'UN poised to remain in Kosovo

The top United Nations official in Kosovo, Bernard Kouchner, has said that the UN mission will have to stay in the province for a significant number of years.

Briefing the UN Security Council on the first anniversary of his administration, Mr Kouchner said considerable progress had been made in rebuilding the civilian administration and infrastructure, especially schools and hospitals.

But, he said, it would take years to build a society based on tolerance and democracy.

He said the security situation remained very precarious for non-Albanians in the province. Earlier, a joint report by two international organisations -- the UNHCR and OSCE -- said Kosovo Serbs and Roma often needed armed escorts to venture out, while their children were bused to school.

The report said a continuing shortage of UN police and the absence of a functioning and impartial judicial system made it harder to protect the minorities.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service