Press Statement on Presevo Valley

1 Members of the Council discussed the letter received from the Foreign Minister of the FRY dated 27 January concerning the continuing tension in and around the Ground Safety Zone.

2 Members of the Council strongly condemned the attacks by ethnic Albanian extremist groups and in particular the killing over the weekend of a FRY soldier. Members of the Council stressed the need to bring the perpetrators to justice.

3 Members reiterated the statement made by the President of the Council on 19 December which

called for the immediate and complete cessation of violence, for the dissolution of ethnic Albanian extremist groups and for the immediate withdrawal from the area, and in particular from the Ground Safety Zone, of all non-residents engaged in extremist activities.

4 Members welcomed the commitment of the FRY Government to work towards a peaceful

settlement, based on democratic principles, and to respect the provisions of Resolution 1244 and the military technical agreement. They called on ethnic Albanian leaders in southern Serbia to work with the FRY Government to achieve a peaceful settlement.

5 Members of the Council reiterated their strong support for full implementation of Resolution 1244 in its entirety. They continued to make clear to Kosovo Albanian leaders that extremism in and around the Presevo Valley is unacceptable and called on Kosovo Albanian leaders to contribute to the

stability of the situation.

6 Members of the Council welcomed measures taken by KFOR and called on it to continue to make all necessary efforts to address the problem.

7 Members of the Council will continue to follow the situation closely.