Russia's permanent representative at un drew attention to Russian proposal on signing by Balkan states document on inviolability of borders and non-use of force New York

Permanent representative of Russia at the United Nations Sergei Lavrov drew attention to the Russian proposal on signing by the Balkan states a document on inviolability of borders and non-use of force. As the RIA Novosti correspondent reports, according to Lavrov, "approaches resting primarily on the political will of the states in the region and on active assistance of the international community are needed for stabilizing the Balkan crisis". "Precisely this is the purpose of the proposal advanced by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Igor Ivanov in Skopje on March 21, 2001", Lavrov stated, speaking at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Kosovo. The Russian diplomat recalled that the matter concerns "adoption by the states in the region of a juridically binding document fixing the mutual obligations to strictly observe the basic principles of interstate relations". Among such principles he cited inviolability of frontiers, sovereign equality, respect for territorial integrity of each other, non-use of force or a threat of force, "prevention of use of their territories for instigation and rendering of assistance, financial aid included, and especially participation in terrorist actions vis-a-vis other states". "The UN Security Council could act as a guarantor of such agreements", Sergei Lavrov added. He warned against haste with holding elections in Kosovo, pointing that it is necessary to "ensure conditions of security guaranteeing democratic expression of the will of all ethic communities of the province and their just participation in the new self-government bodies". Lavrov cited what had been said at the 57th session of the Human Rights Commission by special speaker on former Yugoslavia Jirzi Dinstbir "about the existence of direct connection between the Kosovo extremists and the formations of ethnic Albanian terrorists operating outside the province". "The echo of the Kosovo problems is heard also in Bosnia where the extremists are beginning to adopt the methods of the Kosovo-Albanian terrorists", the Russian Ambassador added.

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