New York, 23/06/2000 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 23 June, Javier Solana took the floor for the first time before the Security Council as EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy, on the occasion of a special sitting on the Balkans during which Ambassador Monteiro spoke on behalf of the Portuguese EU Council Presidency and Carl Bildt in his capacity as Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the Balkans; The European Union has for many years been an important voice in many areas of UN work, and "increasingly this is also the case on security issues", noted Mr Solana, noting that this "makes our relationship with the UN, and in particular the Security Council, even more important".
Regarding developments in the Balkans, Mr Solana said that, despite all the difficulties, he remains optimistic for the future. He also recalled that the EU was the main aid donor to the region. Since 1991, the EU has contributed over EUR 17 billion, he pointed out, recalling that, in Kosovo alone, "we have spent more than 3 billion euro on non-military programmes", which is in addition to the substantial military commitment of 28,000 troops to KFOR and 1430 policemen (to be joined by another 270 before the summer). Mr Solana acknowledged there is a "major obstacle" to pursuing a genuinely comprehensive approach to the whole Balkan region. This is "the resistance to political change in Belgrade", he said, repeating that "we want to help the Serbian people. For the moment President Milosevic remains an obstacle to that objective". Sketching out the EU priorities over coming months, Mr Solana said that the Union plans: - to first of all focus on the different elections foreseen for the autumn (in Kosovo, Albania, in Bosnia, in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and "hopefully also in Serbia"); - continue to support the civil society, which is mainly significant for the FRY, but also for the whole region; - continue its policy of bringing the countries of the region closer to the EU, through the process of stabilisation and association (for now, the FRY remains "outside this important process", notes Mr Solana); - continue to promote regional cooperation, thanks to the Stability Pact in particular. Mr Solana, who recalled that the Feira Summit had given him the mandate to press for better cooperation in combating organised crime and illegal immigration, said he was sure that the summit proposed by President Chirac for the autumn will give strong impetus to reform and cooperation in the region.
On the subject of Kosovo, Mr Solana mainly reaffirmed that the key objective remains full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1244. He recalled that, with UNMIK and the Member States, he had "been working very hard in the last few days to address the legitimate concerns of the Serbs and to encourage them to return to interim institutions".