Russia issues “public warning” to EU not to deploy EULEX by force
Russia has issued a “public warning” to the European Union not to deploy its EULEX mission throughout Kosovo by force, Russian ambassador to EU Vladimir Chizov said on Tuesday.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Wednesday, April 16, 2008
He added that Russia could accept a UN Security Council resolution legalizing EULEX if the resolution is accepted by Belgrade and if in it "Kosovo is defined as part of Serbia".
"I would like to use this opportunity to send a public warning against any attempt to force EULEX into deployment across Kosovo or to re-establish those elements of the international presence that have had difficulty in northern Kosovo by force," he said.
"The only way to go forward is through dialogue with the local Serb community, and on the wider level through a pursuit of the negotiations process between Belgrade and Pristina", Chizov said, adding that the continuation of this process would be "difficult, but the only possible".
Asked what Russia would do if the EU went ahead with deployment of EULEX across Kosovo, he said: "We will certainly use every possibility at the United Nations to attract the attention of the international community to any violation of resolution 1244 by whomever."
Chizov said the EU decision to send its mission to Kosovo was a "big mistake".
"In fact, we are warning as friends and partners not to continue down this wrong path", the Russian ambassador said, and added that the UN and the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon have rejected the transfer of authority from Unmik to EULEX.
He said that Ban was "well-advised" on this issue last week during his visit to Moscow.
"Unmik and Kfor are legally in Kosovo on the basis of 1244 ... while EULEX and any other EU mission are not mentioned in the document", he said.
Chizov said that for a legal deployment of EULEX in Kosovo a new UNSC resolution would be needed, "but this resolutioin should make reference to 1244 and not cancel it".
"This resolution would require the acceptance of the host country, that is Serbia, and it would need to recognize the territorial integrity of Serbia, of course Serbia with Kosovo, that is - in a manner in which this country has been recognized as UN member", the Russian ambassador said.
