Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin condemned the actions of the Albanian authorities in Kosovo and NATO representatives stationed in the province during a Security Council meeting on Friday.

Churkin mentioned ongoing attempts by Pristina to expand its jurisdiction to areas north of Ibar river directly bordering on areas populated by Kosovo Serbs, the continuing desecration of Serbian shrines and cultural monuments and attempts to prevent the return of  Serbian refugees. Russia is also worried by NATO forces handing their duty of protecting Serbian cultural monuments over to local Albanian police.

The Kosovo Albanian rulers and their patrons are apparently trying to  change the existing status quo and subordinate the independent Serbian territories to their authority. And also to pressure Serbia into recognizing the independence of Kosovo that was unilaterally proclaimed in February 2008 and has not yet been officially recognized by Serbia, Russia and many other nations.

Both the Kosovo Albanians and the Western patrons openly ignore the principles of settlement laid down in  Resolution 1244 by the UN Security Council. Hence their efforts to undermine the authority of the UN mission in Kosovo and replace it with different structures. 

Vitaly Churkin said that no one should be allowed to  hamper the work done by the UN mission including measures to ensure the rights and security of the region’s ethnic minorities and also to establish internationally-recognized democratic standards  in this long-troubled part of the world.