They were:

- a verifiable stop to all military action and the immediate ending of violence and repression;

- the withdrawal from Kosovo of the military, police and paramilitary forces;

- the stationing in Kosovo of an international military presence;

- the unconditional and safe return of all refugees and displaced persons and unhindered access to them by humanitarian aid organisations;

- the establishment of a political framework agreement for Kosovo on the basis of the Rambouillet Accords, in conformity with international law and the Charter of the United Nations.

The achievement of these objectives and of measures to ensure their full implementation was regarded by the Alliance as the only way of bringing to an end the violence and human suffering in Kosovo.

During the conflict, NATO forces were at the forefront of humanitarian efforts to relieve the suffering of the thousands of refugees forced to flee Kosovo by the Serbian ethnic cleansing campaign, building refugee camps, reception centres and emergency feeding stations, as well as moving many hundreds of tons of humanitarian aid to those in need. The Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) established at NATO in May 1998 also played an important role in the coordination of support for relief operations conducted by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

On 10 June 1999, after an air campaign lasting 78 days and confirmation that the full withdrawal of Yugoslav forces had begun, NATO's air operations were suspended. The NATO Secretary General announced that he had written to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and to the President of the United Nations Security Council, informing them of these developments and indicating NATO's readiness to undertake a new mission to bring the people back to their homes and to build a lasting and just peace in Kosovo. The first elements of the NATO-led peacekeeping force (KFOR) entered Kosovo on 12 June as Serb security forces began to withdraw. Since then NATO has formed the core of the international peacekeeping mission to Kosovo, or Kosovo Force (KFOR), consisting of some 46,000 military personnel from 39 countries. A number of NATO's Partner countries, including Russia, as well as other non-NATO countries, contribute to the force. The mission is seeking to build a secure environment within the Serbian province in which all citizens, irrespective of their ethnic origins, can live in peace and, with international aid, democracy can begin to grow.

KFOR’s mandate comes from the Military Technical Agreement signed by NATO and Yugoslav commanders on 9 June 1999 and from UN Security Council Resolution 1244 of 12 June 1999. Its responsibilities cover the following areas:

- deterring renewed hostility and threats against Kosovo by Yugoslav and Serb forces;
- establishing a secure environment and ensuring public safety and order;
- demilitarising the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA);
- supporting the international humanitarian effort;
- coordinating with, and supporting the UN Interim Administration Mission (UNMIK), which is the international civilian presence in Kosovo.

In line with the Military Technical Agreement, the Yugoslav army and Serbian police withdrew from both Kosovo and a five-kilometre buffer zone between the province and the rest of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.