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Short-term outlook uncertain, but strong desire of Kosovo''s people for peace, stability is clear, Head of Mission tells Security Council; Council members cite importance of direct dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade, end to violence, `standards before status'' -- Part 1 of 2.

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M2 PRESSWIRE-31 October 2003-UN: Short-term outlook uncertain, but strong desire of Kosovo's people for peace, stability is clear, Head of Mission tells Security Council; Council members cite importance of direct dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade, end to violence, `standards before status' -- Part 1 of 2(C)1994-2003 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:10302003

The short-term outlook for Kosovo was uncertain, but the strong desire of Kosovo's people to live in a peaceful, stable, lawful society was crystal clear, said Harry Holkeri, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), as he briefed the Security Council this morning.

There had been much progress in the development of economic and governmental structures and, in general, freedom of movement, he said, allowing for some returns of displaced persons. The public was, however, growing frustrated with the Government's apparent inability to tackle matters that affected its well-being. In addition, far too many people in Kosovo silently tolerated ethnically based violence.

The overall security situation, he continued, had vastly improved across most of Kosovo, but the dramatic advances enjoyed by the majority community had not been felt by all. The rule of law was being openly flouted in many places. Attacks by extremists from one side or the other could resume at any time to discredit the peace-building activities of UNMIK and the Kosovo multinational security force (KFOR).

Combating that phenomenon would require intensive cooperation between UNMIK's police and justice pillar, with the full engagement of the Kosovo Police Services and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led peacekeeping force.

The international community had agreed on the approach of "standards before status", Mr. Holkeri said, meaning that benchmarks had to be met before final political status was discussed. One such benchmark concerned dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade, and a step forward in that effort was the start of direct talks on practical matters of mutual interest on 14 October in Vienna, Austria. He regretted that key figures had not participated, however.

Now, he said, the four working groups with multi-ethnic representation on the Kosovo side must be promptly established and begin technical talks in Belgrade and Pristina. He appealed to the Council and the international community to continue to provide support to the dialogue process.

In the discussion that followed the briefing, most speakers welcomed the launch of the direct dialogue in Vienna. Italy's representative, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said it was a key benchmark in the "standards before status" strategy, but added his voice to those of many others in expressing disappointment that key interlocutors chose not to attend.

Most speakers firmly supported the "standards before status approach".

The representative of Pakistan, however, said he had reservations about it because that approach had not been applied to other situations, such as in Timor-Leste and the Western Sahara. The status issue must be given its due priority, and development of standards should proceed independently, he maintained.

Most speakers also condemned the continued violence...

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