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Kosovo Five Years On

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Kosovo Five Years On COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS - The Secretariat - BRIEFING NOTE FOR MEMBERS Public Hearing "Kosovo: Five Years On" Tuesday, 25 January 2005, 15:00 - 18:30 Brussels CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS - KOSOVO 1989: Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic abolishes the autonomy of the province. The reaction in Kosovo among the Albanians is a declaration of independence (repressed by Belgrade) and the creation of parallel Albanian institutions in Kosovo. 1992: An academic, Ibrahim Rugova, is elected president of the self-proclaimed Republic. He believes in a peaceful form of protest against Belgrade. December 14 1995: The Dayton Agreement puts an end to the war in ex-Yugoslavia but does not mention the problem of the province. 1998: The protest in Kosovo shifts from Rugova's pacific approach to the organisation of a Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). Open conflict between Serbian police and the separatist KLA. Government repression provokes the displacement of thousands of civilians. February 6 1999: Failure of the talks in Rambouillet (France). March 23 1999: NATO intervention in Kosovo. June 10 1999: Serbian troops withdraw from Kosovo and the UN sets up the Kosovo Peace Implementation Force (KFOR). KLA disarms. June 14 1999: International civilian peace presence for Kosovo - UNMIK (the interim UN administration for Kosovo) - presented by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. May 2001: The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General announces a Constitutional Framework for Provisional Institution of Self-Government (PISG). November 2001: Legislative elections: victory for Ibrahim Rugova and his Democratic League Party. March 2002: A government is formed: the Kosovan Parliament elects Ibrahim Rugova President and Bejran Rexhepi becomes Prime Minister. DV\552162EN.doc 1 PE 353.343 October 2003: For the first time, direct talks between the Kosovo Albanians and the Serbian leadership take place. December 2003: The UN sets conditions for status talks in 2005. March 2004: Riots start in the city of Mitrovica and spread through the region; 19 people are killed. October 23 2004: Elections. Serbs boycott them and President Rugova's Democratic League wins the elections. December 2004: The newly elected Assembly, without Serbian representatives, re-elects Mr Rugova President and elects Mr Ramush Haradinaj (former regional commander of the KLA) as Prime Minister. COUNTRY PROFILE Status: UN-administered province within Serbia and Montenegro Population: 1.8 million Capital: Pristina Major languages: Albanian (90%), Serbian (7%), others (3%) 1 Major religions: Islam, Christianity President: Ibrahim Rugova (Democratic League of Kosovo) Prime Minister: Ramush Haradinaj (Alliance for the future of Kosovo) President Rugova's Democratic League of Kosovo had forged a coalition with Mr Haradinaj's party after the October 2004 general elections. As part of the deal, the President nominated Mr Haradinaj as Kosovo's next Prime Minister. MAIN INTERNATIONAL ACTORS INVOLVED IN KOSOVO United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) UNMIK came into being on 10 June 1999 when the Security Council (Resolution 1244) authorised the Secretary-General to establish an interim civilian administration led by the United Nations, under which Kosovo's people could progressively enjoy autonomy. In January 2000, Joint Interim Administrative Departments were created; in October 2000, local elections took place in Kosovo's 30 Municipalities; in May 2001, the new Constitutional Framework of Kosovo was adopted. Province-wide elections took place in November 2001. UNMIK's work is organised into different areas: Pillar I: Police and Justice, under the direct leadership of the United Nations Pillar II: Civil Administration, under the direct leadership of the United Nations Pillar III: Democratisation and Institution Building, led by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Pillar IV: Reconstruction and Economic Development, led by the European Union (EU) 1 Institute for War and Peace Reporting http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?balkans_kos1.html DV\552162EN.doc 2 PE 353.343 The head of UNMIK is the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Kosovo (SRSG), Mr. Søren Jessen-Petersen. European Union The EU is the largest contributor with €2 billion distributed mainly through CARDS (Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Democratisation and Stabilisation). An amount of €4.65 billion is to be allocated over the period 2002-2006 to accompany and support reforms in the countries concerned. Kosovo accounts for 70% of the reconstruction assistance in the Western Balkans. Since the Cologne European Council in 1999, the EU decided to adopt a comprehensive approach towards the Balkan region through the Stabilisation and Association Process and the negotiation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreements. Meanwhile, the European Union has a more specific approach to Kosovo, and in this regard the SAP Tracking Mechanism (STM) has become instrumental. The STM foresees a joint technical working group between UNMIK, the PISG (Provisional Institution of Self- Government) and the European Commission, whose aim is to support Kosovo in its EU- compatible structural reforms. The European Union is also cooperating with UNMIK in its Pillar IV (economic development). The European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR) manages economic assistance in Serbia- Montenegro and Kosovo. In 2004 alone, EAR was given responsibility for €49 million of European Commission assistance funds for Kosovo. The 2004 programme focused on encouraging investments from international financial institutions and promoting good governance and the rule of law. OSCE The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe is charged with institution- and democracy-building, rule of law, and human rights in the province. OSCE is cooperating with UNMIK for the implementation of its third pillar. THE FUTURE STATUS OF KOSOVO In December 2003, the then UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Kosovo, Mr Holkeri, with President Rugova and Prime Minister Rexhepi, launched the “Standards for Kosovo” plan. Discussions about the future status of Kosovo would start by mid-2005 if, by that time, Kosovo reaches certain standards in eight specific areas: the functioning of democratic institutions, the rule of law, freedom of movement, community rights and sustainable returns, the economy, property rights, dialogue and the Kosovo Protection Corps. Progress is due to be assessed around mid-2005 on how far multi-ethnic democracy has been solidified. 6 January 2005 AFET/RO/IT/mf DV\552162EN.doc 3 PE 353.343.
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