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Kosovo
Mine Ban Policy
Background
The status of Kosovo is disputed. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in February 2008. As of October 2011, the declaration of independence had been recognized by 88 states. However, Serbia considers the declaration illegal and still views Kosovo as its southern territory. Kosovo has not been able to become a UN member state and so is not eligible to adhere formally to international instruments such as the Mine Ban Treaty.
Policy
A spokesperson for the self-declared Republic of Kosovo told the Monitor in March 2010 that Kosovo strongly supports a policy of banning antipersonnel mines and other explosive and deadly devices. The spokesperson stated that there has been no initiative in the Kosovo Assembly to draft a law banning mines, but this did not preclude the possibility of such a law in the future.[1]
The spokesperson said that Kosovo does not possess antipersonnel mines.[2] Some possession and trafficking of mines by criminal groups has been reported in the media.[3]
[1] Email from Memli Krasniqi, Spokesperson, Republic of Kosovo, 30 March 2010.
[2] Ibid.
[3] According to media reports, in April 2010 Macedonian police reportedly seized antipersonnel mines, antivehicle mines, and other weapons from five bunkers near the border with Kosovo. This followed a skirmish between the police and what they described as “uniformed persons” from “an extremist group” in Kosovo. “Macedonian IM: Weapons threat to region,” B92 (Skopje), 30 April 2010, www.b92.net. Another report on the same day said that the Kosovo Police, Kosovo Protection Service, and Kosovo Force officers arrested several people with a quantity of weapons and uniforms of the Kosovo Liberation Army in an area adjacent to the bunkers in Macedonia. Landmines were not mentioned among the weapons seized, and authorities could not confirm a connection to the other incident. “Police finds [sic] more weapons near Blace,” Macedonian International News Agency, 30 April 2010, www.macedoniaonline.eu/.
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