Kumanovo Treaty
Encyclopedia
The Military Technical Agreement between the International Security Force ("KFOR") and the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Republic of Serbia, often known as simply the Military Technical Agreement or MTA or as the Kumanovo Agreement, was an agreement concluded on 9 June 1999. It concluded the Kosovo war
Kosovo War
The term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...

. The full text is found on the website of NATO. The key provisions of the MTA were designed to enable the following:
  • A cessation of hostilities between NATO and Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) forces, followed by an end to the bombing campaign should FRY comply effectively with the agreement.
  • Definition of a 25km air safety zone and 5km ground safety zone around Kosovo's borders, into FRY where necessary, which FRY forces could not enter without NATO permission.
  • Over 11 days from signing, the staged withdrawal from Kosovo by FRY forces, including the clearing of military assets (mines, booby traps) from communications lines, and the provision of information to NATO about remaining hazards.
  • The deployment of civil and security forces within Kosovo, pursuant to an at that point unapproved, but drafted United Nations Security Council
    United Nations Security Council
    The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...

     Resolution.
  • Authorisation for assistance to, and use of necessary force by NATO to create a secure environment for the international civilian presence

Status of Agreement

Some legal academics have argued that the Kumanovo Agreement "is dubious under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
Vienna Convention
Vienna Convention can mean any of a number of treaties signed in Vienna. Notable are:* several treaties and conventions resulted from the Congress of Vienna which redrew the map of Europe, only partially restoring the pre-Napoleonic situation, and drafted new rules for international relations*...

(VCLT) and, as a consequence, so too are parts of Resolution 1244 referring, implicitly or explicitly, to paragraph 10 of Annex 2 of the same resolution." One particular argument is that "it is doubtful whether the Kumanovo Agreement can be considered valid according to Article 52 of the VCLT, which states that ‘a treaty is void if its conclusion has been procured by the threat or use of force in violation of the principles of international law embodied in the Charter of the United Nations’. The legal arguments continue that in fact to remedy the legal issues arising what is needed is for Status of Forces Agreement to be entered into with Belgrade.
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