OSCE supports UN Secretary General on Kosovo

COPENHAGEN, 23 April 1999 - The President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Mrs. Helle Degn, speaking on behalf of the leadership of the Assembly, which is meeting in Copenhagen today, expressed strong support for the recent statement made by the Secretary General of the United Nations on the crisis in Kosovo.

"The statement by Mr. Annan (attached), made on 9 April 1999, is carefully balanced and reflects the deep concerns of the leadership of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly." said President Degn, who is also the Chairman of the Foreign Policy Committee of the Danish Parliament. President Degn pointed out that the OSCE is a Regional Organisation of the United Nations, which works closely with and assists the UN in areas of crisis within the region.

"This is a political, economic, and human tragedy of astounding scale which will have serious repercussions for many years", Mrs. Degn said, "and involves actions and consequences which the international community has not confronted since the beginning of the Second World War." President Degn went on to say that: "The OSCE area - as well as the entire world - contains many States and regions with multi-ethnic populations that must not be allowed to fall into the terrible circumstances that we are witnessing in the Balkans. We must - the OSCE, the UN, the European Union and all responsible nations - do our utmost to end this conflict and to take measures to prevent other such conflicts from occurring in the future.

"The civilized world strongly condemns the cruel repression and appalling ethnic cleansing that is taking place in Kosovo and calls for the punishment of those responsible" concluded Mrs. Degn, "and I hope that all parties will listen to and heed the urging of the Secretary General of the United Nations."

President Degn also added that there will be a thorough discussion on the Kosovo crisis at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's Annual Session which will take place in St. Petersburg, Russia at the beginning of July.

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is composed of 317 Members of Parliament from 54 countries of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

For further information please contact Mr. Jan Jooren, Counsellor for Press and Public Affairs, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly: Telephone +45 33 32 94 00, Fax +45 33 32 55 05, or Mobile +45 21 60 63 80

STATEMENT OF THE SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

I am deeply distressed by the humanitarian tragedy taking place in Kosovo and in the region, which must be brought to an end. The suffering of innocent civilians should not be further prolonged. In this spirit, I urgently call upon the Yugoslav authorities to undertake the following commitments:

• to end immediately the campaign of intimidation and expulsion of the civilian population;
• to cease all activities of military and paramilitary forces in Kosovo and to withdraw these forces;
• to accept unconditionally the return of all refugees and displaced persons to their homes;
• to accept the deployment of an international military force to ensure a secure environment for the return of refugees and the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid, and
• to permit the international community to verify compliance with the undertakings above.

Upon the acceptance by the Yugoslav authorities of the above conditions, I urge the leaders of the North Atlantic Alliance to suspend immediately the air bombardments upon the territory of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Ultimately, the cessation of hostilities I propose above is a prelude to a lasting political solution to the crisis, which can only be achieved through diplomacy. In this context, I would urge the resumption of talks on Kosovo among all parties concerned at the earliest possible moment.

9 April 1999, Geneva