EU appoints legal expert to review Kosovo corruption claims

The European Union (EU)'s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini on Monday appointed an independent legal expert to carry out a four-month review on corruption allegations against members of the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, or EULEX Kosovo.

"Today, I have appointed Mr. Jean Paul Jacque as independent expert to review EULEX Kosovo mandate implementation with a focus on the handling of the corruption allegations," said Mogherini in a statement.

The new EU foreign policy chief said she asked Mr. Jacque to revert to her within 4 months with his report and his recommendations.

Brussels' local media EUobserver reported that the corruption scandal erupted last month when a Kosovo newspaper published a story, citing internal EULEX files, which said: top EULEX officials took bribes from Kosovo gangsters to block prosecutions; colluded with criminal suspects; and quashed internal EULEX probes.

EULEX was launched in 2008 after Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia. The role of EULEX is to assist Kosovo institutions, especially in the area of rule of law, in order to improve the overall situation.

Serbia, which opposes Kosovo's Feb. 17 declaration in 2008 of independence, rejects the deployment of the EULEX mission. Belgrade claims EULEX seeks to formalize Kosovo's independence. Enditem