Council for a Community of Democracies

Kosovo Independence Marred by Protest and Division
By Joseph Catapano
February 20, 2008

Events continue to unfold quickly and tensions remain high three days after Balkan territory Kosovo declared its independence. The Washington Post and New York Times report numerous protests from Serbians opposed to the declaration; there have been reports of severe property damage due to the protests, including two United Nations (UN) border posts that were set on fire. BBC News reports that the protests have led NATO troops, who have patrolled the region since 1999, to seal the northern Kosovo border with Serbia. Serbia insists that it has sovereign right over Kosovo as outlined by international law under UN Resolution 1244, which stated that Kosovo was to remain part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY); Serbia is the successor state to FRY.

Sharp divides exist within the international community over the decision to recognize Kosovo as a sovereign nation. China and Russia, two veto-wielding members of the UN Security Council, have spoken out against the recognition of Kosovo, making it virtually impossible for the “world’s youngest country” to be recognized by the international body. Joining China and Russia in their dissent are European Union (EU) states Cyprus, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain. A common thread among dissenters is their current political tensions with separatist regions of their own (e.g. China-Taiwan, Russia-Chechnya, Spain-Basque region). These countries argue that recognition of Kosovar independence could be construed as precedent setting for other regions with secessionist desires to follow through with further action towards independence.

Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic expressed his country’s contempt for other nation’s recognition of Kosovo, “history will judge those who have chosen to trample on the bedrock of the international system and on the principles upon which security and cooperation in Europe have been established.”

The decisions of Cyprus, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain reflect a division within the EU. Major EU powers, France, Great Britain, and Germany have all come out in support of Kosovar independence; additionally, according to BBC News the EU will be sending a 2,000 member civilian force into Kosovo for a “police and justice mission.” This decision has been met with fierce opposition from Russia, whose Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying that the EU’s “unilateral decision…is in breach of the highest international law.” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Mikhail Kamynin added that “[in] pursuing the unilateral scenario of solving the Kosovo problem…the European Union encourages separatism in the world.”

The United States, meanwhile, joined with France, Great Britain, Germany, and other supporters of Kosovar independence.

“The United States has today formally recognized Kosovo as a sovereign and independent state,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said February 18 in a statement released in Washington. “We congratulate the people of Kosovo on this historic occasion.”

However, the Secretary was quick to mention that the Kosovar situation is unlike other independence movements being pursued, adding that “Kosovo cannot be seen as a precedent for any other situation in the world today.”

Kosovo has been under UN administration and NATO protection since Serbian security forces were driven out of the province in 1999 after a NATO bombing campaign aimed at halting the violent repression of ethnic Albanian separatists. Albanians are heavily concentrated across Kosovo with the exception of three provinces in the north and one in the south, which consist mostly of Serbs.

References:

Washington Post: Serbs in Kosovo Set 2 Border Posts Afire

New York Times: Angry Serbs Burn Border Posts in Kosovo

BBC News: Russia Warns US over Kosovo Move

BBC News: NATO Troops Close Kosovo Border

BBC News: EU Kosovo Mission Branded Illegal

America.gov: United States Recognizes Kosovo as Independent State