New UN governor warns against neglecting Kosovo

 

New UN governor warns against neglecting Kosovo 17 Jun 2004 13:21:51 GMT

SKOPJE, June 17 (Reuters) - Kosovo's newly appointed United Nations governor warned on Thursday that major powers must not neglect the province, which was the cause of NATO's first major military intervention five years ago. "There is a lot of attention these days on other priorities, like Iraq and Afghanistan, but turning our back on Kosovo at this stage would be a serious mistake," Soren Jessen-Petersen told a news conference in the Macedonian capital, Skopje. NATO allies bombed Serbia in 1999 to force its army out of Kosovo and end repression of its Albanian majority. In Albanian eyes, NATO intervention legitimised demands for independence. But the big powers have shied away from deciding to back it. The Danish diplomat and European Union envoy to Macedonia was named by the United Nations in New York on Wednesday as Kosovo's fifth U.N. governor, replacing Finnish diplomat Harri Holkeri who resigned last month citing ill health. Jessen-Petersen, who aims to take up the post in early August, is expected to play a key role in guiding the international community's decision on whether Kosovo becomes independent or formally remains part of Serbia and Montenegro. Kosovo's "final status" is tied to a series of benchmarks of democracy and human rights set by the U.N., with a view to assessing progress in 2005. But impatience is growing among Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians and their political leaders. Unhappy with high unemployment and lack of economic growth, they say it is time for the U.N. to reduce its presence and start handing real power to local institutions. "The mission can be successful only if it starts transferring authority," Mimoza Kusari, spokeswoman for the Kosovo government, told Reuters in response to the appointment. Discontent with the lack of progress towards independence erupted in mid-March with fierce anti-Serb riots in which 19 people died and hundreds of homes were set ablaze. The U.N. has slowly been ceding responsibility for municipal and social affairs to Kosovo's interim authorities but it retains a veto over legislation adopted in parliament. Related...

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