Statement by Fergus Eckersley, UK Minister Counsellor, at the UN Security Council meeting on Kosovo
The UK is a longstanding friend of Kosovo.
We remain committed to supporting Kosovo's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and its development of an inclusive and multi-ethnic democracy.
During his visit to Kosovo last week, the UK's Foreign Secretary reaffirmed our commitment to that goal.
We welcome Kosovo's recent elections.
These were assessed by international observers as peaceful and competitive.
The UK looks forward to working closely with whoever forms the next government.
As a strong supporter of Kosovo's statehood, we welcome Kenya's recent recognition of Kosovo, adding to the many countries recognising Kosovo across the globe.
We encourage those who have yet to recognise Kosovo's independence to do so.
Mr President, while the Secretary General's report rightly points out the pressure felt by many Kosovo-Serbs, we also welcome actions that have been taken to improve community relations, such as Kosovo's successful efforts to recruit police officers from non-majority communities.
We regret however that no judges or prosecutors have, to our knowledge, asked to be considered for reintegration into the Kosovo institutions.
We look forward to active participation of Kosovo-Serbs in peaceful municipal elections during the next reporting period.
More broadly, Mr President, we encourage Serbia and Kosovo to engage constructively with the EU's Special Representative, Peter Sorensen, to reach a comprehensive and legally binding normalisation agreement through full implementation by both sides of the Brussels and Ohrid Agreements.
We strongly encourage Serbia to bring to justice without further delay those responsible for the 2023 attacks on KFOR troops and in Banjska, and to fulfill its pledge to co-operate in investigation of the attack on the Iber-Lepenc Canal.
I would like to end by expressing the UK's gratitude to the Special Representative and all Mission staff who have contributed to UNMIK's work.
However, with conditions on the ground now unrecognisable from 1999, we believe it is time for the Council to review UNMIK's role and responsibilities to ensure it can continue to effectively support security, stability and human rights in Kosovo, in a way that reflects the world of 2026.
