EU Presidency Statement - The situation in Kosovo/UNMIK

Mr. President,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Acceding Countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia, the Candidate Countries Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey, and the EFTA country Iceland, member of the European Economic Area, declare that they align themselves with this statement.

Mr. President,

the European Union underlines the continued validity of the "Standards before Status" policy of UNMIK as upheld by the UN Security Council based on UNSCR 1244. It therefore supports the initiative of the UNSRSG, Mr. Harri Holkeri, to set out more concrete guidelines for progress and to operationalise this strategy. It welcomes the Presidential Statement, issued on December 12, on the "Standards for Kosovo," a document which is a first concrete step in the process.

The European Union believes it is necessary to build on the current momentum by working out as soon as possible the relevant Implementation Plan and by establishing a continual mechanism of review of progress achieved. This process has to be led by the SRSG through regular consultations with the Provisional Institutions of Self Government and other relevant parties as appropriate.

There is considerable work to be done to achieve the agreed standards: democratic governance must take hold in a multiethnic Kosovo in order to advance towards the comprehensive review envisaged for mid-2005, and earlier if sufficient progress is made. The European Union stands ready to assist in this process and considers the Stabilisation and Association Process Tracking Mechanism (STM) as an important complementary instrument to this end.

Mr. President,

The European Union believes that the direct dialogue initiated on October 14 2003 in Vienna remains an indispensable element of the strategy "Standards before Status" based on Security Council resolution 1244. It therefore encourages all parties concerned to continue the direct dialogue by convening meetings of the expert working groups with no further delays.

Finally, the European Union underlines the importance of structural reforms in Kosovo, of which privatisation is a key element. It calls upon the Provisional Institutions of Self Government to exercise their responsibilities constructively so to allow the privatisation process to resume as soon as possible.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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• EU Presidency Statement - Report on the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (6/2/2004)