Medvedev meets UN chief and takes swipe at West

Attempts to solve global problems outside the United Nations are counter-productive, Russian president-elect Dmitry Medvedev told the UN secretary-general on Wednesday.
"All sorts of attempts to resolve issues in violation of UN resolutions, as happened in Kosovo and some other issues, are counterproductive and cannot help achieve peace and stability," Medvedev said at the start of the talks with Ban Ki-moon.
The UN chief was making his first visit to Russia since he took up the post in January 2007. Diplomats said the fact he had not come sooner rankled with Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council. "You are right that no nation, however powerful and resourceful it is, can resolve all problems," Ban said in response to Medvedev's comment.
Kosovo is expected to figure prominently on the agenda for Ban's two-day visit, which will also include talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Moscow has queried Ban's neutrality over Kosovo since it declared its independence from Serbia in February and believes his interpretation of a Security Council resolution on the UN Mission to Kosovo favours the West.
The United States, France and Britain recognised Kosovo's independence but Russia called the declaration illegitimate. A UN Security Council debate on Kosovo is scheduled for April 21. Russia said the independence declaration created a dangerous precedent and would stir up future trouble in the Balkans. At a meeting with Ban later in the day, President Vladimir Putin said Russia viewed the UN as a backbone of the existing world order.
"The United Nations is the only universal international organisation," he said. "It is the key element of the whole system of international relations." Ban praised Putin as a strong national leader and hailed his contribution to the UN cause. "I am very much grateful for all the support and cooperation you have given to the activities of the United Nations," Ban said.
"You have enhanced the role, visibility and profile of Russia in the international community." Kommersant newspaper reported that during the meeting with Medvedev, Ban Ki-moon would be told of Moscow's willingness to increase its annual contribution to the UN to roughly the same as the United States-a huge 20-fold hike in its fees. In 2006 the United States contributed $423 million and Russia $21.2 million. Other G8 member states like Japan, France and the United Kingdom paid in substantially more in 2006 than Russia.