| Author (Corporate) | BBC |
|---|---|
| Series Title | BBC News |
| Series Details | 27.11.08 |
| Publication Date | 27/11/2008 |
| Content Type | News |
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Deployment of EU-led force in Kosovo nearer A 2,000-strong European Union-led police and judicial mission to Kosovo could be deployed early next month, after Russia and western states at the United Nations yesterday moved to narrow their differences over the former Serbian province. The 15-member Security Council was debating a statement that would pave the way for the European force - Eulex - to oversee police, law courts and customs services throughout the province, which unilaterally declared its independence in February. Ban Ki-moon, UN secretary-general, said in a report to the council that Eulex would operate under the overall authority of the UN. The international body administered Kosovo from 1999 and scaled back its presence after a declaration of independence that neither Serbia nor its ally Russia recognises. So far, 52 countries have recognised Kosovan independence. Mr Ban acknowledges that the UN administration can no longer fulfil its original mission. But he cannot act without the backing of the Security Council, where Russia would veto any endorsement of independence. Russia, a member of an international contact group on Kosovo along with the EU and the US, was angered by western support for Kosovo independence in what it claimed was a violation of existing Security Council resolutions. Kosovo has rejected elements of a six-point plan put forward by Mr Ban on the grounds it would imply a partition of the country between its 90 per cent ethnic Albanian majority and minority Serb areas in the north. The Security Council statement was expected to welcome the fact that both Kosovo and Serbia intended to co-operate with the international community. The statement would also welcome EU efforts to "advance the European perspective of the whole of the western Balkans, thereby making a decisive contribution to regional stability and prosperity". About 700 European and US police, prosecutors and judges are already on the ground, with more arriving and others switching from existing Nato and UN police units. In spite of the stated intentions of all sides, Kosovo's de facto partition on ethnic lines appears likely to deepen in the state's second year. Kosovo Albanian leaders - who followed independence with the adoption of a constitution - accept strong EU oversight as an assurance of future integration. But, having achieved recognition from many countries, they do not want to step back into ambiguity about Kosovo's status. Because Eulex remains under a UN umbrella, the leaders feel less keen on the reality of EU involvement - or "buyers' remorse", according to a senior US diplomat. Mr Ban's report said all policing in Kosovo would be internationally supervised. But Serb communities will not accept the EU-led mission, preferring the UN's thin control. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008 The UN Security Council has approved November 2008 a plan to hand over security duties in Kosovo to a European Union force. However, while the transfer of security duties from the UN to the European Union was supposed to demonstrate the EU involvement and bolster peace in Kosovo, no one seemed very happy with what's become a mission of compromises. |
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| Source Link | http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7751660.stm |
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| Countries / Regions | Europe, Kosovo, Serbia |
