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President Bush and the United States decided to recognize
the new state, but the move toward independence has sparked
riots in Serbia and an official rebuke from Russian officials.
"Kosovo committed itself to the highest standards of
democracy, including freedom and tolerance and justice for
citizens of all ethnic backgrounds," Bush said, according
to Voice of America. "These are principles that honor
human dignity. They are values America looks for in a friend
and, soon, we will establish full diplomatic relations with
the new nation of Kosovo."
The Russian foreign ministry released a statement condemning
the declaration.
"The dangerous consequences were underlined of such
a move, which is fraught with dangers for the foundations
of world order and international stability formed over the
course of decades," the statement said, according to
Agence France-Presse.
Serbian prime minister Vojislav Kostunica issued a rebuke
and ordered its U.S. ambassador to return to Serbia.
"This decision by the United States will not turn the
false state (of Kosovo) into a real one," Kostunica told
parliament, the Associated Press reported. "The government
has ordered the immediate withdrawal of the ambassador from
Washington."
Serbia also recalled its ambassadors from other nations that
have recognized Kosovo as a new state, including France, Belgium,
Britain and Italy..
A rocky past
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The United States and Germany announced that they will
recognize an independent Kosovo. |
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KKosovo, an area populated
by 2 million people, most of whom are ethnic Albanians, was
thrown into turmoil in 1999, when NATO forces, including American
troops, launched a 78-day bombing campaign to stop Serbian forces
from killing Albanians.
Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic, who died in 2004 while
on trial for war crimes, brought the Albanian province under
tighter Serbian control in 1989, removing its autonomy. Less
than ten years later, Serbian and Kosovar Albanian military
forces were openly fighting each other, according to NATO's
Web site. In 2004, violence broke out again, and ethnic clashes
and riots killed 22 people and wounded 500 others, according
to CNN.
A shaky future
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NATO sent more peacekeeping troops into Kosovo after an
eruption of violence there in 2004. |
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Since 2000, Kosovo has
been administered by the United Nations. After a Dec. 10, 2007,
deadline passed without a resolution for a negotiated independence
agreement, Kosovo is expected to declare its independence after
a second round of Serbian elections on Feb. 3.
The failure to negotiate an agreement, which resulted in
Kosovo declaring independence without a UN sanction, could
inflame tensions in Serbia and among Russian officials.
"The United States and most of the European Union (led
by Britain, France and Germany) will recognize Kosovo quickly.
Russia and its allies will not. Kosovo's eight-year run as
the biggest-ever U.N. project will end with great tension
and a threat of violence that could spread to Bosnia,"
wrote former Clinton administration diplomat Richard Holbrooke
in the Washington Post.
Serbian election
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Incumbent Serbian President Boris Tadic won a reelection
against a strong challenge from nationalist Tomislave
Nikolic. |
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In January, Serbia held
a key presidential election which could also determine the future
of relations among a complex web of European countries.
After a runoff conducted February 3, incumbent President
Boris Tadic won reelection, beating Russian-friendly candidate
Tomislave Nikolic. Tadic favors better Serbian relations with
the European Union.
Tadic spoke at an emergency United Nations Security Council
meeting held after the declaration to seek a resolution on
the independence declaration.
"This arbitrary decision represents a precedent which
will cause irreparable damage to the international order,"
Tadic told the Security Council, the AP reported.
On Jan. 10, Kosovo's parliament elected a former rebel leader,
Hashim Thaci, to the office of prime minister. Thaci promised
to officially break Kosovo from Serbia.
''It's an issue of weeks, and Kosovo will be an independent,
sovereign and democratic country,'' Thaci told the AP. ''Independence
is everything for us. We have sacrificed. We deserve it.''
Putin stands firm
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Russian President Vladimir Putin opposed Kosovo's independence. |
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Russia has used its clout
with the United Nations to block any formal independence resolution
and is expected to block U.N. recognition of Kosovo with its
veto power in the Security Council, the AP reported.
According to the Economist, Russia could be concerned that
a successful Kosovo break could encourage other former Soviet
territories to break away from Russia as well.
"If people believe that Kosovo can be granted full independence,
why then should we deny it to Abkhazia and South Ossetia(areas
south of Russia)?" Russian President Vladimir Putin said,
according to the news magazine.
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I think we've been witnessing violence for years, whether in reality through the media or through video games, and I don't think that's a first-hand effect.
