"UN position in Kosovo neutral"

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon realizes that his plans for UNMIK reconfiguration "will not please everyone." After talks with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown in London today, Ban said, according to Slovenian media, that he knew his plan would not please everybody, but that it was, in his opinion, "the least problematic." "UN position in Kosovo neutral" "I'm aware that that package will not satisy every side in its entirety. My sincere belief , following long-running talks with all sides, is that what I've proposed will prove to be the least problematic for all concerned, and can serve as a way forward," Ban said in London. Earlier in the day, the UN secretary-general's spokesman Brendan Varma said Joachim Ruecker’s successor as UNMIK chief would soon be named. Varma said that Ban’s letter to the Serbian and Kosovo presidents confirmed the UN’s neutral position vis-a-vis Kosovo’s status. “As far as the report is concerned, it demonstrates the secretary-general’s intention to reconfigure the structure and profile of our mission to Kosovo in such a way that will allow the EU to assume an operative role in terms of the rule of law, but under a UN umbrella,“ said the spokesman. He added that that mission would be led by a new special envoy to the secretary-general. “It is all in line with Resolution 1244. As regards the letters sent to Presidents [Boris] Tadic and [Fatmir] Sejdiu, they confirm that the UN’s position continues to be neutral where Kosovo’s status is concerned,” said Varma. The EU presidency has welcomed the report and letters sent by the secretary-general about the reconfiguration of UNMIK. The EU claims that these documents will enable the “smooth and gradual” deployment of EULEX throughout Kosovo. "We welcome the report of the UN secretary-general and his reconfiguration proposal, because it is in the interests of the entire international community to ensure that there are no security holes, and to enable the continuation of the international presence,” a senior official of the Slovenian EU presidency told a press conference in Brussels. "The presidency thinks that this report and the letters will enable the smooth and gradual deployment of the EU mission in Kosovo,” he added. The Slovenian official stated that the EU was ready to deploy its mission to Kosovo, but that no precise date had yet been agreed on with the UN. Ban Ki-moon (Fonet, archive)

"UN position in Kosovo neutral"

"I'm aware that that package will not satisy every side in its entirety. My sincere belief , following long-running talks with all sides, is that what I've proposed will prove to be the least problematic for all concerned, and can serve as a way forward," Ban said in London.

Earlier in the day, the UN secretary-general's spokesman Brendan Varma said Joachim Ruecker’s successor as UNMIK chief would soon be named.

Varma said that Ban’s letter to the Serbian and Kosovo presidents confirmed the UN’s neutral position vis-a-vis Kosovo’s status.

“As far as the report is concerned, it demonstrates the secretary-general’s intention to reconfigure the structure and profile of our mission to Kosovo in such a way that will allow the EU to assume an operative role in terms of the rule of law, but under a UN umbrella,“ said the spokesman.

He added that that mission would be led by a new special envoy to the secretary-general.

“It is all in line with Resolution 1244. As regards the letters sent to Presidents [Boris] Tadić and [Fatmir] Sejdiu, they confirm that the UN’s position continues to be neutral where Kosovo’s status is concerned,” said Varma.

The EU presidency has welcomed the report and letters sent by the secretary-general about the reconfiguration of UNMIK.

The EU claims that these documents will enable the “smooth and gradual” deployment of EULEX throughout Kosovo.

"We welcome the report of the UN secretary-general and his reconfiguration proposal, because it is in the interests of the entire international community to ensure that there are no security holes, and to enable the continuation of the international presence,” a senior official of the Slovenian EU presidency told a press conference in Brussels.

"The presidency thinks that this report and the letters will enable the smooth and gradual deployment of the EU mission in Kosovo,” he added.

The Slovenian official stated that the EU was ready to deploy its mission to Kosovo, but that no precise date had yet been agreed on with the UN.