Standards and Status

The author has been the Special Representative of the Secretary general and head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), the largest civilian peacekeeping mission in UN history, through the decisive period from September 2006 to June 2008.

With a foreword by Martti Ahtisaari (Peace Nobel Prize Laureate 2008). The author has been the Special Representative of the Secretary general and head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), the largest civilian peacekeeping mission in UN history, through the decisive period from September 2006 to June 2008. Before that, Joachim Ruecker was Deputy Special Representative and head of the Economic Reconstruction pillar of UNMIK. Prior to joining UNMIK, he served in a variety of international and national posts including as Deputy High Representative in Sarajevo and for almost a decade as Mayor of the industrial city of Sindelfingen in southern Germany. Mr. Ruecker, who holds a PhD in international economics, is also a German Ambassador and continues to hold various postings with the German Foreign Service. He began his engagement with the Balkans during his tenure as foreign policy advisor to the Social Democratic parliamentary group in the German Bundestag in the early 1990s.

Inhalt
1 TURNING THE TIDE - Creating a market economy In the dark Privatization: The Big Leap - 2 GETTING READY - Prudent planning for Status Standards The Eide report: Standards and Status Kosovo's political landscape: one goal, many paths Preparing for Status negotiations - 3 TIME FOR CLARITY - Status negotiations Domestic challenges The Ahtisaari plan becomes public The Ahtisaari plan reaches the Security Council The German connection The Security Council cannot agree on the Ahtisaari plan Elections in spite of, because of, or regardless of the status process? The Troika process and why it fails - 4 INTO THE UNKNOWN - A Declaration of Independence UNMIK's new role: Status neutrality, firmness, dialogue Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding;reaching out to all communities; parallel structures Violent challenges - 5 A WAY FORWARD - Green light for UNMIK's phase out Time to say good bye for the last traditional UNMIK SRSG Some conclusions - ANNEX 1 - UN Security Council Resolution 1244 - ANNEX 2 - Report of the Special Envoy of the Secretary General on Kosovo's future status - ANNEX 3 - List of UN Security Council sessions during my tenure as SRSG