UN Security Council fails to agree on Northern Kosovo

Member states of the UN Security Council failed to find a common approach to the situation in Northern Kosovo, the Belgrade-based Tanjug news agency said on Thursday. At Russia's request, the Security Council gathered for emergency consultations in New York late on Wednesday to discuss the recent flare-up of tension in Kosovo. Four NATO soldiers and seven Serb protesters were wounded on Tuesday in clashes between locals and the military at the disputed Kosovo northern border crossing with Serbia known as Jarinje. The incident disrupted a regular round of consultations between Belgrade and Pristina. "Most UN Security Council members showed they understood the severity of the situation [in Kosovo]," diplomatic sources told Tanjug. Western countries in the UN Security Council believe the situation in northern Kosovo is under control, and the EULEX and KFOR security forces are acting in line with their UN mandate. They said the Kosovo issue should be solved only through dialog with the mediation of the European Union. The United States condemned the incident, describing it as a "violent attack by a Serb mob," and called on all the sides to remain calm and resume dialog. The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed concern about the rising tensions in Kosovo, saying that "indulging the Kosovo-Albanian side promotes the growth of its aggression, its unwillingness to seek compromise solutions and to consider the legitimate interests of all ethnic groups living in Kosovo." The ministry also reiterated its appeal to the international presence to "strictly stick to the principle of neutrality status." Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in New York on the sidelines of the 66th UN General Assembly in New York and provided him with all information about the border incident, the BETA news agency said.