Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 17 Feb 1999

Vol. 500 No. 5

Written Answers. - Kosovo Crisis.

Trevor Sargent

Ceist:

26 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will support the re-imposition of sanctions against Yugoslavia if there is no progress in the peace talks on Kosovo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4352/99]

Jim Mitchell

Ceist:

34 Mr. J. Mitchell asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the General Affairs Council of the EU has considered the situation in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4377/99]

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

46 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the initiatives, if any, taken to influence the cessation of human rights abuses in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4420/99]

Michael Creed

Ceist:

65 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the policy response he will to pursue at the EU Council of Foreign Ministers in view of the recent Serb atrocities in Kosovo. [3223/99]

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

91 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the degree to which he has attempted to influence the situation in Kosovo with a view to bringing to an end the killing of innocent people and the elimination of human rights abuses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4515/99]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Andrews)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 26, 29, 34, 46, 65 and 91 together.

I remain extremely concerned about the situation in Kosovo. It is for this reason that it is crucial that the talks now taking place at Rambouil let between the Serbs and the Kosovo Albanians, and on which international efforts are now centered, result in an agreement leading to a peaceful and lasting settlement.

The urgency of these talks was highlighted by the increasing pattern of breaches of the ceasefire in recent week and the appalling atrocities, including the massacre at Racak, which outraged the world. There was also the very real threat of a resumption of largescale violence, which otherwise could take place in a few weeks time, with the end of winter. This also is why the process now under way at Rambouillet has been welcomed and received the support of the United Nations Security Council, of the Organization for Security and Co-operation and of the EU. I should mention that the EU's Special Envoy to Kosovo, the Austrian Ambassador Wolfgang Petritsch, is playing a central role in the process, with the full support of the Union.

Since the outbreak of the crisis last March, Kosovo has been constantly on the agenda of the General Affairs Council, and indeed on the agendas of the European Council which have taken place in this period. At the most recent meeting of the General Affairs Council on 25 January, we gave the matter detailed consideration. I then made known my outrage at the Racak massacre and called for the admission of the Chief Prosecutor of the Criminal Tribunal to carry out investigations. It was also then that I and my EU colleagues stressed the need for mutually reinforcing actions by the various international fora in addressing the situation in Kosovo, and I expressed my support for the negotiating process on the basis of the proposals put forward by the international mediators, Ambassadors Hill and Petritsch, which had been endorsed by the EU and the Contact Group of six countries. These proposals now provide the basis for the negotiations.

I reiterate now my hope that these efforts will be fruitful, not only because of how appalling the alternative could be, but also because a successful outcome in the form of a settlement would put an end to the horrors which we have witnessed, and set a course in which measures, reforms and new structures would be set in place to ensure the protection of the human rights of all the citizens of Kosovo.

The Contact Group in Paris on Sunday informed the parties that the negotiations must be concluded by noon next Saturday. The difficulties for both sides in reconciling their fundamentally different positions should not be underestimated. It is clear that the basis for an agreement does exist in the proposals put by the Contact Group to both sides. Whether or not an agreement will be secured depends ultimately on the necessary political will being forthcoming in Belgrade and on the part of the Kosovo Albanian side including the Kosovo Liberation Army. The gravity of the situation is such that neither side in the talks should be unaware of the consequences of failure, particularly if they have contributed in any way to it.

I have previously reported to the House on the sanctions introduced by the EU against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. These remain fully in force. I should also point out that I and my colleagues at the General Affairs Council on 25 January instructed the Council's competent bodies to step up work, in parallel with the ongoing negotiations in various fora, on the strengthening of sanctions. This work is continuing notwithstanding the start of the negotiations. In the absence of any progress in the talks at Rambouillet, which I sincerely hope will not be the case, I can assure the Houses that I shall be pressing for the strengthening and widening of sanctions.