In Kosovo, senior UN peacekeeping official urges reconciliation

Visiting Kosovo today, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping urged all concerned to promote reconciliation in the province.

Jean-Marie Guéhenno met with a number of officials and toured various sites, including the “returns village” in Suvi Lukavac, where he said that when displaced people went back to their homes they served as a positive example for others.

“We want more people to come back,” he told reporters. “I think it is possible but it needs real willingness and [a] change of hearts and minds.”

Responding to a question, he stressed that security and economic development are essential to spur the returns process on.

Earlier in Mitrovica, he told the press that he had seen significant changes in the security situation in the area since his last visit in 2000. At the same time, he noted the need for greater economic activity, saying this “comes with trust.”