United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo

This article is about United Nations mission. For the history of Kosovo during United Nations administration, see United Nations Administered Kosovo.
United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
Misioni i Administratës së Përkohshme të Kombeve të Bashkuara në Kosovë (Albanian)
Привремена административна мисија Уједињених нација на Косову (Serbian)
UNMIK
Kosovo – the area encompassed by the black dashed line – as delineated by UN Security Council Resolution 1244.
Kosovo – the area encompassed by the black dashed line – as delineated by UN Security Council Resolution 1244.
StatusUnited Nations mission
CapitalPristina
Leaders
Caroline Ziadeh
• KFOR commander
Major General Özkan Ulutaş (NATO)
• EULEX head
Giovanni Barbano (EU)
Establishment

10 June 1999
May 2001
• EULEX
16 February 2008
CurrencyEuro (EUR)
United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
AbbreviationUNMIK
Formation10 June 1999; 25 years ago (1999-06-10)
TypeSpecial observational mission
Legal statusActive de jure
HeadquartersPristina, Kosovo
Head
Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
Caroline Ziadeh[1]
Parent organization
United Nations Security Council
Websiteunmik.unmissions.org
Politics of Kosovo
Constitution and law
Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Administrative divisions
Recent elections
Foreign policy

The United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (Albanian: Misioni i Administratës së Përkohshme të Kombeve të Bashkuara në Kosovë, Serbian: Привремена административна мисија Уједињених нација на Косову, Privremena administrativna misija Ujedinjenih nacija na Kosovu; UNMIK) is the officially mandated mission of the United Nations in Kosovo. The UNMIK describes its mandate as being to "help the United Nations Security Council achieve an overall objective, namely, to ensure conditions for a peaceful and normal life for all inhabitants of Kosovo and advance regional stability in the Western Balkans."[2]

The UNMIK was established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1244,[3][4] which was passed on 10 June 1999.[5] The Resolution authorised an international civil and military presence in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.[6][7] In that Resolution, the UN decided to "[deploy] in Kosovo, under United Nations auspices, [an] international civil and security [presence]".

The Assembly of Kosovo adopted the declaration of independence on 17 February 2008;[8][9] Kosovo Serb parliamentarians boycotted the session. The declaration violates the eighth article of the Constitution of Serbia.[10] Hence, Serbia considers the declaration to be illegal under its constitutional law. However, the International Court of Justice rendered an advisory opinion holding that Kosovo's declaration of independence was not in violation of international law nor of Security Council Resolution 1244.[11]

The UNMIK still exists today, but its day-to-day functions are relatively minor since Kosovo declared independence and adopted a new constitution,[12] and following the creation of the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX), which itself operates within the framework of Security Council Resolution 1244.[13][14] EULEX assists and supports the Kosovo authorities in the rule of law area, specifically in the police, judiciary and customs areas.[15][16] In September 2012, international supervision ended,[17] and Kosovo became responsible for its own governance.[18]

Kosovo is the subject of a long-running political and territorial dispute between the Serbian (and previously, the Yugoslav) government and Kosovo's largely ethnic Albanian population. Public opinion polls indicate that a clear majority of the Kosovo's population support Kosovo's independence. [19] Internationally, a majority of the United Nations' member states (114 of 193) and a majority of European countries have recognized Kosovo's independence (although 10 countries have later been reported to have revoked their recognition).

The head of the UNMIK is the Special Representative of the Secretary-General ('SRSG') and is appointed by the Secretary-General under the advice of UN member states. Caroline Ziadeh was appointed SRSG in November 2021[1] and arrived in Kosovo in January 2022.[20]

  1. ^ a b "Secretary-General Appoints Caroline Ziadeh of Lebanon Special Representative, Head of United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo". www.un.org. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  2. ^ "UNMIK". UNMIK. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 31 December 2012.
  3. ^ "Security Council, welcoming Yugoslavia's acceptance of peace principles, authorises civil, security presence in Kosovo". United Nations. 10 June 1999. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  4. ^ "RESOLUTION 1244 (1999)". undocs.org. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  5. ^ United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244. S/RES/1244(1999) (1999) Retrieved 2008-09-06.
  6. ^ "Profile: Serbia and Montenegro". BBC. 5 June 2006. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  7. ^ Member States of the United Nations, UN.org Archived 30 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine: "Serbia – date of admission 1 November 2000, The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was admitted as a Member of the United Nations by General Assembly resolution A/RES/55/12 of 1 November 2000. On 4 February 2003, following the adoption and promulgation of the Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro by the Assembly of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the official name of "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" was changed to Serbia and Montenegro. In a letter dated 3 June 2006, the President of the Republic of Serbia informed the Secretary-General that the membership of Serbia and Montenegro was being continued by the Republic of Serbia, following Montenegro's declaration of independence."
  8. ^ "Kosovo: The world's newest state". The Economist. 23 February 2008. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
  9. ^ "Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence In Respect of Kosovo" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2010.
  10. ^ "Constitution of The Republic of Serbia" (PDF). www.ilo.org. International Labour Organization. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 September 2018.
  11. ^ "Advisory Proceedings". International Court of Justice. 8 February 2014. Archived from the original on 8 February 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Promoting security, stability and respect for human rights in Kosovo". United Nations. Archived from the original on 25 December 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
  13. ^ "What is EULEX ?". EULEX. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2015. EULEX works within the framework of UN Security Council Resolution 1244.
  14. ^ "EU launches Kosovo police mission Archived 2009-01-18 at the Wayback Machine", BBC, 9 December 2008. – Retrieved on 19 May 2009.
  15. ^ "What is EULEX - EULEX Kosovo". Eulex-kosovo.eu. Archived from the original on 12 March 2009. Retrieved 28 April 2010.
  16. ^ "COUNCIL JOINT ACTION 2008/124/CFSP of 4 February 2008 on the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, EULEX KOSOVO" (PDF). eulex-kosovo.eu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2013. Retrieved 31 December 2012.
  17. ^ "Ending of supervised independence 10 September 2012". International Civilian Office. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  18. ^ "Sixteenth and final meeting of the International Steering Group for Kosovo" (PDF). International Civilian Office. 10 September 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  19. ^ "Two Years In, Kosovo Albanians More Sober on Independence". Gallup.com. 16 February 2010. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
  20. ^ "Arrival of the new Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Kosovo and Head of UNMIK, Ms. Caroline Ziadeh". UNMIK. 19 January 2022. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.