UNMIK/KFOR Index Page

Source: http://www.un.org/peace/kosovo/news/kosovo2.htm#Anchor24
Accessed 02 May 2000

UN mission in Kosovo doing "a magnificent job", says leader of Security Council delegation

Ambassador Anwarul Karim Chowdhury of Bangladesh, who had just presented his report to the Security Council shortly after the return of his eight-member delegation from the area, was briefing reporters in New York.

The purpose of the visit, which ended yesterday after an intensive two-and-a-half days touring all parts of Kosovo, was for the members to see first-hand the challenges facing the UN in implementing its mandate under the Security Council Resolution 1244 and to exhort Kosovars to cease violence and support UN efforts for reconstruction and reconciliation.

Ambassador Chowdhury said that without such a visit to Kosovo it would not have been possible to comprehend the enormity of the task that the UN was facing in Kosovo.

He said his delegation's strong message to Kosovo communities to reject violence and promote peaceful co-existence was received "with a lot of understanding and a lot of support".

He said, however, the issue that kept coming up was the question of missing persons and detainees. "The Security Council cannot maintain its credibility unless we address this issue," he said.

He said the question of security and violence, as well as the return of refugees and displaced persons, were two other core issues that affected economic recovery and democratisation in Kosovo.

Speaking to journalists in Pristina yesterday, Ambassador Chowdhury also said that UNMIK needs more police and civilian staff. He said that while his delegation was impressed with improvements in law and order and efforts at building a local police force, it found a serious constraint with regard both to civilian police and civilian administrative staff.

He pledged to work to strengthen UNMIK. "We have to address this point when we are back in New York," he said.