Posted on 03/19/2009 4:42:42 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Many Kosovo Albanians view the U.N. presence as an obstacle to independence a year after they seceded from Serbia, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a new report released on Thursday.
"There is a perception among many Kosovo Albanians that the mission's tasks have been accomplished and its continued presence is an unwelcome obstacle to the desire for Kosovo to function as a sovereign state," Ban said in his latest report to the U.N. Security Council on U.N. activities in Kosovo.
"The Kosovo authorities, who have been under significant pressure from opposition parties, have repeatedly stated during the past months that resolution 1244 is no longer relevant and that the institutions of Kosovo have no legal obligation to abide by it," the report said.
The Security Council passed resolution 1244 in 1999 to establish a U.N. administration in Kosovo after a NATO bombing campaign against Serbia forced Belgrade to withdraw its security forces from the region. That marked the end of a 1998-1999 war between Serb forces and Albanian guerrillas.
Officially the United Nations remains in charge of Kosovo. The 15-nation council has been unable to make any changes to the U.N. mandate because its members are split over what to do with the U.N. presence there and the legality of Pristina's February 2008 declaration of independence.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Pull out Nato and UN troops. Let Serbia deal with them.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.