U.N. urges Serbs, Albanians to avoid violence

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday urged Serbs and Albanians in the Balkans to refrain from violence or any statement that could jeopardize peace after Kosovo declared independence.

"I call on all sides to reaffirm and act upon their commitments to refrain from any actions or statements that could endanger peace, incite violence or jeopardize security in Kosovo or the region," Ban told reporters after an extraordinary session of the U.N. Security Council on Kosovo.

Ban said the U.N. mission in Kosovo, known as UNMIK, would remain and continue to fulfill its mandate under Security Council resolution 1244, which gave the U.N. the authority to administer Kosovo, "in light of the evolving circumstances".

The Russians have urged Ban to declare Kosovo's independence declaration an illegal act that is null and void. Ban did not say Pristina was acting illegally but he also did not say anything that could be interpreted as supporting an independent Kosovo.

(Reporting by Louis Charbonneau, editing by Todd Eastham)