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UN meets over Kosovo
18/02/2008 09:04 - (SA)
New York - Russia has tried to block Kosovo's independence during a closed-door emergency session of the UN Security Council, saying it is deeply concerned about the safety of Serbs living in the territory.
The discussion of the 15-member council on Sunday continued to expose divisions among members on the future of Kosovo. Russia backs its close ally Serbia, while the United States, Britain, France and other European Union members support Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians.
China, a veto-wielding UN Security Council member that had close ties with the Yugoslav government of Slobodan Milosevic, expressed its "deep concern" on Monday over Kosovo's declaration and called on the province to reach a "proper solution through negotiations" with Serbia.
The council met at the request of Serbia and Russia, which argue that Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia on Sunday violates a 1999 council resolution that authorises the UN to administer the territory.
The session got off to a rocky start; shortly after it began, it had to be suspended for a couple hours because of a lack of interpreters.
Ban urges calm
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Serbia's president told him that Kosovo's declaration carries no legal weight, while Kosovo's prime minister assured him he was committed to "equal opportunities and no discrimination" against anyone in Kosovo.
Ban urged all sides to "refrain from any actions or statements that could endanger peace, incite violence or jeopardise security in Kosovo and the region."
The Security Council resolution on Kosovo remains in force and the UN "will continue to implement its mandate in the light of the evolving circumstances," Ban said.
Before the session, Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Moscow was "highly concerned" about Sunday's decision by Kosovo's parliament in Pristina "to declare unilateral independence of Kosovo".
The past Security Council resolution means the UN still runs Kosovo and "it is not obvious at all what could possibly be the legal basis for even considering" Kosovo's declaration of independence," Churkin said.
He specifically addressed the estimated 120 000 Serbs living in enclaves in Kosovo.
"Our concern is for the safety of the Serbs and other ethnic minorities in Kosovo," Churkin told reporters. "We'll strongly warn against any attempts at repressive measures, should Serbs in Kosovo decide not to comply with this unilateral proclamation of independence."
'No danger to Serbs'
US and other Western countries said there was little danger to the Serbs in Kosovo and that the 1999 resolution does not preclude Kosovo's independence.
"We've knocked it down over and over again. This is an unprecedented situation, it creates no precedent," Alejandro Wolff, the US deputy ambassador to the UN, told reporters before the session
Wolff said the United States is not "particularly concerned or sees no particular danger to be worried about" with regards to the safety of Serbs in Kosovo.
"We're pleased by the commitments made to respect for religious and ethnic communities in Kosovo," he told reporters. "We're very much pleased that the declaration also reflects a position of the United States that's longstanding."
Kosovo's two million population is 90% ethnic Albanian, mainly secular Muslims, who do not want to be part of Serbia, a predominantly Christian Orthodox nation.
- AP
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