Churkin: Illegal Eulex mission must not endanger Unmik
Russian ambassador to the UN Vitaliy Churkin warned the European Union not to endanger the functioning of Unmik by its Eulex mission.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Thursday, February 28, 2008
"In the Security Council, Russia will make sure that the question of Kosovo remains in a legal framework, and that the illegal EU mission does not create problems to the functioning of the UN mission ... it must not push anyone to violate the UN Resolution 1244. If that happens, Russia will put this question in front of the UN Security Council", Churkin said.
"In some EU documents, we can see some sort of a period od 120 days, after which the EU mission will replace the UN mission. It is completely unclear where they are getting this from. If they try somehow to implement these plans, they will be in contradiction with the UN Resolution 1244 and with international law", he added.
"Everyone must know that the UN Secretary General has confirmed that the UN Resolution 1244 remains in place and that it is functioning accordingly. We have to start from that point of view, and how the EU mission will swim in these waters is their own business", the Russian ambassador said.
In Brussels, UN Undersecretary for Peacekeepeing Jean-Marie Guehenno confirmed Unmik remained in Kosovo under 1244, but added that the future relations between Unmik and Eulex will depend on "developments in the field", while the main factor for the decision will be "contribution to stability in Kosovo and in the region".
Guehenno, who spoke on Thursday with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, said the UN does not mention the term "transfer of authorities".
He added that the decision about the future relations will be brought by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.
"The decision will depend on developments in the field", Guehenno said, adding that the UN would consult with all relevant actors on the matter.
