Catholic, Orthodox bishops favor 'good-faith' solution in Kosovo

Published: 2006-07-03

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- A group of Catholic and Orthodox bishops asked Serbian and Kosovar leaders to negotiate in "good faith" over the political future of Kosovo, a breakaway Serbian province currently under U.N. administration. The bishops also called for the safe return of 200,000 Serbs and other minorities who left after major fighting broke out in Kosovo in the early 1990s. "Only through a real dialogue of mutual respect and good-faith negotiations can justice become a reality in Kosovo," said a statement issued by the Joint Commission of Orthodox and Catholic Bishops meeting in Washington June 21-23. The commission is composed of U.S. Catholic bishops and Orthodox bishops from Canada and the United States and deals with ways in which the two churches can cooperate on practical issues. The U.S. bishops' Department of Communications issued a June 28 news release about the meeting.

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