UN Security Council to send delegation to Kosovo

United Nations, Apr 5 (UNI) The UN Security Council will send a delegation to Kosovo this month, as it considers a UN official's proposal for granting independence in a phased manner to the ethnic-Albanian majority Serbian province that has been run by the world body since Western forces drove out Yugoslav troops in 1999.

''I would expect that during the month of April there would be a Security Council mission to Belgrade and to Pristina,'' Council President Emyr Jones Parry, the envoy of Britain, which holds the Council's rotating presidency this month, told a news briefing at the United Nations in New York yesterday.

He added that details would follow after meetings with other Council members to see ''how they would like to conduct that mission''.

Asked how the Council would advance the issue given the divergent views on how to proceed, including strong opposition to independence by Russia and Serbia, Mr Jones Parry said Tuesday's discussion was informative as it demonstrated to the Council ''how sensitive this issue is and how carefully (former Finnish) president (Martti) Ahtisaari (the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the future status process for Kosovo), had formulated his proposal''.

''Within the Council there is a natural sense of: we want more information, we are worried about the dismemberment of a state.

At the same time many in the Council acknowledge that we have gotten to the point where what President Ahtisaari is proposing is the logical, the necessary political step and that if this is done in a carefully managed way, we can end up with stability, rights and reconciliation all furthered between Kosovo and Serbia,'' he noted.

Regarding the next steps, he said it would be necessary to make decisions on the Council mission's leadership and terms of reference.

''What I do not expect is the early tabling of a resolution,'' he said, pointing out that consultations will have to be held in key capitals first.

On Tuesday afternoon Mr. Ahtisaari briefed the Security Council in a private meeting, which was followed by closed consultations.

After the meeting, Mr Ahtisaari told reporters it was the start of a process and that he was pleased by the discussions with the members of the Security Council. He said that the process, if not a marathon, was ''at least a 10,000-metre run.'' He also stressed that the Council must recognise that the sooner a decision is made on Kosovo, the better.

The former Finnish president last week at a news conference recommended supervised independence for Kosovo, which has become the last major dispute since the breakup of Yugoslavia.

According to diplomatic sources, after the proposed UN team's visit, a Security Council would be adopted -- most likely in support of the Ahtisaari proposal that sought Kosovo independence, which should be supervised at least initially.

The proposal would confer independence on Kosovo, but provide a European Union overseer, a EU police mission, a NATO peace force and other things.

UNI