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Monday, February 18, 2008
US Recognizes Kosovo Independence; EU, Asia Split
Well, it's official...the US has already recognized Kossov's independence along with the UK, Germany, France,Italy and several other members of the EU after a last minute meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels in which it was agreed that Kosovo should 'not set a precedent for other states'.
I wonder exactly how they plan on locking this particular barn door now that the horse is gone?
Spain, Greece and a number of other EU states have decided not to drink the Kool-Aid and withhold recognition because they feel it is a violation of international law and will encourage seperatism.
China, Indonesia, and a number of Asian nations are also holding back from recognizing Kosovo.
The Serbs have already recalled their envoy from Washington, as Serbia's Prime Minister, Vojislav Kostunica, told parliament in Belgrade that America had "violated international law for its own interests".
Well, the Saudis' interests, anyway. Other than that, he's essentially correct.
The UN Security Council is already in session over violating its' own resolution which called for Kosovo to remain part of Serbia and to only have a degree of autonomy based on it being a multi-ethnic enclave. Or,in other words, ending the jihad against Serbian Christians, which of course has continued while the NATO peacekeepers conveniently look the other way.
Russia is expected to veto Kosovo entering the UN and Russia's ambassador to the EU, Vladimir Chizhov, was quoted in the BBC as saying that Kosovo had little to gain from declaring independence.
"There is no way they will get into the United Nations or the OSCE or the Council of Europe," he said.
"So what will they be getting, changing nameplates at the offices of Western countries in Pristina, calling them embassies?"
As for the Serbs, there have been widespread demonstrations in Belgrade and among ethnic Serbs in Kosovo. And in an ominous move the 300-odd Serbs in Kosovo's police force have gone over the border and put themselves under Serbian command.
And Serbian police on Monday filed criminal charges against the three most senior Kosovan figures - Fatmir Sejdiu, the president, Hashim Thaci, the prime minister, and Jakup Krasniqi, the parliamentary speaker - with "organizing the proclamation of a phony state on Serbian territory".
For those of you unfamiliar with Kosovo and why this is important to Americans, go here for a recap and a bit of information...
Good details here not seen elesewhere such as the 300 police crossing the border to sign on as Serb police working in Kosovo.
ReplyDeleteThe Kosovo encounter is not going to wind down any time soon. The EU has no plan other than denying Serbia economic privileges.
Carrying out sanctions against Belgrade will only tip the current pro-EU coalition out of power, and allow in the pro-Russian less friendly faction.
This has been a classic demonstration by the EU as to how defeat can be snatched from the jaws of victory.
If the Serbs had been allowed to develop their economy first, their new-found privileges might have softened them up for a deal on Kosovo later.
The EU success in Belgrade has been converted into a failure of colossal proportions overnight, weakening the EU from wing to wing.
Its economic vulnerabilities, and the stresses within the eurozone will now be far more serious.
Is Kosovo the beginning of the end for the EU? It looks like it.