Security Council Authorizes UN Presence in Kosovo War Ends after 78 Days of Bombing.

The Security Council on 10 June - in welcoming the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia s (FRY) acceptance of the principles on a political solution to the Kosovo crisis, including an immediate end to violence and a rapid withdrawal of its military, police and paramilitary forces, and acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter-decided to deploy both international civil and security presence in Kosovo under United Nations auspices.

In adopting resolution 1244 (1999) by 14 votes to none, with 1 abstention (China), the Council also decided that the political solution to the crisis shall be based on the general principles accepted by the FRY Government on 3 June, which included, among other things: immediate and verifiable end to violence and repression in Kosovo; withdrawal of the military, police and paramilitary forces of the FRY; deployment of effective international civil and security presence, with substantial North Atlantic Treaty Organization participation in the security presence; establishment of an interim administration; safe and free return of all refugees; political process providing for substantial self-government, as well as the demilitarization of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA); and comprehensive approach to the economic development of the region.

The Council authorized Member States and relevant organizations to establish an international security presence, whose responsibilities were to include deterring renewed hostilities, demilitarizing the KLA and establishing a secure environment for the return of refugees, in which international civil presence could operate.

The Council also authorized the Secretary-General to establish an international civil presence, requesting the appointment of a Special Representative to control its implementation, and decided that the responsibilities of the civil presence would be, among others: promoting the establishment of substantial autonomy and self-government in Kosovo; performing basic civilian administrative functions; facilitating a political process to determine Kosovo's future status; supporting the reconstruction of key infrastructure and humanitarian and disaster relief; maintaining civil law and order; promoting human rights; and assuring the safe and unimpeded return of all refugees and displaced persons to their homes in Kosovo.

On 2 July, after thorough consultation with Member States, the Secretary-General appointed Bernard Kouchner of France as his Special Representative in Kosovo.

By its resolution, the Council confirmed that, after the withdrawal, an agreed number of Yugoslav and Serb military and police personnel would be permitted to return to Kosovo to liaise with both international civil and security presence, mark and clear minefields, and maintain a presence at Serb patrimonial sites and at key border crossings.

The international security and civil presence was established for an initial period of 12 months, to continue thereafter unless the Council decided otherwise. The Secretary-General was asked to report at regular intervals on implementation of the resolution.

"Today, we are seeing at least the beginning of the end of a dark and desolate chapter in the history of the Balkans", Secretary-General Kofi Annan stated, following the adoption of the resolution. Rebuilding homes, restoring infrastructure, renewing institutions and revitalizing civil society would require sacrifice, dedication and persistence, since, in planning terms, winter was fast approaching, and "we are in a race against time", he went on.

The United Nations was determined to lead the civilian implementation of the peace effectively and efficiently. But to do so, it needed the cooperation of all parties and the means to carry out the mandate. What counted was not just the commitment to peace, but the will to implement it in all its aspects, he said. That included tasks for which the United Nations was not responsible, but which were vital if peace and stability were to be restored. Stressing the need for the full withdrawal of Serb military, paramilitary and police forces, as well as for the demilitarization of the KLA, the Secretary-General said that those responsible for the security aspects of the resolution should act swiftly.

Profound Regrets over Bombing of Chinese Embassy in Belgrade

The Security Council on 14 May expressed profound regrets over the bombing of the Embassy of China in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia on 7 May. It expressed deep sorrow for the loss of lives, injuries and property damage caused by the bombing, and noted that regrets and apologies had also been expressed by members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In a statement by its President, Denis Dangue Rewaka of Gabon, the Council also reaffirmed that the principle of the inviolability of diplomatic personnel and premises must be respected in all cases, in accordance with internationally accepted norms. Expressing its deep distress and concern over the bombing of the Embassy and its deepest sympathy and profound condolences to the Chinese Government and the families of the victims, the Council further stressed the need for a complete and thorough investigation of the NATO bombing.

Some Points Made in 10 June Security Council Debate

Agim Nesho of Albania said NATO had stopped one of the greatest human catastrophes in Europe since the Second World War.

Fernando Enrique Petrella of Argentina said the resolution laid the foundation for a definitive political solution to the Kosovo crisis, which would ensure respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the FRY, as well as for the rights of all minorities without exception.

Jassim Mohammed Buallay of Bahrain said the violence in Serbia had brought back images of the violence of Bosnia.

Alyaksandr Sychov of Belarus said the Security Council had demonstrated how the United Nations solved complex problems in a peaceful manner.

Gelson Fonseca of Brazil said that problematic precedents had been set in the resort to military force without Council authorization, that had neither contributed to upholding the Council's authority nor improved the humanitarian situation.

Vladimir Sotirov of Bulgaria said a stable and lasting solution in Kosovo should be based on substantial autonomy and self-government within the internationally recognized borders of the FRY.

Robert Fowler of Canada said humanitarian and human rights concerns were not just internal matters; they must be given new weight in the Council's definition of security and in its calculus as to when and how to engage.

Shen Guofang of China stated that even the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Yugoslavia, which was under the protection of international conventions, had become of NATO's bombing targets. Waged in the name of humanitarianism, the war had, in fact, produced the greatest humanitarian catastrophe in post-World War II Europe.

Bernd Niehaus of Costa Rica sid his country supported the international community's firm stand against ethnic cleansing. Yet, it opposed the use of force without the explicit authorization of the Security Council.

Jelena Grcic Polic of Croatia said her country had so far suffered $2.5 billion in direct economic losses and an estimated $5 billion in overall economic losses due to the conflict in the FRY. The international community should strengthen its approach towards widening the road to reintegration into the Euro-Atlantic structures for those who sought it.

Bruno Rodriguez Parilla of Cuba said after 79 days of being ignored, the Council was being used to provide a stamp of approval.

Vladislav Jovanovic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia said that the NATO "aggression" had been against the UN Charter. As a founding Member of the United Nations, Yugoslavia had made timely warnings and requested assistance from the United Nations.

The Security Council had turned a deaf ear. No civilian target, including hospitals and pharmaceutical companies, had been spared during the bombing campaign. NATO had also created an ecological catastrophe.

Alain Dejammet of France said the continued and mounting repression of the civilian population in Kosovo had compelled NATO to put an end to Belgrade's inadmissible policy of ethnic cleansing and deportation. The resolution provided the legal and political framework for the restoration of peace in Kosovo.

Denis Dangue Rewaka of Gabon said the Council resolution bolstered the very foundation of the United Nations, and upheld the principles of dialogue, negotiation and peace in solving problems.

Baboucarr-Blaise Ismaila Jagne of Gambia said that the flagrant violations of human rights in Kosovo had shocked the collective conscience of mankind. It was regrettable that force had to be used.

Dieter Kastrup of Germany, who spoke on behalf of the European Union and the associated countries of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus, Iceland and Liechtenstein, said that all those who planned, authorized and executed the campaign of forced deportation, torture and murder should be held personally accountable and should be brought to justice. The European Union would take a leading role in the reconstruction of Kosovo.

Andre Erdos of Hungary said that to have allowed the systematic emptying of vast lands, well-organized campaigns of intimidation and atrocities to stand would have been a shameful betrayal of the ideal of a civilized world.

Seyed Mohammad Hadi Nejad Hosseinian of Iran said the resolution was designed to put an immediate end to violence in Kosovo, to ensure the safe and unimpeded return of all refugees and internally displaced persons to their homes, and to recognize all legitimate rights of the Kosovar Albanians, including the establishment of substantial autonomy and self-government in Kosovo. The whole 11-week enterprise would be judged against the achievement of those objectives.

Yukio Satoh of Japan said the international community had to assist the work of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees - the lead agency in addressing an enormous humanitarian problem.

Hasmy Agam of Malaysia said those responsible for the atrocities and horrors that had been carried out in pursuit of the policy of ethnic cleansing should not be allowed to go unpunished, nor the victims denied justice.

Manuel Tello of Mexico said that his country shared the international community's outrage at the humanitarian situation in Kosovo. But the use of force, even when spurred by the noblest aims, only led to more violence. Mexico was disturbed that the United Nations should have been so marginalized in the handling of the conflict.

Martin Andjaba of Namibia said it was regrettable that it was only after large-scale killings and destruction of property that a peace plan had been achieved in Kosovo.

A. P. van Walsum of the Netherlands observed that the Charter was not the only source of international law. It was much more specific on respect for sovereignty than for human rights: but since the day it was drafted, the world had witnessed a gradual shift in that balance, making respect for human rights more mandatory and respect for sovereignty less absolute.

Ole Peter Kolby of Norway said it was clear that the NATO military action was a necessary requirement to accompany political efforts. The FRY bore full responsibility for the tragic course of events.

Sergey Lavrov of the Russian Federation said his country was glad that NATO had realized the futility of its actions and had recognized that the Security Council was the body primarily responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, and reaffirmed the urgent need for a multilateral world order in which there would be no room for unilateral diktat.

Danilo Turk of Slovenia said that the Council was being tested on whether it would be able to maintain and strengthen its role envisaged in the Charter.

Naste Calovski of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia hoped that the current conflict would be the last war in the Balkans. The Council should be witnessing the end of the "Balkanization" of the region and the beginning of its "Europeanization": a period of peace, security and development.

Volodymyr Yel'chenko of Ukraine said that a number of countries, in particular those of the Danube region, were experiencing huge economic losses caused by the interruption of transport communications, reorientation of commodity flows, loss of traditional markets and other factors. He expected the Council to address the problem of the economic losses that third countries had suffered from military activities in Kosovo.

Sir Jeremy Greenstock of the United Kingdom said it was a tragedy for the Serb people that the NATO allies had had to act. after trying every other avenue, with force. But Mr. Milosevic's ethnic cleansing machine had been stopped in its tracks.

A. Peter Burleigh of the United States said the resolution laid out a concrete plan for ending the humanitarian tragedy in Kosovo and building a better future for its people. Regrettably, its adoption came much later than it should have. Mouths of death, destruction and forced displacement could have been avoided if Belgrade had joined the Kosovar Albanians last March in saying yes to peace, and no to war.

Kosovo: An Unofficial Background

Where does one begin? It is true that there have been years of palpable tension between the majority Albanian population in Kosovo and national authorities who have been predominantly Serb.

* Serbs have been known to regard Kosovo as all integral part of their own history. The area is at the heart of national folklore, being the site of the 1389 defeat of medieval Serbian heroes by Ottoman Turks, a key event in the national consciousness;

* The balance of the population began to change during Turkish rule as more ethnic Albanians settled in Kosovo. That trend has continued ever since. Owing largely to a Serbian exodus and the higher Albanian birth rate, Kosovo now has a 90-per cent Albanian majority;

* Under the revised Yugoslav Constitution of 1974, Kosovo was given autonomy, allowing Albanian-language schools and the observance of Islamic holy days, and giving the province representation on the collective federal presidency of the time;

* In the late 1980s, the present Yugoslav President, Slobodan Milosevic used the emotive Kosovo issue in his ascent to political power and was a strong proponent of its consolidation into the former Yugoslavia, in particular Serbia. In 1989, he took away the province's autonomous status and sent in larger numbers of Serbian police and troops, declaring the Albanian language unofficial and changing school curricula. This led to a boycott by Albanians of official institutions and services, and the creation of a parallel government, with its own health, taxation and education systems.

* Tension escalated in the last two and a half years, particularly with the emergence of the clandestine Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in 1996. Although the shadow Albanian administration in Kosovo, led by Ibrahim Rugova, has expressed itself against achieving change through violent means, its failure to win any concessions from Belgrade encouraged groups like the KLA to intensify the armed struggle. In turn, the KLA actions led to the Serbian police crackdown in Kosovo.

* The Contact Group - comprised of France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States - favours neither the status quo nor independence for Kosovo, but an enhanced status within Yugoslavia.