EU mulls taking over Kosovo mission

Brussels is considering sending an EU mission to replace UNMIK even before the end of the status talks, reports suggest. The European Union was at the start of the year firm in its stance that only a UN Security Council resolution and an Ahtisaari plan-based status solution for the province could give its Kosovo mission a valid mandate to deploy. EU mulls taking over Kosovo mission Now, anonymous diplomatic sources from the bloc have suggested to reporters in Brussels that the EU is "seriously considering sending its mission to Kosovo even before the final status decision, acting in line with Resolution 1244." The Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe official and former Serbian foreign minister, Goran Svilanovic, told B92 that the EU is aware of the sensitivity of the problem and will therefore look to channel the process away from any upset to the stability of the region. "The ball is in the EU yard and this is where we are now – the U.S. wants to hurry things up, Russia has so far stood firmly by Belgrade, I expect that position not to change; if that means prolonging this process, then this process will be prolonged." "The EU is really in a place where it wishes to render this process sustainable, but does not want to see it drag on for too long, therefore, [Wolfgang] Ishinger will try to produce a document that will be presented as joint and essential," Svilanovic said. One of Kosovo Serb leaders, Oliver Ivanovic, also thinks that the Union will soon have to develop plans to take over from the UN , even without an new resolution regulating the circumstances of the takeover. "I think the EU will have to seriously ponder ways of introduction its own mission, without breaching our territorial integrity and Resolution 1244, i.e., its main provisions, and in this way replace a fairly unsuccessful mission that is non-existent in the past three years. Since March 17, 2004, this [UN] mission has completely crumbled and is only formally alive," Ivanovic believes. State Secretary with the Ministry for Kosovo Dusan Prorokovic, however, said Friday the future EU mission in the province will not guarantee security there. "I agree that the existing mission has collapsed, that it faces many problems in its day-to-day operations, but what proof do we have that any future mission will operate better, when it is set to be seven or eight times smaller than UNMIK, will less people and shrinking jurisdiction?" "There are no guarantees that an EU mission will do its job better," Prorokovic concluded. If the plans Brussels is making come to life, the EU mission in Kosovo will be the largest in the Union's history, with 1,800 people, 1,400 of which police officers. Some 18,000 KFOR soldiers and 10,000 UNMIK personnel are currently deployed in the province. Soon to make way for EU colleagues? UN policemen in Kosovo (Beta, archive)

EU mulls taking over Kosovo mission

Now, anonymous diplomatic sources from the bloc have suggested to reporters in Brussels that the EU is "seriously considering sending its mission to Kosovo even before the final status decision, acting in line with Resolution 1244."

The Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe official and former Serbian foreign minister, Goran Svilanović, told B92 that the EU is aware of the sensitivity of the problem and will therefore look to channel the process away from any upset to the stability of the region.

"The ball is in the EU yard and this is where we are now – the U.S. wants to hurry things up, Russia has so far stood firmly by Belgrade, I expect that position not to change; if that means prolonging this process, then this process will be prolonged."

"The EU is really in a place where it wishes to render this process sustainable, but does not want to see it drag on for too long, therefore, [Wolfgang] Ishinger will try to produce a document that will be presented as joint and essential," Svilanović said.

One of Kosovo Serb leaders, Oliver Ivanović, also thinks that the Union will soon have to develop plans to take over from the UN , even without an new resolution regulating the circumstances of the takeover.

"I think the EU will have to seriously ponder ways of introduction its own mission, without breaching our territorial integrity and Resolution 1244, i.e., its main provisions, and in this way replace a fairly unsuccessful mission that is non-existent in the past three years. Since March 17, 2004, this [UN] mission has completely crumbled and is only formally alive," Ivanović believes.

State Secretary with the Ministry for Kosovo Dušan Proroković, however, said Friday the future EU mission in the province will not guarantee security there.

"I agree that the existing mission has collapsed, that it faces many problems in its day-to-day operations, but what proof do we have that any future mission will operate better, when it is set to be seven or eight times smaller than UNMIK, will less people and shrinking jurisdiction?"

"There are no guarantees that an EU mission will do its job better," Proroković concluded.

If the plans Brussels is making come to life, the EU mission in Kosovo will be the largest in the Union's history, with 1,800 people, 1,400 of which police officers.

Some 18,000 KFOR soldiers and 10,000 UNMIK personnel are currently deployed in the province.