WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3049/98 by Mihail PAPAYANNAKIS to the Council. Kosovo refugees and the EU
C 135/94 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 14. 5. 1999 (1999/C 135/109) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2681/98 by Gerhard Hager (NI) to the Council (1 September 1998) Subject: Threatened flood of refugees from Kosovo It appears increasingly unlikely that a diplomatic solution can be found in Kosovo. Europe is consequently threatened with a flood of refugees on a comparable scale to the influx from Bosnia-Herzergovina. Appropriate advance planning would do much to simplify the situation in the event of a crisis. Has the Council already discussed this problem and worked out ways of proceeding that would enable it to act instead of just reacting after the event? If so, what form are the preparations taking? If not, does it plan to make the necessary preparations in the near future? What is the state of progress as regards the action plan on the influx of immigrants from Iraq and neighbouring regions, due to be published in autumn 1998? What specific arrangements will be laid down in that action plan? (1999/C 135/110) WRITTEN QUESTION P-3049/98 by Mihail Papayannakis (GUE/NGL) to the Council (2 October 1998) Subject: Kosovo refugees and the EU In the event that the crisis in Kosovo becomes even more acute, has the Council drawn up any action plan specifying the measures to be taken to deal with the problems arising from an influx of more refugees, particularly into neighbouring countries, two of which are Member States? Joint answer to Written Questions E-2681/98 and P-3049/98 (7/8 December 1998) The Council is fully aware that the extremely violent offensive of the Serbian security forces against the ‘Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA)’ has led to a dramatic humanitarian situation. According to the latest data from UNHCR, there are over 250 000 refugees and internally displaced persons (40 000 in Montenegro, 15 000 in Albania, 2 000 in FYROM). The Council agrees that the prospect of a growing flow of refugees into Western Europe is a real one. While there has been a certain improvement in the humanitarian situation in Kosovo, following the cessation of hostilities and an increased international presence, the Council remains concerned by the situation of tens of thousands of people who may still be without permanent shelter as winter approaches. The EU will continue to deploy substantial resources to alleviate their plight. The EU has adopted a two-pronged approach to the problem, addressing both its root cause and its humanitarian fall-out. On the political level, the EU fully supports the agreements signed in Belgrade on 16 October 1998 between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and the OSCE, and on 15 October 1998 between the FRY and NATO following the negotiations mandated by the Contact Group on the basis of the relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions, as an important step towards a political solution to the Kosovo crisis. It welcomed the adoption on 24 October of UN Security Council Resolution 1203, which confers the authority of the United Nations to the demand for full and immediate compliance by all parties concerned with these agreements, the unilateral commitments and Security Council Resolutions 1160 and 1199. The Council reiterates that there must be full and immediate compliance with Resolution 1203 by all parties concerned