosovo since NATO forces drove out Yugoslav troops in 1999 amid grave human rights abuses in the fighting between Serbs and Albanians. The disputed province is dear to the Serbs, Orthodox Christians who regard it as Serbian territory. But it is equally coveted by Albanians, Muslims who now hold the majority.

Kosovo is seeking supervised independence from Serbia, which wants the region to remain autonomous within Serbia's borders.

The United Nations had given the two parties until December 10 to reach an agreement.

In their talks, the troika of mediators helped Pristina and Belgrade discuss a "wide range of options" to resolve Kosovo's status. They included full independence, supervised independence, a territorial partition, substantial autonomy and confederal arrangements.

Even a status-silent "agreement to disagree" solution was discussed, in which neither party would be expected to renounce its position but would "pursue practical arrangements designed to facilitate cooperation and consultation," the report said.

Earlier Friday, the head of NATO said the organization would maintain a troop contingent in Kosovo to deter violence that may follow the collapse of talks. NATO currently has 16,000 troops in the province.

Despite the failure of the talks, the troika's report said that both parties have pledged to "refrain from actions that might jeopardize the security situation in Kosovo or elsewhere and not use violence, threats or intimidation."

International opinion on the future make-up of Kosovo is divided, with America already committed to the idea of independence. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is attending the Brussels talks with NATO foreign ministers, has said there is "logic" to the move.

However, some European countries -- including Spain, Slovakia and Greece -- are more skeptical, fearing that independence could set a precedent for separatist groups in other regions.

Russia called for further talks, saying "a solution is possible," according to a report from The Associated Press.

However, Rice disagreed, saying the time for negotiations was over and failure to move ahead on Kosovo's status was ignoring the reality in the Serb province where the ethnic-Albanian majority has pledged to declare independence with or without an international agreement. AP reported.

After recent elections, Kosovo's new leader, Hashim Thaci, a former Kosovo Albanian guerrilla leader, promised to make independence for the state his first priority. E-mail to a friend

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