Romania once again re-iterated its support for Serbia on the issue of Kosovo's independence, but urged its neighbour to continue dialogue with the European Union.

Just days after the province unilaterally declared its independence from Belgrade, Serbian president Boris Tadić travelled on February 21 2008 to Romania, the only neighbour to come out strongly against Kosovo's secession, in his first foreign trip abroad since re-election.

"Romania is Serbia's traditional friend. Now, when Serbia is facing its greatest challenge, I am grateful to Romania for its stance, for not recognising an illegally created state, Kosovo, even more so as it is a EU member state," Tadić said, as quoted by Romanian news agency NewsIn.

Romania is among the few EU and NATO member states that said they would not recognise Kosovo's secession and its parliament adopted a motion condemning the unilateral declaration of independence earlier this week. Romanian flags have also been, reportedly, spotted in the crowd during the rally against Kosovo's independence held in Belgrade.

But Tadić's Romanian counterpart, Traian Basescu, warned him against international isolation and urged Serbia to continue talks with the EU.

"It's essential for Serbia not to isolate itself. All European capitals are ready to talk with Belgrate. It's essential for Serbia and Serbs to accelerate on their way to Europe," Basescu told reporters after his meeting with Tadić.

"As a friend of Serbia, I am asking Serbian politicians to stay in touch with European capitals. What Serbia needs most now is to communicate," he added.

Tadić went ahead with his visit despite the scheduled rally in Belgrade, which gathered at least 200 000 people to protest against Kosovo's independence. Despite the peaceful nature of the protest, which ended in a religious service in the city's cathedral, one group of several hundred people attacked the US embassy in Belgrade, setting several rooms on fire before being dispersed by riot police, Reuters reported.