The Ukrainian leadership is very perturbed by the death of a Ukrainian member of the UN police force and the wounding of 20 others who were taking part in the peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. This question is under the personal supervision of the Ukrainian president. Yesterday a Ukrainian delegation headed by Minister of Internal Affairs Yurii Lutsenko, who will personally report on the results of this visit to President Yushchenko, arrived in Mitrovica. As the president’s press secretary Iryna Vannikova reported at the briefing, proposals concerning the participation of Ukrainian UN peacekeeping personnel will be discussed during a meeting of the National Defense and Security Council (RNBO). She also said that this question will be considered with a view to guaranteeing the safety of Ukrainian peacekeepers, but that the need for their continued participation in the UN mission would not be an issue.
Ukraine is urging all UN and NATO member countries to join the discussion of the incident that took place in Kosovo, announced Oleksandr Chaly, the deputy head of the Presidential Secretariat. On Monday, March 17, during a special operation to liberate an area seized by Serbs, including the courthouse in northern Mitrovica, a clash took place between protesters demonstrating against the declaration of Kosovo’s independence and members of the UN police force. As a result of the armed confrontation, the police station came under fire from protesters, who also lobbed grenades. As a result, 21 policemen of the Special Peacekeeping Subdivision of Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kosovo were wounded. Senior Lieutenant Ihor Kinal, the deputy commander of an operational unit of the Special Peacekeeping Subdivision of Ukraine’s interior ministry died on Monday evening.
A total of 66 soldiers from this special peacekeeping formation, including nine K-9 soldiers with seven dogs from the K-9 Peacekeeping Subdivision, were stranded in the courthouse, which was encircled by protesters.
In view of the events in Kosovo and the attempts of some Ukrainian political forces who are seeking to capitalize on the Mitrovica incident, what should the Ukrainian government do to maintain the presence of its peacekeeping troops in this region so that our peacekeepers will continue to improve our country’s international image?
COMMENTARIES
Yevhen MARCHUK , former minister of defense:
“The main thing is the problem of security for our peacekeeping contingents, wherever they are stationed. This is the first consideration. Kosovo has been a relatively calm region for the peacekeeping contingents both of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ukrainian Armed Forces. I don’t want to draw any premature conclusions, but I think that the contingent that faced this kind of civilian resistance was not prepared to respond adequately. However, I want to emphasize: this is my assumption based on the experience of investigating all the tragic incidents linked to our troops in Iraq. I am sure that whatever the reasons are (commanders’ blame or not) the circumstances are such that Ukraine should not rush to broach the question of stopping the mission. That would be the simplest thing to do. I think that at (tomorrow’s) session of the RNBO the question should not be put as follows: either Ukraine halves the number of the Ukrainian peacekeepers or it will cease this kind of activity in Kosovo.
“Unfortunately, this kind of peacekeeping mission is followed by unpleasant things. I must mention again that, unfortunately, similar incidents took place not only in Iraq, where the situation of our peacekeeping troops was the worst, but also in Sierra Leone and Liberia. I don’t think these things should be compared. But it should be noted that the participation of our contingent in the Kosovo events is by no means connected to recognition or non-recognition of Kosovo’s independence.
“As for conclusions, we should not act impetuously during discussions with opponents; neither should Lutsenko while he is getting to the bottom of this incident. In general, I think that we should not comment on this incident until all the nuances are ascertained, until the delegation comes home and reports to the president. I think it is most likely that Lutsenko will report to the RNBO. In my opinion, the interior minister in particular will not succeed in avoiding political speculations by opponents of the Ukrainian government. They will take an advantage of this, for sure. Moreover, the contingents in Kosovo are under the protectorates of both the UN and NATO.
“But I must emphasize: let’s not be impetuous. Everything must be examined in a calm fashion. We should not only be examining the details of the circumstances, why so many of our peacekeepers suffered, but also the relations between the heads of this UN mission and what commands they were given. The question arises: was it was necessary to use a peacekeeping structure to liberate the court building? I don’t know all the details, but it seems to me that there are questions concerning what the duties of our contingent were, when its members came under fire, and whether this did not exceed the status we have there. Unfortunately, this sort of thing happens. On the other hand, we have problems in our relations with Serbia. I don’t know why, but so far only one political party in Serbia has expressed its condolences. Without a doubt, we must verify in a clear and serious way what our troops were assigned to do and whether there was coordination with us concerning the functions of our contingent in Kosovo.
“We must examine very patiently and in a detailed way the actions of the commanders, both in relation to the status of the peacekeeping contingent and relations with the leadership of the mission. I think that it would not be remiss here to examine what kind of cooperation there was between the interior ministry contingent and our small contingent of peacekeeping troops, how they cooperate in general, how the action was advancing, and what security measures were guaranteed.
“To summarize, I want to emphasize that the Ukrainian side needs to draw serious and qualified conclusions. From the standpoint of politics, I would advise everyone to refrain from speculating on this question until the RNBO meeting ends. Only then should a briefing take place.”
Anatolii ZLENKO, ex-foreign minister of Ukraine:
“We should coordinate our positions more closely with the commanders of the NATO-led KFOR in Kosovo in order to strengthen the security not only of our contingent but the entire KFOR contingent. An inquiry into all the circumstances should help prevent this type of incident in the future.
“After our contingent entered this region, we undertook certain obligations. Of course, we should stick to them. If the situation is extremely threatening to the lives and safety of our personnel, all the circumstances should be examined and corresponding decisions adopted. But we should uphold our obligations. In going into Kosovo, we did not say that everything would be peaceful and quiet there. We should be prepared for a situation to turn in any direction. Peacekeeping operations exist for this very aim.”
Valerii CHALY, deputy director-general of the Razumkov Center:
“The incident in Kosovo has really opened up a discussion concerning the role of our peacekeepers, their efforts to ensure Ukraine’s positive image, and their social conditions and risks to their lives. The death of the Ukrainian policeman commits us to do so. We should express our sympathies to his family and pay tribute to those who are defending Ukraine’s national interests abroad.
“As for the peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, Ukraine is a very serious contributor there. Its role is appreciated by the European Union and the United Nations. Today this mission has gained a special meaning because Ukraine has not chosen any position on the question of recognizing Kosovo’s independence and therefore is unbiased. Thus, the role of our peacekeepers is seriously expanding.
“Today it is felt that Ukrainian citizens do not have precise information on the tasks, type of work, as well as the goal and working conditions of our peacekeepers. There is much confusion about the UN police forces and the KFOR mission. This mission has existed for a long time in Kosovo and performed clear-cut functions according to the UN’s resolution.
“Ukraine now has to act according to the procedures and mechanisms that our country has relied on during its peacekeeping activity for many years. Ukraine is one of the 10 countries in the world that are making the greatest contribution to maintaining peace. A corresponding resolution envisages that the mission may simply refuse to fulfill its function in the event that a conflict escalates. We should act by relying on maximum objective information and taking our decisions in a collective way together with our partners in order to carry out this mission. There is a dangerous phenomenon today: attempts are being made to exploit this incident in the political struggle within Ukraine. I was surprised to hear speeches in parliament that are nothing but political spin rather than an honorable attitude to our peacekeepers. This question is not being considered in a complex way and within a broad context. This is very dangerous because it is one of those questions that cannot be politicized.
“I think that our peacekeepers are acting on the basis of legal decisions. They are working there and putting their lives at risk, but voluntarily and in keeping with all the guarantees offered by the Ukrainian state. This is a profession that is linked with risk, and those who go there are aware of this. Therefore, it would be absolutely imprudent to make decisions to withdraw the Ukrainians from the peacekeeping mission.”
