Serbia blasts UNMIK-EULEX agreement
The Serbian Ministry for Kosovo said on Monday that the transfer of powers from UNMIK to EULEX, which is present in Kosovo without an UN mandate, would constitute an illegal act contrary to the principles and regulations defining UN peace missions.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Referring to the signing of the agreement signed, the ministry said that UNMIK reconfiguration, without Serbia's approval or UN Security Council support, would constitute a violation of the UN SC Resolution 1244, UN Charter and other international law provisions, and of Serbia's Constitution.
"The Serbian government and state institutions do not recognize the mandate of EULEX, whose task is to implement the rejected Ahtisaari's plan on supervized independence of Kosovo, in any part of Serbia's southern province under temporary administration of the UN mission in keeping with the UN SC Resolution of 1999", the ministry said.
"The ministry urges all authorities, particularly the special representative of the UN secretary general, to respect UN SC decision and UNMIK's mandate in line with Resolution 1244 ... Serbia wants to be a part of a solution and is committed to compliance with Resolution 1244 and all agreements with UNMIK, its sole legitimate partner in the province, with which it will discuss in the future the ways of finding acceptable and sustainable solutions for Kosovo", the ministry said.
The ministry is ready to immediately pursue talks with UNMIK on modalities of the international civilian presence in Kosovo which should result in an agreement acceptable to all parties and approved by UN SC, it added.
Former minister for Kosovo Slobodan Samardzic also slammed the decision to sign the agreement.
Samardzic, vice-president of the opposition Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), said on Monday that the announced signing of the agreement between UNMIK and EULEX presents the most severe violation of international law and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and that it is a demonstration that the policy of force can provide official status to the illegal mission of the European Union in Kosovo - the EULEX.
Samardzic said there have been repeated attempts at the United Nations Security Council to provide legality to the illegal mission EULEX, of which the objective is the implementation of the plan of international envoy Martti Ahtisaari on an independent Kosovo.
"One by one, all these attempts have failed, and now UNMIK is making an agreement with EULEX without the approval of the Security Council. It is necessary that the Serbian authorities should react most energetically, in keeping with the resolutions adopted by the National Assembly, and make an unequivocal announcement that the EULEX mission is illegal and that its presence in the province has absolutely no legal meaning for Serbia," Samardzic said.
