UNITED NATIONS, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Serbia renewed on Tuesday its appeal for the halt of recognition of Kosovo's independence.

    Briefing 15 members of the UN Security Council, Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said that Belgrade "will never recognize the attempt by the authorities in Pristina to unilaterally secede from Serbia."

    He criticized the European Union for sending a 2,000-strong force known as EULEX to Kosovo, calling the move illegal.

    "There must be no erosion of UNMIK's clearly defined mandate by the Security Council. Therefore we strongly demand that no further transfer of competences from UNMIK to any other body take place," the foreign minister stressed.

    He observed that "these 20-something countries that furthered the secessionist cause of Kosovo Albanians have contributed to making the international system more unstable, more insecure and more unpredictable," adding the activities of such groups "are strongly inconsistent with the principles of the UN Charter."

    Jeremic called upon the countries that have recognized Kosovo's independence to reconsider, and those that have not to stay the course to continue to defend the international system from being fundamentally undermined.

    The countries that recognized Kosovo's independence include the United States, Britain, France, Germany and Switzerland.

    Russian, together with Serbia, maintains that Kosovo's secession and the EU mission are contrary to international law.

    Jeremic made the remarks at the a special session of the UN Security Council on Kosovo in the new round of effort to reassert its authority over Kosovo and prevent further recognition.

    Following his speech in an open session, the council's 15 members held a closed-door discussion.