Aengus Ó Snodaigh
Question:221 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on the report of the Secretary General on the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo. [7025/05]
View answerTuesday, 1 March 2005
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Kosovo has been under UN administration since the end of the conflict in June 1999, in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1244. At the request of the Security Council, the UN Secretary General reports at regular intervals on the implementation of the mandate of the UN Interim Administration in Kosovo, UNMIK. His latest report, which was issued on 14 February 2005, covers the activities of UNMIK and developments in Kosovo from 1 November 2004 to 31 January 2005. It was discussed at a meeting of the Security Council on 24 February, with the participation of the special representative of the Secretary General in Kosovo, Mr. Soren Jessen-Petersen.
The EU fully supports the special representative in his work to implement Security Council Resolution 1244. He is working closely with the provisional institutions of self-government to encourage the implementation of a wide-ranging reform process, based on European standards in advance of any consideration of the constitutional status of Kosovo. I welcome the Secretary General's assessment that the new Government, which was appointed by the Kosovo assembly on 3 December 2004, is making some encouraging and tangible progress in their commitment to the implementation of the standards. The EU supports the priority which UNMIK has established for early progress on those reforms which most directly affect the security and rights of minority communities and the creation of a truly democratic and multiethnic society in Kosovo.
The year 2005 will be a crucial one for Kosovo. During the summer, the UN will preside over a comprehensive review of the implementation of standards. If the review is positive, it will be followed by the opening of a process to agree the status of Kosovo, which will be facilitated by the international community. The EU will play an important role in this process. The negotiations will inevitably be complex and difficult. They will require the resumption of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina and will have implications for the region as a whole. The outcome will be subject to approval by the UN Security Council. In these circumstances, it is essential that the Kosovo Serb community now has the confidence to re-engage in the political process as soon as possible and take its place in the provisional institutions of self government.
At the meeting of the EU External Relations Council which I attended in Brussels on 21 February, Ministers had a detailed discussion of the situation in Kosovo on the basis of a presentation by the special representative of the UN Secretary General. The council emphasised the importance of the upcoming review of the implementation of standards. It reaffirmed that the EU will have an important role to play when the status of Kosovo is being considered to ensure that the agreed outcome is fully compatible with the process of European integration. The EU has given a clear commitment that the long-term future of the western Balkans, including Kosovo, rests within the European Union.
It would not be helpful at this stage to prejudge the outcome of any negotiations on the constitutional status of Kosovo. However, the External Relations Council last week issued a clear statement that Kosovo will not return to the situation which existed before 1999. The EU is committed to a multi-ethnic and democratic Kosovo which contributes to the stability of the western Balkans and adheres to the values and standards of the EU. In the period ahead, the EU will continue to work in co-operation with the United Nations, the US and other international partners towards the achievement of this objective.