Activities of Secretary-General in Kosovo, 24 July

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, accompanied by Madam Ban Soon-taek, arrived in Pristina around midday on Tuesday, 24 July, after a flight from Belgrade.

On arrival at the airport, the Secretary-General spoke to reporters, saying that he was in Kosovo to meet with the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and the United Nations Kosovo team.  He said he wanted to gain a fuller insight into the situation, in particular the status of community relations, minority rights and safeguarding minority rights.

The Secretary-General next met with representatives of the Kosovo Authorities at the airport before transferring to UNMIK Headquarters, where he met the leadership and staff.  He also had a meeting there with international organizations with mandates in Kosovo.

In the afternoon, the Secretary-General flew by Kosovo Force (KFOR) helicopter to Decani and Prizren. 

In Decani, he visited the Visoki Decani Monastery, a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, and met senior clergy.

In Prizren, the Secretary-General visited the Roman Catholic Cathedral of our Lady of Perpetual Succour, the Serbian Orthodox Cathedral of Saint George and the Sinan Pasha Mosque.  At each stop, he spoke with spiritual leaders about reconciliation and the Prizren experience, stretching back centuries, of inter-faith dialogue.

From Prizren, the Secretary-General flew by helicopter back to Pristina, from where he flew to Ohrid, in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, accompanied by Madam Ban.