The European Union will try to avert a split over Kosovo tomorrow when foreign ministers debate a possible unilateral declaration of independence by the breakaway Serbian province.
Sixteen years after Europeans failed to prevent war in their Balkan backyard, a rift over how to resolve the dispute would damage the credibility of the bloc's emerging common foreign policy.
Leaders of Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority have vowed to declare independence if a new set of talks with Belgrade fail to produce an agreement by December 10th.
That prospect will dominate talks in the Portuguese town of Viana do Castelo tomorrow where ministers will be briefed by Wolfgang Ischinger, the German EU mediator in the negotiations. He has warned that chances of a deal are slim.
Along with the United States, the 27-member EU would prefer an agreement between Serbs and Albanians that was backed by a UN Security Council mandate.
If that proves impossible because of resistance from Serbia, backed by UN veto-holder Russia, member states would have to decide whether to recognise Kosovo sovereignty.
Spain, Hungary, Greece, Slovakia, Cyprus and Romania are among those seen having most difficulty in doing so - either because of their geographical proximity to the Balkans or due to fears it could encourage separatists in their own country.