Former Yugoslavia.

The Security Council on 24 October demanded that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) cooperate fully with the verification missions of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), to be established in and over Kosovo, respectively.

In adopting resolution 1203 (1998) by 13 votes to none, with 2 abstentions (China Russian Federation), and acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Council demanded that both the FRY authorities and the Kosovo Albanians comply fully and swiftly with Council resolution 1160 (1998), banning the sale or supply of arms and materiel to the FRY, including Kosovo, and with resolution 1199 (1998), calling for ah immediate ceasefire in Kosovo and the withdrawal of the FRY security forces from that area.

Also, the Council endorsed and expressed support for the agreements reached with the FRY to establish the OSCE mission to be stationed in Kosovo and the NATO operation to provide air surveillance, both of which were to be in place to verify compliance with resolution 1199 by all concerned in Kosovo.

Stressing the urgent need for the parties to enter into negotiations towards a political solution to the issue of Kosovo, the Council demanded the parties' cooperation with international efforts to improve the humanitarian situation and that they respect the freedom of movement of the OSCE verification mission and other international personnel. In insisting that the Kosovo Albanian leadership condemn all terrorist actions, the Council also demanded that such actions cease immediately.

After the vote, Qin Huasan of China said that, while his country's request for deletion of elements authorizing the use of force of its threat had been accommodated, the resolution still contained some elements beyond the agreements reached, such as invoking Chapter VII.

Peter Burleigh of the United States said the threat of force was key to achieving the OSGE and NATO agreements and in ensuring their full implementation. "We will not tolerate the continued violence that has resulted in nearly a quarter of a million refugees and displaced persons, caused thousands of deaths, and jeopardized the prospects for peace in the wider Balkans", he said.

Sergey Lavrov of the Russian Federation, speaking before the vote, said progress had been made, including the cooperation with the international community of the Serbian authorities and the FRY, and it could not be agreed that the situation in Kosovo presented an international danger.

The offensive operations by the FRY security forces had reportedly resulted in the displacement of some 20,000 additional people. While military activity seemed to wind down in the last days of September, the United Nations Secretariat was, as of early October, still receiving information that the Government's armed presence remained significant and the operations of the special forces continued, according to the Secretary-General's report of 5 October.

The Diplomatic Observer Mission team-made up of military experts from the United States, the European Union and the Russian Federation - had witnessed at least 14 bodies in the Kosovo town of Gornje Obrinje, some severely mutilated. Most of the victims were children as young as 18 months and women as old as 95. Further killings of Kosovo civilians were reported, including the alleged summary execution of some 12 to 23 males in the Golubovac area on 27 September. The observers saw pools of blood in the dirt, tools presumably used to stab victims, and small-calibre shell casings. There were concerns that the disproportionate use of force and actions of the security forces were designed to terrorize and subjugate the population - a collective punishment to teach them that the price of supporting the Kosovo Albanian paramilitary units was too high, the Secretary-General noted.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that more than 200,000 persons remained displaced in Kosovo, and some 80,000 were in neighbouring countries and other parts of Serbia.

NATO and OSCE missions

The agreement between NATO and the FRY, reached on 13 October in Belgrade, provided for NATO air surveillance to verify compliance by aU parties with the provisions of Council resolution 1199 (1998).

Under that accord, NATO and the FRY agreed to the establishment of an air surveillance system for Kosovo which NATO would implement. The air verification system would be comprised of NATO non-combatant reconnaissance platforms, and low- and medium-altitude manned reconnaissance platforms. In addition, it stipulated that the FRY would guarantee the safety and security of the NATO verification mission, and designate formal liaison officers to work with the NATO mission in Belgrade.

The OSCE mission-consisting of 2,000 unarmed personnel from OSCE member States - was to establish a permanent presence in as many locations as possible, maintain close liaison with the FRY, Serbian and Kosovo authorities, political parties, organizations and accredited international organizations, and supervise elections in Kosovo to ensure their openness and fairness.

It would also assist the UNHCR, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international organizations to facilitate the return of displaced persons and verify cooperation and support provided by the FRY to humanitarian and nongovernmental organizations.

Resolution 1199 (1998)

The Security Council on 23 September, in adopting resolution 1199 (1998) by 14 votes to none, with 1 abstention (China), demanded that all parties, groups and individuals immediately cease hostilities and maintain a ceasefire in Kosovo. Acting under Chapter VII, it also demanded that the authorities of the FRY and the Kosovo Albanian leadership take immediate steps to avert the impending humanitarian catastrophe, and called upon them to enter into a meaningful dialogue without preconditions and with international involvement and clear timetable, leading to an end of the crisis.

The Council demanded further that the FRY implement immediately the following measures towards achieving a negotiated political solution to the issue of Kosovo: cease all action by the security forces affecting the civilian population and order their withdrawal; enable effective, continuous and unimpeded international monitoring in Kosovo; facilitate the sale return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes and allow free access for humanitarian organizations and supplies to Kosovo; and make rapid progress to a clear timetable, with the aim of agreeing to confidence-building measures and finding a political solution to the problem of Kosovo.

The Council insisted that the Kosovo Albanian leadership condemn all terrorist action, It also urged States and international organizations represented in the FRY to make available personnel to fulfill the responsibility of carrying out effective and continuous international monitoring on the objectives of resolution 1160 (1998).

In a 24 August statement by Council President Danilo Turk of Slovenia, the Council had called for an immediate ceasefire in Kosovo and urged the two sides to enter immediately into a meaningful dialogue. In that context, it supported the efforts of the Contact Group-France, Germany, Italy, Russian Federation, United Kingdom and the United States - including its initiatives to engage the two parties in discussions on the future status of Kosovo.

Resolution 1207: FRY non-cooperation condemned

Acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Security Council on 17 November condemned the failure of the authorities of the FRY to execute the arrest warrants issued by the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia against three indicted persons: Mile Mrksic, Miroslav Radic and Veselin Sljivancanin. The Tribunal had indicted them on 7 November 1995 for the murder of 260 unarmed men following the fall of the city of Vukovar in November 1991.

In adopting resolution 1207 (1998) by 14 votes to none, with one abstention (China), the Council also demanded the immediate and unconditional execution of the arrest warrants, including the transfer of those indicted, to the Tribunal's custody. The FRY and all other States which had not already done so were called on to take measures under their domestic law to implement resolution 827 (1993) which had established the Tribunal, as the Council affirmed that a State may not invoke provisions of its domestic law as justification for failure to perform binding obligations under international law.

On 2 December, troops of NATO Stabilization Force (SFOR) detained Bosnian Serb suspect Radislav Krstic, who was indicted by the Tribunal. The indictment alleged that General-Major Krstic, as the Commander of the Drina Corps of the Bosnian Serb Army, had committed genocide during the fall of the United Nations "safe area" of Srebrenica between 11 July and 1 November 1995.

Arms Embargo Violations

On 20 November, the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1160 (1998) expressed its concern at continued serious violations of the arms embargo and other prohibitions imposed by resolutions 1160 and 1199 (1998). It urged, in particular, States neighbouring the FRY and the region, as well as other States, to make every effort to comply fully with those resolutions in seeking to prevent the sale or supply to the FRY, including Kosovo of arms and related materiel of all types and prevent any arming, training and financing of terrorist activities there.

On 4 December, United Nations agencies launched an appeal for $356.4 million to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable populations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Croatia, the FRY, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Albania.