Bulgarian foreign minister arrives in Kosovo

Bulgaria's foreign minister arrived in Kosovo on Friday to discuss the future of the disputed province. Ivailo Kalfin, who also serves as Bulgaria's deputy prime minister, talked with senior U.N. officials and was set to meet with Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova and other leaders. Kalfin came to Kosovo after meeting Serbia's officials in Belgrade, where he urged leaders of both sides to reach an agreement on the future status of the province.

Kosovo is formally part of Serbia-Montenegro, but has been run by the United Nations and NATO since a 1999 NATO bombing halted Serb forces crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.

Kosovo's ethnic Albanians are insisting on independence from Serbia, while Belgrade wants the province to remain at least formally within its boundaries.

Former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari was recently appointed the head of a U.N. mediating team in the negotiations to determine the future status of Kosovo. There is no set timeline for the upcoming talks, reports the AP. I.L.