YouSaid · the spoken record

Daeic

lines on the record: 287
first: 2014-08-29
most recent: 2019-10-31
sittings or episodes: 12
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Mr. Daeic' (Serbia) (spoke in Serbian; interpretation provided by the delegation): I would like to thank Secretary-General Guterres and his Special Representative, Mr. Zahir Tanin, for their submission of the report before us (S/2018/76) and their overall dedication and engagement in the realization of the mandate of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) under resolution 1244 (1999). I would also like to recognize and express my gratitude to the President and the members of the Security Council for the extensive attention they accord to the continued consideration, review and understanding of the issue, which is of paramount importance to the Republic of Serbia.”
2018-02-07 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8176 (2018) · source
“In conclusion, I express special thanks to States that have not recognized the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo for their principled position and their respect for resolution 1244 (1999) and the Charter of the United Nations.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Sao Tome and Principe and Suriname have proved that it is possible. Before I conclude, let me take this opportunity to recall that Serbia has warned for the past 10 years of the danger of unilateral acts and drawn attention to the fact that recognition of Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence may open a Pandora's box of many other separatist and secessionist movements around the world. Regrettably, we have seen this happen of late. Serbia condemns each and every attempt to declare independence unilaterally in the strongest terms and unequivocally supports the principle of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all States.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“At the same time, Pristina's efforts to promote its unilateral declaration of independence by applying for membership in international organizations and, by the same token, of politicizing their work have been denounced by many countries, including some that have recognized the unilateral declaration of independence. I take this opportunity to thank them for standing firm in the defence of international law in order to emphasize that the only right thing to do in this international context is to discourage Pristina from seeking admission to international organizations and to focus on a good-faith dialogue as the only way to resolve all issues. It is also worth mentioning in that connection that recent events have shown that States can and do backtrack and renounce their recognition of Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Serbia's efforts are aimed at protecting, in a legitimate way, its national and State interests and at asserting the authority of international law, the Charter ofthe United Nations and resolution 1244 (1999), which guarantee Serbia's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Any attempt to resolve any issue in Belgrade-Pristina relations unilaterally is unacceptable and may negatively affect the implementation of obligations assumed in the dialogue. In that context, I stress the disapproval of my country and of the international community of efforts to establish a Kosovo armed force. Such unilateral acts by Pristina are fraught with the potential to destabilize the security situation in the region and threaten the process of normalizing relations between Belgrade and Pristina.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“I therefore take this opportunity to call on Security Council members and Pristina's representatives to make a joint effort to focus on substantive issues and on the quest for a lasting and sustainable solution for Kosovo and Metohija rather than on technical aspects, such as the dynamic and format of Security Council meetings. Calls to change the long-standing modality of informing the Security Council and States Members of the United Nations about this important issue, at a time when we are trying to find a lasting solution for this problem, can only create new divisions within the Council and deepen the differences between Belgrade and Pristina. They counterintuitive and not conducive to the creation of a constructive atmosphere for the continuation of dialogue.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Motivated by a desire to find a lasting solution to the question of Kosovo and Metohija, the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vueie has called on the citizens of Serbia to embark on an internal dialogue, which was institutionalized by the establishment of a working group. A long-term solution is a precondition of Serbia's progress and that of the entire region. We need a serious, responsible and forward-looking approach in our relations with Pristina, and we are ready to offer a soluton that would contribute to regional stability, political cooperation and economic prosperity. Rather than be a cause of new divisions, misunderstanding and conflicts, it will provide an opportunity for a historic agreement with the Albanian community of Kosovo and Metohija.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“The stalemate in the dialogue accounted for the emergence of a whole range of problems in the implementation of the agreements. Pristina continues to violate the provisions of the agreement on official visits and without a valid reason banned entry into Kosovo and Metohija to Serbia's Minister of Education, Science and Technological Development, Mr. Mladen Sareevic', and the Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djurie. In addition, the problems in the sphere of freedom of movement and integrated border management continue. Internally displaced persons are treated inadequately by being requested to provide additional personal data, while their passports, issued by the Coordination Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Serbia, are not recognized when they attempt to enter the province.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“I take this opportunity to call on the representatives of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government in Pristina to demonstrate goodwill and commitment to dialogue and to proceed to establish the association/ community of Serb-majority municipalities without delay - in other words, to implement the obligations they have assumed and carry out the most important element of the Brussels agreements of 2013, which was signed by me in my capacity as Prime Minister of Serbia, by Catherine Ashton on behalf of the European Union, and by former Prime Minister Hashim Thaci. This confirms the credibility of the statement made by Ramush Haradinaj, to the effect that there is no alternative to dialogue and that direct talks must occur between peoples and not the political elites.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Let me point out in that connection that, even four and a half years after the obligation to establish the community of Serbian municipalities was assumed as the key part of the first agreement of principles governing the normalization of relations, no progress has been registered in its implementation. Surprisingly, no mention is made of that fact in the report. For us, the establishment of the association/community of Serb- majority municipalities is the most important question and a cornerstone of the protection of the interests of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Explaining their decision, the representatives stated that the conditions in which they decided to participate in the Government of Kosovo were very clear. They pointed to the need to protect the interests of Serbs and their central demands for the establishment of the association/community of Serb- majority municipalities, the protection of property and the guaranteed return of IDPs. Regrettably, the efforts made by Serbia to find realistic, status-neutral and mutually acceptable solutions through compromise have not been reciprocated by the other side, particularly with respect to implementing the agreements that have been reached thus far.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Serbia's commitment to resolving all outstanding issues peacefully and through dialogue is motivated first and foremost by its strong conviction that there is no alternative to such an approach and that only within a status-neutral framework is it possible to contribute to regional peace, security and stability, as well as to the region's progress towards integration into the European family of nations. Our responsible approach has also been reaffirmed by the bold political decision of the representatives of the Serbian list to enter Ramush Haradinaj's Government after the parliamentary elections. The decision once again confirmed the political unity of the Serbs of Kosovo and Metohija and the perpetuation of the constructive policy of protecting their status and interests.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“As the legal framework for prosecuting perpetrators of war crimes in the Specialist Chambers has now been fully put in place, we expect that those suspected of carrying out crimes against Serbs and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija will be indicted and tried. Serbia continues to be firmly committed to dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, facilitated by the European Union. Despite the many doubts, second- guessing and challenges encountered on the way, Serbia has demonstrated great resolve to find compromise solutions, which are not always simple or easy to come by. That constructive approach is evinced by the implementation by our side of a number of obligations assumed in the dialogue, including the recent integration of judges and prosecutors into the judicial framework of the province.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“The report also draws attention to other disputes related to the property of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Those issues provide ample evidence of the importance of the protection of Serbian historical, cultural and religious heritage that is part of the invaluable heritage of Europe and the world. The international community should also make additional efforts to establish a society in Kosovo and Metohija in which the rule of law is respected, in which conditions are created for effective, impartial and credible trials of war criminals, and in which the fate of missing persons is clarified, thereby contributing to the process of reconciliation among communities.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“UNMIK must invest additional efforts in strengthening all its capacities in order to ensure the necessary level of protection of the human rights and freedoms of internally displaced persons, and to create optimum conditions for sustainable returns, including through the restitution of property or, put simply, the guarantee of property rights. The report notes that no progress has been made with regard to the implementation of the ruling of the Kosovo Constitutional Court, confirming the ownership by the Visoki Deeani monastery of the surrounding land. The monastery, which features on the UNESCO World Heritage List, was founded in the first half of the fourteenth century by the Serbian King Stefan Decanski. It has been vandalized many times in the past, including by adherents of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“The negligible number of returnees is due to the failure to bring to justice offenders who have incited racial, ethnic and religious hatred and intolerance, ongoing institutional discrimination against Serbs, and ethnically motivated restriction measures, including arbitrary arrests. In particular, instances of arrests executed on the basis of trumped-up charges in the south of the province testify to the general physical and legal insecurity. Such measures seek to enable usurpers to take possession of property by illegal means. The report of the Secretary-General should therefore accord attention in a separate section to the Violation of human rights and freedoms of the returnees to southern Kosovo and Metohija.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“I would also point out, however, that the number of IDPs in Kosovo and Metohija cited in the report does not adequately reflect the magnitude of the problem and does not call for the commensurate attention of the Mission. A number of structural shortcomings in the institutional and judiciary systems of Kosovo and Metohija are noted in the report. Those shortcomings have negative consequences for vulnerable communities, primarily regarding the protection of the rights of the Serbs and other non-Albanians in the south of the province and the rights of returnees, as well as the process of reconciliation among communities.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Therefore, UNMIK's undiminished presence ensures the necessary security and provides guarantees and impetus to Serbs and non-Albanians to involve themselevs in the processes initiated by the Brussels Agreement, without fear for their future or the future of their families. The fact that 18 years after the arrival of the international presence in the province, some 200,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) who were forced to flee Kosovo and Metohija continue to live in Serbia, outside the province, is a powerful argument that UNMIK's scope should not be changed. Sustainable return has been achieved by only 1.9 per cent of IDPs, and I am sure that the Secretary-General will agree that that is one of the key questions that UNMIK should accentuate in the future.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“UNMIK's presence in Kosovo and Metohija in an undiminished scope and under an unchanged mandate as a guarantor of the status neutrality of the international presence is of paramount importance to promoting security and stability and to building trust between the communities of Kosovo and Metohija. Strengthening its financial and human resources will enable the international community to comprehensively and sustainably assess and address the problems and challenges facing the Serbian and non-Albanian populations every day. The political situation, given its sensitivity in Kosovo and Metohija, has a major impact on building trust and confidence among its communities.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Mr. Daeic' (Serbia) (spoke in Serbian; interpretation provided by the delegation): I would like to thank Secretary- General Guterres and his Special Representative, Mr. Zahir Tanin, for their submission of the report before us (S/2017/911) and their overall engagement in the realization of the mandate of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) under resolution 1244 (1999). I also thank the President and members ofthe Security Council for recognizing the importance of the continued review and consideration of the issue.”
2017-11-14 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8100 (2017) · source
“Serbia is a small country and is certainly not threatening or imposing, but we ask for respect because Serbia, as part of Yugoslavia, together with other Member States - the United Kingdom, France and Russia - established the United Nations after the Second World War, unlike others that fought on the side against which the First and Second World Wars were waged. We remain committed to the principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty. I am referring not to force and violence but to peaceful means ofresolving issues. I believe that we have many common interests and are on the right path to resolving the issues, ifthere is mutual respect on both sides.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Citaku will mention in her briefing because it is all she talks about - a humanitarian disaster, genocide and ethnic cleansing. I just outlined the outcome of the decades-long policy towards the Serbian people. Please bear that in mind because Serbians did not arrive in Kosovo as representatives of a colonial Power. They have lived in that territory for centuries. This situation could occur in any of the member States represented here, so no one should be hasty in calling for others to recognize Kosovo. That is an insult to Serbia.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“The right to self-determination is a right granted to people who are stateless. Her people - the Albanian people - have their own State. This issue relates to a national minority that used to live in the area of Serbia and Yugoslavia, who unilaterally declared a new State. We would like to discuss all of the facts, but we cannot accept that they have nothing to discuss with us. If there is nothing to discuss with us, please do not address any comments to Serbia. A Kosovar Government can then be formed. No one is preventing that. As can be seen, Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija play a constructive role. I would like to thank the Council for listening to my statement. I wanted to state this in advance because I know exactly what Ms.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Those two subjects are too serious to be discussed in cliches. We would like to reach a lasting solution on the issue of Kosovo and Metohija, but that will happen only through respect for the legitimate interests of both Albanians and Serbs. If someone were to show up here and proclaim that, from today onwards, this will be a new State, without the agreement of the country from which the territory is seceding, that would be deemed to be a breach of international law and a violation of that State's authority. It is very clear that the circumstances have changed but a mutually acceptable solution must take into account the rights and interests of both sides. With regard to Kosovo, it has nothing to do with the right of people to self-determination. Ms. Citaku is not Kosovar; she is Albanian. As a people, the Kosovars do not exist.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Even now, the representatives of Pristina will mention that the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo should be brought to an end. Their statement will then be distributed here, as a statement made by a representative of the Republic of Kosovo. Has the United Nations recognized Kosovo? Nonetheless, despite all that I have stated, we would like to engage in dialogue. They will state, however, that there is nothing to discuss. If the issue has been resolved, why do they attend the meetings of the Security Council? I would also like to issue a warning to all countries that call for Kosovo to be recognized and ask them to bear in mind that this is a question of our territorial integrity and sovereignty. They should be grateful that their own sovereignty and territorial integrity are intact.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Those who committed crimes against Albanians should be prosecuted but please let it not be said that they were the primary victims of ethnic cleansing. The main victims of that atrocity were the Serbs, given the statistics that I have just quoted. Where are those Serbs now? Because they were forced out of Kosovo and Metohija and into exile, are we supposed to forget them? Should they never be mentioned again by the Council? For the Council, does the history of Kosovo and Metohija start on the day of its declaration of independence? That is why I ask that when the Council addresses this issue, please bear in mind all of the facts presented. I would like to thank the Security Council. Serbia is not against dialogue with Pristina. It is, however, against unilateral action.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Citaku, as the representative of her authorities here, there are now only 32, which is 600 times fewer Serbs. In 1981, there was 17,000 Serbs and Montenegrins in Pec'; now, according to Ms. Citaku's census, there are 332. In 1981, there were 1,898 Serbs in Dajkovce; today, there are only 17. Podujevo is right next to the administrative line with Serbia, and through which the famous Pristina-Nis highway passes. It is where 2,242 Serbs used to live. Only 12 Serbs reside there now, which accounts for 200 times fewer Serbs. Prizren the town in which I was born - was the capital of Serbia in the fourteenth century. In 1981, there were 11,651 Serbs living in that town. According to the 2011 census, there were 231; now, there are only 27, not 27,000. That amounts to 400 times fewer Serbs. There can be do denying those truths.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Citaku says that someone committed ethnic cleansing and genocide, that would mean that there are fewer Albanians than before because they werevictims of genocide and ethnic cleansing. However, according to the data we have, it turns out that Serbs carried out genocide and ethnic cleansing against their own people. According to the 1981 census, during Tito's leadership and not under Milosevic, 43,875 Serbs lived in Pristina. According to the 2011 census, which Ms. Citaku herself compiled, only 430 are left. Where are the other 43,000 Serbs? In the span of 30 years, there were 100 times fewer Serbs living in Pristina. Does that mean that ethnic cleansing and genocide were carried out against Albanians? Were ethnic cleansing and genocide carried out against Serbs or Albanians? In 1981, there were 18,285 Serbs Urosevac. According to Ms.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Citaku that it is not all right to laugh now, but if she can prove that there is a single monument of hers there and then I will stop laughing at her. Four monuments protected under UNESCO there date back to the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries: Visoki Deeani, the Patriarchate of Pee, Our Lady of Ljevis and Gracanica monastery. The Serbs have lived there for centuries. More than 200,000 Serbs were exiled and persecuted after 1991. Do Council members believe that we should not mention this anymore? Do they believe that their exile has become legitimized simply because it actually took place? Is anyone ever going to mention the need of Serbs to return to Kosovo and Metohija? If you do not believe me, Mr. President, or if you think that I am lying, I will tell you that statistics are a very terrible thing. When Ms.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Citaku will offer information to document stories about genocide, ethnic cleansing and everything else that she talks about, in order not to have to reply to her later I should like to ask the Secretary-General and Special Representative Tanin that in their future reports they not forget the persecuted and exiled citizens of Kosovo and Metohija. What does it mean that they do not mention this aspect anymore? Since 1999, 18 years later, only 1.9 per cent of internally displaced persons have returned to Kosovo. What does this mean? They were once exiled, but nobody mentions that fact any more. They had not been a colonial Power there; they had lived there for centuries. As is well known, the first capital of Serbia, the town of Prizren, is located there. All our monuments are protected under the United Nations. I say to Ms.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“It will also require a different kind of thinking, so as to avoid agreements being misunderstood as a defeat for one side or the other. Serbia is firmly committed to the dialogue intended to promote regional stability. However, it is of paramount importance that the dialogue be based on mutually acceptable solutions to all outstanding issues, without prejudice to the future status of Kosovo and Metohija and with full respect for resolution 1244 (1999). We believe that a serious and credible approach is needed - one that will be courageous and realistic, as well as forward-looking, as exemplified by President Vucie's initiative to launch a country-wide dialogue on Kosovo and Metohija. Finally, as I expect that Ms.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“The request is just another push by Pristina to promote its unilaterally declared independence through the abuse and politicization of the work of international organizations. In conclusion, I would like to say that the positive results achieved in the dialogue demonstrate that there is no alternative to dialogue. The results also demonstrate that stronger mediation leadership is needed to ensure that agreements reached so far are implemented. The indicated commitment to starting a new phase of the dialogue at the highest level and to bringing new impetus to the dialogue will require a genuine resolve by both sides towards working to achieve a compromise; such resolve has so far been missing on the part of Pristina.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“I would like to point out that these unilateral acts violate the Charter of the United Nations and resolution 1244 (1999), while Pristina's efforts to join various international organizations have a negative effect on the continuation of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, which is currently at a delicate stage. The most recent example is the request by Kosovo for admission to INTERPOL, which cannot be interpreted as an effort to promote its capacity to combat crime and terrorism and create institutional preconditions for inclusion in the exchange of information within the INTERPOL purview, especially since this capacity is already available through the UNMIK Liaison Office. Further, there is a special department within UNMIK for dealing with these issues.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“I take this opprorunity to call on the international community to step up its efforts to provide physical and legal protection to the monuments of the Serbian cultural and religious heritage that continue to be plundered, damaged, set on fire or destroyed, including the destruction and desecration of numerous Orthodox Christian cemeteries, reported extensively by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Mission in Kosovo and Metohija. Pristina's expressed intention to resubmit its request for admission to UNESCO is therefore hard to understand, in the least.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“The report ofthe Secretary-General recounts multiple breaches of law, disregard for judicial institutions and their decisions, refusal to cooperate with representatives of the international community and violation of the rights of the Serbian Orthodox Church and its faithful. Civil society organizations expressed concern about contravention of the law on the special protective zone for the historic centre of Prizren.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“In that context, it is necessary that all actors involved in the solution of the issue of internally displaced persons recommit themselves to working zealously to create conditions for their return, which needs to be unimpeded and sustainable in the long run. Indeed, this is one of the main elements of UNMIK's mandate. Institutional violations of rights are also seen in the area of the protection of the Serbian cultural and religious heritage in Kosovo and Metohija. In that connection, I recall the public condemnation by the Special Representative of the European Union, in which he called on the Kosovo authorities to respect the rule of law in terms of enforcing the judgment of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo that upheld the Visoki Decani monastery's ownership rights to 24 hectares of land surrounding it.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Of key importance is the full implementation of UNMIK's mandate, including the application of the rule of law, human rights, reconciliation among communities and the return of internally displaced persons. The challenges are many in these areas, as is evidenced not only by the quarterly reports of the Secretary-General on the work of UNMIK, but also by the aforementioned memorandum of the Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner and his visit to Kosovo and Metohija last February. In his report, the Commissioner expresses, inter alia, serious concern that 18 years after the end of the conflict, the ethnic lines of division as well as numerous obstacles to voluntary returns of internally displaced persons are still very much in evidence.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“We therefore appreciate the activities of the Head of UNMIK aimed at establishing contact with municipal authorities and community representatives for the purpose of protecting community rights, promoting reconciliation, building intercommunity confidence and ensuring the return of internally displaced persons going forward. I propose that greater attention be accorded in the next reports to the question of widespread and pervasive threats to the human rights of the non-Albanian communities, in particular of the most vulnerable, returnees, inter-ethnic and mixed communities within Kosovo Metohija, which are exposed to unrelenting intimidation campaigns. My statement is also a call to intensify programmatic activities, maximize projects, build confidence and improve the current situation.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“The data from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for the first half of 2017, which has recorded only 218 voluntary individual returns of the members of minority communities, are self-defeating, to say the least. It is clear that the failure by the police to classify the ethnically motivated crimes as such as well as the lack of systematic monitoring of the situation in this area do not contribute to increasing the number of returnees, nor does the international institutional discrimination of the Serbs, which is manifest in arbitrary arrests, ethnically motivated restrictive measures and the constant violation of basic rights.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Its primary interest is to save lives and property for the residents of Kosovo and Metohija and create conditions for the sustainable return of internally displaced persons. Regrettably, the ethnically motivated attacks on Serbs, such as the recent setting on fire of the cars of Dragisa Milovic' and Oliver Ivanovie, which continue unabated, obstruct the return of internally displaced persons in any significant number. These incidents are a consequence of the unending increase of tensions through hate speech and a lack ofa systematic response by the Kosovo institutions to numerous security and initiative problems facing non-Albanian communities. They reflect the non-existence of a genuine will to create conditions for security and a sustainable life together in Kosovo and Metohija.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Such assertions are a testament to the fact that Kosovo and Metohija institutions are far from the standards of an independent judiciary and unable to try war crimes committed against the non-Albanian population in a credible and impartial way. In view of the fact that the Specialist Chambers established to try war crimes are now fully operational and that there are no legal obstacles to bringing indictments, I expect that all those suspected of committing war crimes against the Serbs and other non-Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija will be credibly indicted and that witnesses will be accorded proper court protection. Serbia stands ready to provide all necessary documentation and evidence on brutal multiple rapes, torture and savage killings by the members of the KLA. Serbia is fully committed to safeguarding peace.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“In addition to the aforementioned acquittals, the report of the Secretary-General accords considerable attention to numerous systemic shortcomings of the judiciary in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as to its inability to take on and win over the political muscle of the former leadership of the KLA. Let me recall that, in a memorandum issued following his most recent mission to Kosovo and Metohija, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights also stressed that, 18 years since the end of the conflict in Kosovo and Metohija, thousands of people continue to wait forjustice and that it is high time that conditions be established for effectively trying war criminals, facilitating the return of internally displaced persons and for clarifying the fate of missing persons.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“It will be possible only when a killer is called a killer in Kosovo and Metohija, regardless of whether the victim's name is Adem, Ivan, Ramush or Pantelija. The message conveyed by the decisions to acquit terrorists and perpetrators of gruesome crimes is that justice is unattainable for the Serbian and Albanian victims of the terror of the so-called KLA, and that Kosovo and Metohija Serbs are dispensable. At the same time, that is telling evidence that the international community has failed to establish in Kosovo and Metohija a society based on the rule of law.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Genuine democracy is predicated on a society's renunciation of crimes and organized crime in which an independent judiciary must play a pivotal role. However, the judiciary in Kosovo and Metohija has shown time and again that it is an instrument in the hands of those who should be the first to bear the brunt of the long sword ofjustice. Yet as long as paramilitary clan leaders and the patrons of criminal cartels freely walk the streets in the towns and villages of Kosovo and Metohija, democratization and multi-ethnicity of its society will merely remain a dead letter. A common European future can only be built on the foundations of a genuine renunciation of the criminal legacy irrespective of who the perpetrators and the victims are.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Ivan Jovovic' and 13-year-old Pantelija Dakie were killed while four other children were gravely wounded. The frightening massacre in which innocent children were killed only because they were Serbs was committed so as to send a message to all remaining Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija that they are not wanted; a message to all those expelled from Kosovo and Metohija to forget about their return; and a message that ethnic cleansing will be completed no matter what. Spilling the blood of Serbian youth on the Bistrica was intended to symbolize the erasure of every trace of existence and survival of the Serbs on the land of their fathers. Moreover, nobody was charged or tried for that horrendous crime.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Such instances are just another indication that there is no intention to stop the practice of covering up and relativizing crimes committed by the members of the terrorist KLA in the Serbian southern province during the conflict in the name of the aggressive expansionist cause ofa Greater Albania. I also take this opportunity to remind the Council of the monstrous massacre of Serbian farmers in Staro Gracko, when 14 people - the youngest of whom was barely 17-years-old - were brutally killed 18 years ago on 23 July 1999. The perpetrators of that heinous crime have not been found, and the decision to cease investigation eliminates the possibility of them ever being found at all. Let me also remind members of the Council that 14 years ago on 13 August 2003 Serbian children were gunned down on the Bistrica river.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“That justice is hard to come by for the Serbian victims in Kosovo and Metohija is evidenced by the recent shocking acquittal of all those indicted for war crimes in the Klecka case and the decision of the Constitutional Court of Kosovo to uphold the appeal and acquit Sami Lushtaku, a former member of the Drenica Group of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a prominent member ofthe Democratic Party of Kosovo and the mayor of the mayor of Skenderaj/Srbica municipality, who was initially sentenced to 12 years of prison for war crimes in the Drenica 1 war crimes case. Furthermore in acquitting Lirim Jakupi, also known as "Commander Nazi", the judiciary in Kosovo and Metohija showed once again that it is a tool in the hands of politicians.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“As the Government remains to be formed, we face a situation in which everything that has been agreed to in the Brussels Agreement is once again deferred. I therefore reiterate that it has been four years since the signing of the Brussels Agreement. I must underline once again that there can be no genuine reconciliation unless all crimes, without exception, are tried and responsibility is taken for war crimes committed by perpetrators in one's own ranks. The fact that no legally valid sentence has been adjudicated yet for the killing of 1,000 Serbs in the period since the end of the conflict demonstrates that the judiciary in Kosovo and Metohija is unable to carry out that task.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“Tanin and the Secretary-General, in his report, also mentioned that the relation between the Serbs and Pristina's institutions changed substantially through Serbian participation in the elections. They participate in governance and the exercise of power. We wonder why the Government has yet to be formed in Kosovo, since the elections have already been completed. The Serbs are therefore not the problem in that regard. The problem originates from the great political instability in Kosovo and Metohija. Seen from the point of View of the Serbian side, I do not know how to judge the various statements made by the candidates for Prime Minister concerning Serbs and Serbia, but Serbia will continue to play a constructive role.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source
“The unilateral suspension ofthe dialogue by Pristina concerning the electoral process and the intensification of the nationalistic rhetoric by Albanian political leaders accounted for the lack of progress within high- level dialogue during the previous reporting period, as well. The hope that the continuation of the dialogue will be possible was recently raised by the statement made in the wake of the informal meeting between President Aleksandar Vucie and President Hashim Thaci with EU High Representative Federica Mogherini on 3 July to the effect that it has been agreed to work on starting a new phase of the dialogue and that it is important to implement the agreements reached thus far. Moreover, I would like to add that Belgrade invested much effort to ensuring that the dialogue was successful, and Mr.”
2017-08-16 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8025 (2017) · source