New Kosova Report

UNMIK document reveals Serb efforts to divide Kosovo

Saturday, 15 November 2008

A secret facsimile from the former UNMIK chief Joachim Ruecker sent to the United Nations' Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guéhenno on 15 Ocotber 2007 lays out the steps that the Serb government was taking back then to undermine the authority of Resolution 1244 while the status negotiations were still ongoing.

Ruecker complains to the UN headquarters about UNMIK feeling powerless to stop Serbia from such actions and not having support from NATO's KFOR to stop the activity, besides basic security.

The increase in activity of Serbia inside Kosovo in the north and in the enclaves a year ago gives an idea about the intentions of Serbia.

The letter is followed by a catalgoue of buildings housing security, transporation, public administration, justice, healthcare, telecommunicatin, energy and finacial institutions which are counterparts to the their Serbia ones.

SUBJECT: Development of new Parallel Structures in Kosovo-Serbian inhabited areas

Summary: An acceleration in the development of parallel structures in K-Serbian inhabited areas indicates that official entities of Serbia proper as well as the Kosovo Serbs are using the additional negotiating time in the status process to increase their independence from Kosovo institutions. Although the Kosovo Serbs have also shown a willingness to continue to work with UNMIK, the spread of parallel structures contravenes UNMIK's authority to implement its mandate, thereby violating SCR 1244 and establishing preconditions for a de facto Partition of Kosovo. UNMIK's ability to respond to this situation is limited due in large part to our reliance on the willingness of KFOR participating states to utilise force to achieve objectives beyond providing a Safe and secure environment.

1. State-sponsored opposition to UNMIK's authority to implement SCR 1244 is groWing day by day' in the form of illegal construction of facilities, thereby undermining the rule of law, contributing to a de facto partition of Kosovo and severely hampering UNMIK's ability to implement its mandate.

2. In recent months, there has been a visible increase of construction of permanent facilities operated by Serbian entities in many instances not established or licensed in accordance with Kosovo laws but operating in parallel to central PISG structures. This includes offices, telecommunication towers, permanent energy facilities (transformer stations), underground telecommunication optical fibre cables, and others. Entities involved in this new construction include Serbian Post and Telecommunications (PTT), all three Serbian operators of mobile telephony (MTS, Mobtel, and VIP), and some smaller commercial undertakings. When asked, they tell us that the they are operating legally within Serbian law and under SCR 1244, which recognises Serbian sovereignty over Kosovo.

3. Taken together with a number of other unlicensed economic operators, which in our view are Serbian Publicly Owned Enterprises (POEs) and Serbian Government supplied public services ranging from health and education to fiscal and general governance that already operate in Kosovo, this represents a formal challenge to UNMIK's authority to implement fully SCR 1244. Virtually all of the above entities, and institutions of the Government of Serbia, have been informed on numerous occasions in meetings and in writing, that such operations are illegal and that any undertakings operating in Kosovo must comply fully with the applicable law in Kosovo. None of these approaches has produced any tangible effect, and new construction projects continue to be launched.

4. Accelerating partition prejudices ongoing political developments by creating a fait accompli where the K-Serbian-inhabited areas of Kosovo are both separated from the rest of Kosovo and made increasingly reliant on Belgrade. At the current pace, areas inhabited by K-Serbs will soon be capable of consuming basic utilities provided directly from Serbia without any communication with the rest of Kosovo or any respect for Kosovo's laws and regulations.

5. This will further hamper the Mission's and the' central PISG's ability to offer Kosovo-based perspectives to Kosovo Serbs.

6. Until now, UNMIK has been very cautious about encouraging executive action against service providers in Kosovo Serbian-inhabited areas, in order to maintain stability of services and political calm during the process of status negotiations. However, it seems that some Serbian companies and institutions have misinterpreted this position as a sign of leniency or even indifference to the expansion of their operations.

7. To prevent further deterioration of both the factual and the political situation on the ground, as well as to avoid prejudicing political developments in the status process,. UNMIK believes that effective action should be taken against the offending companies.

8. Moreover, UNMIK believes that in the spirit of the SG's call for the Troika to take a more pro-active role in the current round of status talks, UN Headquarters should call on the Troika and Contact Group members to take the matter up directly with the authorities in Belgrade by requesting that they ensure that Serbian public institutions and companies cease and desist from engaging in any activities that undermine implementation of SCR 1244 including the ongoing efforts in the status process.

9. Your comments and guidance would be highly appreciated.

Best regards.