08/05/2008
PRISTINA, Kosovo -- EU special envoy to Kosovo Pieter Feith said on Wednesday (May 7th) that EULEX, the EU's special police and judicial mission in Kosovo, will assume all related responsibilities in the former Serbian province on June 15th, the date Kosovo's constitution is to take effect. Feith commented after meeting with Swedish Defence Minister Sten Tolgfors in Pristina, during which he thanked Stockholm for supporting EULEX.
Meanwhile, the idea of incorporating the EU mission under the UN umbrella seems to be gaining traction among international and Kosovo officials. Kosovo's media, citing unnamed sources from the UN's headquarters in New York, reported on Thursday that this is the only solution to avoid any legal vacuum stemming from the deployment of EULEX. Procedural discussions are ongoing between the UN Department for Peacekeeping Operations and Brussels. Pristina reportedly has been assured that this kind of arrangement would not affect the sovereignty and functionality of Kosovo. Both Serbia and Russia reportedly support this "hybrid solution". (Koha Ditore, Zeri, BalkanWeb - 08/05/08)