Putin supports Serbia's stance on Kosovo

Russian President Vladimir Putin has demonstrated his support for Serbia's position on Kosovo at a Kremlin meeting with Serbian counterpart Boris Tadic.

After both leaders signed a major energy accord, Mr Tadic thanked Mr Putin for backing Belgrade's opposition to independence for the province of Kosovo, where prime minister Hashim Thaci says a unilateral declaration of independence could be made in days.

Russia has stressed its opposition to any unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo, while the US and several European countries have signalled they are ready to accept such a move.

In a statement yesterday the Kremlin said it saw no reasonable alternative to a negotiated resolution with a leading role played by the UN.

Russian newspaper Kommersant said Belgrade had effectively secured Moscow's support on Kosovo by agreeing a clutch of deals that give Russia control of Serbian energy assets.

Welcoming Mr Tadic, the Russian president stressed the accord's importance and alluded to an upcoming presidential election run-off in Serbia on 3 February at which the Serbian leader is seeking re-election.

Under the energy accord a new gas pipeline to southern Europe known as South Stream will pass through Serbian territory.

The pipeline is central to the Kremlin's efforts to cement its grip on Europe's gas market and is to be built in tandem with another new pipeline project under the Baltic Sea to northern Europe.

In addition Russian state company Gazprom will buy 51% of Serbian oil monopoly NIS, the Kremlin statement said.

The statement did not say how much Gazprom was paying.

Another agreement on building an underground gas reservoir in Serbia is also part of the accord, the Kremlin said.

The visit by Belgrade's top leadership comes amid intense wrangling over Serbia and the future of Kosovo.

Mr Tadic is under scrutiny at home as he faces the presidential run-off.

Yesterday,  the current holder of the EU presidency, Slovenia, said the bloc hoped to sign a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Serbia on closer integration 'in the coming days'.