The year in review-Europe

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Bosnia and Herzegovina
When local and international police raided a bar in Central Bosnia ..
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Cyprus
There is no better example of a multinational peacekeeping force than the Mobile Force Reserve. In common with all UN peacekeeping operations, UNFICYP
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Georgia
The day started at 07.10 hrs when the duty officer made radio checks with all personnel to ensure everything was in order, ready for another day's work.
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Kosovo
I am a Lieutenant Colonel on my third international mission. In MINURSO,...
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Prevlaka
On a clear day, they say, you can see for miles-and from a windswept ridge in southern Croatia, down by the border with Montenegro, the saying certainly holds true.
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EUROPE

The United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH) made important progress to ensure completion by the end of 2002 of core police reforms. UNMIBH also contributed to developing the country's peacekeeping capability. Bosnia and Herzegovina civilian police of all ethnicities currently serve with the United Nations mission in East Timor, UNTAET, and military observers from the country are deployed in UNMEE, the UN's mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. UNMIBH also launched a project to establish a Bosnia and Herzegovina composite military non-combat transport unit, expected to be ready in early 2002 for deployment in a UN peacekeeping operation.

In Cyprus, the Secretary-General and his Special Adviser pursued efforts to promote negotiations to achieve a comprehensive settlement. The UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) continued to supervise ceasefire lines, maintain the buffer zone and carry out humanitarian activities on the island.

In the absence of meaningful negotiations on the future political status of Abkhazia within Georgia, the situation remained tense and unstable. The United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) continued its patrols, with occasional suspensions for security reasons, and the Secretary-General's Special Representative pursued efforts to find a comprehensive settlement. Resumed fighting between Abkhaz forces and armed irregulars and the shooting down of a UN helicopter on 8 October marked a new low point in a deteriorating situation.

The United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) focused on the progressive transfer of public administration responsibilities to local control. The promulgation of a Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government paved the way for Kosovo-wide elections on 17 November 2001. UNMIK continues to face critical challenges, such as the protection of the rights of all communities and the development of constructive dialogue with the authorities of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

The UN Mission of Observers in Prevlaka (UNMOP) continued its task of monitoring the demilitarization of this disputed area.