While successful legislative elections in Kosovo at the close of 2025 featured broad participation, the Security Council today heard that challenges for minority communities there remain, as members discussed the future of the United Nations' presence in the region.
"I arrived in early January at a moment of optimism that Kosovo could move forward after the political stalemate of 2025," recalled Peter Due, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).
Peaceful, inclusive legislative elections held at the end of December 2025 reflected broad participation, and the timely formation of a government pointed to a trajectory of stability and progress. "That momentum, however, was tested during the process of electing a new President of Kosovo, which has not yet been completed," he observed.
Building Trust to Sustain Momentum
Expressing hope that differences can be bridged, a new President can be elected and that new legislative elections can be avoided, he welcomed the timely establishment of local government administrations across Kosovo. Yet, while the return of Kosovo Serb mayors in northern Kosovo marked an important step, he noted that "this process has not been without challenges". On that, he cited concerns relayed to him regarding incomplete handovers, administrative gaps and language barriers. "These are not merely technical issues," he said, encouraging continued dialogue.
As for UNMIK, he said that - guided by resolution 1244 (1999) - he has sought to focus the Mission's efforts on supporting dialogue and engagement, "especially where the daily lives of people across communities are affected". Trust among communities, and between communities and institutions, "allows progress, dialogue and cooperation to take root", he emphasized, assuring that UNMIK continues to prioritize building that trust even in the face of financial constraints.
While the Mission has reduced encumbered positions by almost 30 per cent in response to the UN's liquidity crisis, it nevertheless works to foster a culture of peace "where participation is inclusive, where voices are heard and where every community sees itself reflected in the path forward".
Belgrade Defends UNMIK's Role as Pristina Pushes for Recognition
For his part, Marko Ðurić, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Serbia, emphasized that UNMIK continues to serve as a "key guarantee of peace, stability and the protection of fundamental human rights of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija". Its presence must be strengthened and "any discussion about its future must be guided strictly by realities on the ground - not by assumptions that may not reflect the lived experience of communities."
He warned that "the oppression of a community does not happen overnight". Rather, it unfolds in stages - Serb identity becomes a reason to live in fear and legal marginalization follows, escalating into attacks on cultural and religious heritage and, ultimately, into heightened security pressure. To break this cycle, he urged the international community to reaffirm the UN's central role and to ensure full respect for resolution 1244 (1999). "Serbia is not part of the problem," he emphasized. "We are part of the solution."
Taking a different view, Glauk Konjufca of Kosovo said that Serbia has "continued playing a disruptive role", trying to impose the Belgrade-backed Serb List party on the local Serb community "to mirror Serbian authoritarian and one-party rule". Despite Serbia's aggression and hybrid threats, "Kosova remains ready to normalize inter-State and neighbourly relations", he said. However, Belgrade is not interested in normalization and is trying to deny the region "full integration into the Euro-Atlantic structures".
He called on Serbia to "come to terms with reality", recognize Kosovo as a sovereign, independent State and "end holding its society - and the entire region - hostage to aspirations of regaining regional hegemony". Stressing that UNMIK's mandate is "completed", he said: "The focus should not be on having the United Nations in Kosova through UNMIK, but on admitting Kosova into the United Nations." He urged that the Mission be transformed into an office to facilitate Kosovo's full UN membership.
Diverging Views over UNMIK's Future
In the ensuing discussion, the representative of the United States, similarly, said that there is "no justification for treating Kosovo in 2026 as though it were still the Kosovo of 1999". UNMIK no longer plays a meaningful governance, military or mediation role, and she described it as an "overstaffed, overfunded peacekeeping mission without peacekeepers". Welcoming the Secretary-General's proposed reductions to UNMIK's budget as a step in the right direction, she concluded: "UNMIK has reached the end of the road."
In stark contrast, the representative of the Russian Federation stated that it is "unacceptable" to reduce UNMIK's budgetary or staffing ceiling. The Mission continues to perform the "essential task of contributing to the maintenance of stability in the province". Stressing that the "so-called Prime Minister" of Kosovo is "accelerating a purge of the non-Albanian population in the northern part of the province", he said that Moscow "will only accept a solution that is acceptable to the Serbs themselves".
China's representative agreed, recalling UNMIK's "important role in maintaining stability in Kosovo and promoting national reconciliation" and urging the Council to provide the Mission with adequate political and budgetary support. The representative of Somalia also pointed to UNMIK's "important role" in supporting peace, stability and dialogue in the region, adding that dialogue facilitated by the European Union remains the principal framework for resolving outstanding issues between Belgrade and Pristina.
"Peacekeeping operations cannot be artificially reduced or withdrawn so long as the root causes of instability have not been fully eradicated," stressed the representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Any hasty or insufficiently prepared reconfiguration would risk introducing new vulnerabilities into a sensitive environment. UNMIK "retains its full relevance" in facilitating dialogue, strengthening trust and contributing to stability.
Some Council members called for a "strategic review" of the Mission, with Latvia's representative stressing that mission mandates must "reflect the reality on the ground". Such a review is "overdue", said the representative of the United Kingdom, urging that resources be directed where they deliver the greatest impact. She also noted that her country was among the first to recognize Kosovo's independence, encouraging other Member States to join the majority and do the same.
A European Future?
Durable normalization between the parties, however, will only be possible through genuine, sustained and good-faith dialogue, emphasized Panama's representative. He urged both parties to recommit to agreements reached within the framework of European Union-facilitated dialogue. The representative of Colombia concurred: "The political dialogue must be supported by a sustained commitment on both sides based on good faith and respect for the commitments made."
On that, Denmark's representative underscored the importance of full implementation of the 2023 Ohrid Agreement . For Kosovo, this includes establishing the association of Serb-majority municipalities; for Serbia, this includes not opposing Kosovo's membership in international organizations. "Important steps still need to be taken," observed the representative of France, and both parties must implement relevant agreements with UNMIK playing an observing role in this regard.
The representative of the European Union, speaking for the bloc and its member States, urged Kosovo to finalize the formation of all institutions to allow for a "renewed focus on the much-needed EU-related reforms". In turn, Serbia must respond to Kosovo's request for judicial cooperation. He added that progress towards normalization is "among the essential conditions for the European path" of both parties. "The future of both Serbia and Kosovo is firmly embedded within the European Union," declared Greece's representative.
The representative of Bahrain, Council President for April, spoke in his national capacity to call on both parties to engage constructively in dialogue facilitated by the European Union. He also stressed the importance of "working towards inclusiveness within Kosovo's multiethnic society". Underscoring that "the Balkans have suffered enough from the failures of the past", Pakistan's representative urged: "The future, surely, must be different." Both parties must choose the path of "principle over prejudice and patience over provocation", he said.
No Binary Choices. Only Decisions in Support of Peace
"The picture before us is neither one of crisis nor of calm, but of a delicate equilibrium - maintained by restraint, tested by mistrust and shaped by decisions with consequences beyond the immediate," observed the representative of Liberia. Citing his country's experience, he said that institutions require leadership that places national interest above narrow political calculus. Rebuilding trust requires consistency and visible accountability.
He added that differing views within the Council as to UNMIK's future need not yield a binary choice: "The focus should be on how the Mission can continue to adapt in support of stability, dialogue and institution-building, grounded in realities on the ground and inclusive of all communities' perspectives."
