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I thank Mr. Ivica Dacic, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Hashim Thaci of Kosovo for their statements. I also thank Mr. Farid Zarif, Special Representative and the Head of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo, for his briefing. Let me express our appreciation for his dedicated service at the helm of UNMIK and wish him best success in his new appointment as Special Representative for Liberia. I also wish our colleague Zahir Tanin of Afghanistan every success in his new job as UNGS’s Special Representative for Kosovo. We reiterate our support to EU’s continued efforts in facilitating the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. Some concrete steps have already been taken in implementing the 19 April 2013 Agreement on the principles of normalisation of relation between Belgrade and Pristina, including on the integration of judiciary and civil protection personnel. Issues of energy, telecoms, establishment of the Association/Community of Serb majority municipalities in Kosovo and freedom of movement/the Mitrovica bridge continue to be in the focus of the discussions in the framework of the dialogue.

We welcome the progress achieved on the texts on the establishment of the Association/Community of Serb majority municipalities and on the implementation arrangements in the field of telecoms and encourage the parties to demonstrate political will and engage constructively in reaching final political agreement on these as well as on other remaining, so necessary for the normalisation of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.

Such normalisation would first and foremost benefit the people of Kosovo and Serbia, mutual recognition of diplomas, insurance of vehicles and freedom of movement being just a few of the concrete advantages that this would bring. We welcome the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on the Mutual Recognition of vehicle insurance on the margins of the last EU–facilitated high-level meeting.  The practical cooperation between the mayors of Mitrovica, steps taken to facilitate returns is yet another sign of progress.

We welcome the adoption of the constitutional amendments and the Law on Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor's Office in the Kosovo Assembly to try cases stemming from the findings of the Special Investigative Task Force (SITF). We encourage the establishment of the Specialist Court with mechanism for the witness protection and ensuring it becomes operational at the earliest possibility.

We reiterate our support for the European integration efforts of both Kosovo and Serbia. The path of integration requires constant and dedicated implementation of reforms. The EU’s long–time engagement is a clear demonstration of its firm commitment towards the countries of the region. We expect a swift signature of the EU Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Kosovo. It would strengthen EU-Kosovo relations and continue to provide a solid framework for the necessary social and economic reforms. We welcome the measures taken by Kosovar authorities to address the issue of violent extremism and note that these efforts could be reinforced through strengthened cooperation among the countries of the region.

While the security situation remained calm, we note the continued role KFOR and EULEX plays in ensuring security and consolidating the rule of law.  

Finally, acknowledging progress in the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina and the stability in Kosovo we reiterate our view that such progress should lead to reducing the frequency of UNMIK debates in this Council, also given the large and growing number of truly critical peace and security situations this Council has to tackle every day.