Somewhat past 3 P.M. (CET) the United Nations Security Council meeting rose at the Headquarters. The meeting is devoted to consideration of the Secretary-General's quarterly report on the situation in the province of Kosovo.
The Security Council meeting is attended by Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic, accompanied by his Foreign Minister Ivan Mrkic.
The meeting is also attended by the Prime Minister of the provisional institutions in Pristina, Hashim Thaci.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in his regular quarterly report to the Council on Kosovo, stated that the period under review saw a significant step forward being made through upgrading the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue to a higher political level, but he called on the Kosovo authorities to react more resolutely to incidents of intolerance of Serbs, like the one during the Orthodox Christmas festivities.
The Secretary-General said that despite many outstanding difficult issues, renewed dialogue was a strong signal that both sides strove for a peaceful dialogue and overcoming of the burden of the past conflict.
On the situation in North Mitrovica, he said that it was necessary to coordinate efforts and to pay more attention in order to be able to deal with all the serious issues with goodwill and avoid any further tensions.
The Secretary-General said that, in addition to the political process at a high level, it was also important to make sustained efforts aimed at promoting reconciliation and improving confidence among the communities living in Kosovo.
The Security Council meeting was originally scheduled for 22 February, but because of the resumption of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue it was rescheduled for this month.