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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Any interpretation of Resolution 1244 must respect Serbia’s territorial integrity

Belgrade/Freiburg, 20 December 2007

Legal advisor to the Serbian state team for negotiations on the status of Kosovo-Metohija and Director of the Swiss Institute of Federalism Thomas Fleiner said today that unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo-Metohija would violate the UN SC Resolution 1244.

Thomas Fleiner

Author: federalism.ch

In a statement to the news agency Tanjug, Fleiner said that according to the Resolution 1244 any solution which goes beyond substantial autonomy would require consensus between Serbia, interim institutions in Kosovo-Metohija and members of the UN Security Council, which is not the case here.

He recalled that the Resolution 1244 explicitly states that a political solution for this crisis should be based on general principles presented in Annex 1, expanded in Annex 2 of the resolution.

One of the most important principles from Annex 1 and Annex 2 of the Resolution 1244 proposes a political process aimed at establishing an agreement on an interim political framework which will provide substantial self-governance to Kosovo-Metohija, with full respect to the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity of the former Yugoslavia and other countries in the region, said Fleiner.

According to Fleiner, anyone who reads the above sentence must agree that any interpretation of the Resolution 1244 must respect the territorial integrity of Serbia.

It would be “against the principle of good will” to interpret the word “interim” political framework in the resolution in the sense that the Security Council authorised Pristina to unilaterally declare independence, and other powers to recognise that independence, warned Fleiner.

He stressed that the sole meaning of this sentence is that consensus between Serbia, interim institutions in Kosovo-Metohija and UN Security Council members is required for any solution which oversteps substantial autonomy.

Fleiner considers that sending an EU mission to Kosovo-Metohija, for which according to some Western officials there is also justification in Resolution 1244, could be possible only in the case that such a decision is brought by the UN and such a mission would be held accountable by the UN and the Security Council.

According to Fleiner, the Resolution 1244 states that civil and security missions must answer to the Security Council regarding its implementation. It, above all, demands that all institutions which implement this document must cooperate with partners, and according to the Resolution 1244, sole partner of the UN on the ground is former Yugoslavia, present day Serbia.

With a declaration of independence by Kosovo-Metohija the partner in implementation of the Resolution 1244 would be suddenly replaced by a new international entity, and such a decision may be brought only through changes to the Resolution 1244, stressed Fleiner.