SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES NEWS OF BREAKTHROUGH AGREEMENT REACHED YESTERDAY IN BELGRADE
Press Release
SG/SM/7018
SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES NEWS OF BREAKTHROUGH AGREEMENT REACHED YESTERDAY IN BELGRADE
19990604 Following is the text of a statement attributable to Secretary-General Kofi Annan:I welcome the news of the breakthrough agreement reached in Belgrade yesterday. My warmest congratulations go to President Martti Ahtisaari and Special Envoy Victor Chernomyrdin on their achievement.
Though many details of the agreement remain to be defined, we understand that intensive work has begun on a Security Council resolution to put the accord into effect. The United Nations, which has been active in preparing for peace, is proceeding at full speed with its planning, so that it can assume the responsibilities the Security Council may wish to entrust to it, particularly in the civilian field.
I have always believed that the only meaningful victory for the international community at the end of this tragic crisis will be one which permits the refugees and displaced persons to return to their homes in safety and dignity. I have asked my Special Envoys, Carl Bildt and Eduard Kukan, to convene a meeting in Geneva of all United Nations agencies and other organizations likely to be involved in post-conflict activities in Kosovo, in order to review the status of our plans for a collective response to this humanitarian and political challenge.
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