Pristina, Serbia-Montenegro, SPA -- The head of Europe'sforemost human rights watchdog and Kosovo's top U.N.administrator signed two agreements Monday, calling for theprotection of minorities and prevention of torture in theethnically tense province. Council of Europe Secretary-General Walter Schwimmer andU.N. administrator Soren Jessen-Petersen signed thedocuments, which apply the council's human rights treatiesin Kosovo. The agreements also foresee monitoring the implementationof the council's human rights principles in Kosovo,officials said. The agreement on the prevention of torture will allow anindependent committee of experts to examine the treatmentof prisoners by the U.N. mission in Kosovo. "The signing of the two agreements is of highly symbolicvalue," Schwimmer said. "It confirms that the people ofKosovo must enjoy the same rights and protections as allEuropean citizens."--SPA1300 Local Time 1000 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/194286