Zarif: Kosovo needs government, talks should continue

NEW YORK - UNMIK Chief Farid Zarif has called on the political leaders in Kosovo to finish foriming a government, adding that the talks between Belgrade and Pristina need new momentum and that the meetings between top officials of the two sides should continue.

The 6-month delay in forming a government in Pristina has caused damage because it led to a delay in institutional reforms and the talks with Belgrade, he said on Thursday, presenting UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's latest quarterly report on the situation in Kosovo to the Security Council.

He welcomed the fact that the technical talks continued during the transition period.

The talks need new momentum and the meetings between top officials should continue as soon as possible, so both sides would be able to fulfil their promises and take advantage of the opportunities presented by the EU and European integration, he stated.

Zarif welcomed the cooperation from the local authorities in northern Kosovo in preparing the municipal budgets for 2015, stressing that it indicated that both sides were aware of how important dialogue is on the local level in order to establish a better government.

It is important to maintain momentum towards the integration of the four northern municipalities and, to that end, create an association of Serb municipalities that is required by the Brussels Agreement, the UNMIK official pointed out.

He commended the security agencies and police in Kosovo on putting a stop to extremism and Kosovo President Atifeta Jahjaga's and other politicians' condemnation of the offensive graffiti that had been sprayed inside the compound of the Visoki Decani monastery.

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