(HELSINKI) - Finnish Foreign Minister Ilkka Kanerva will not attend an important European Union meeting in Brussels on Monday on Kosovo and the Middle East because it is his 60th birthday, his office said on Friday.

"Mr. Kanerva will not take part in the meeting on Monday in Brussels," his spokesman Juha Kirstilae told AFP, adding that his absence was due to the special festivities planned for his birthday.

Finland will instead be represented by its minister for European affairs, Astrid Thors.

EU foreign ministers are scheduled to discuss sensitive issues that directly concern the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), whose rotating presidency is currently held by Kanerva.

Issues to be covered include the situations in Sudan, Chad, Kenya, the Middle East, Pakistan and, topping the agenda, Serbia and Kosovo.

The Albanian-majority Serbian province's unilateral declaration of independence is a matter of days away, Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said Thursday.

Kanerva, born January 28, 1948, will on Monday celebrate his birthday in the southwestern Finnish town of Turku, where a large reception will be held in his honour. The following day he will attend a concert in the town, also in his honour.

Text and Picture Copyright 2008 AFP. All other Copyright 2008 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable.