Kosovo
Expected Council Action
The Secretary-General’s quarterly report on Kosovo is due on 31 March. A briefing on the report by the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Lamberto Zannier, is expected. But it was unclear at press time whether this will be in April or will be postponed until May.
Key Recent Developments
The situation has not significantly changed since the Council last discussed Kosovo on 22 January.
In January the International Civilian Representative and EU Special Representative, Pieter Feith, proposed a strategy for the integration of northern Kosovo which would have the effect of strengthening Priština’s authority in this area.
The Serbian government and Kosovo Serb officials have opposed the integration strategy. For them it is too close to the 2007 Comprehensive Proposal for the Kosovo Status Settlement prepared by Martti Ahtisaari, then the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy. Serbian President Boris Tadić told the Council in January that the plan would “blatantly violate resolution 1244” and warned against its implementation.
Disagreement on Kosovo’s status in international law led to tensions in March over a regional conference organised by Croatia and Slovenia entitled “Together for the EU: Contribution of the Western Balkans to the European Future”. It was supposed to be the first meeting of all the region’s leaders in 18 years. Serbia refused to participate, however, when it became clear that Kosovo would attend as a state.
Key Issues
An important issue is the slow progress on the six-point dialogue (proposed by the Secretary-General in 2008, covering the areas of police, justice, customs, transportation and infrastructure, boundary management and protection of Serbian patrimony) which remains a key element of the international approach in Kosovo.
Another key issue is whether continued pushing of the integration strategy for northern Kosovo will have a destabilising effect.
A further issue is the upcoming decision by the International Court of Justice on the question of the legality of Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence. The advisory opinion is now expected in June at the earliest.
Council Dynamics
The Council is still divided between those who support Kosovo’s independence and those who oppose Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence. Six Council members (Austria, France, Japan, Turkey, the UK and the US) have formally recognised Kosovo’s independence.
|
Security Council Resolution |
|
|
Selected Presidential Statement |
|
|
Selected Letter |
|
|
Selected Secretary-General’s Reports |
|
|
Other |
|
