Is this crazy, or is this crazy?

It's always somebody else's fault

I wonder Miss Phillips was it "mind-blowingly stupid and suicidal" for Britain, America and certain other European countries to recognise Israel as an independent state in 1948?

Alcuin

Without a UN resolution and/or a plebiscite, this is illegal, and as Melanie has averred, is a dangerous precedent. To the examples she has mentioned, I would add the Kurds, and as for Pakistan, and most of Africa - oh dear.

I am not sure about her second point. Nationality requires identity which may, but does not necessarily, come from religion. In the case of Kosovo, it obviously does. What is the worth of trying to hold together a society that is irredeemably broken?

Her third and fourth points are well taken, as is the quite unnecessary and reckless disdain for Russian concerns. It would have made much more sense to have withheld recognition until this experiment had obviously succeeded, and to have brought the Russians on board from the start. We shall need Russia on our side in the coming conflict. The Arabs will not thank us for what we have done, neither did they when we saved Kosovo. We shall end up having pissed off both our major energy suppliers for no measurable gain. Crazy indeed.

Miv Tucker

Somebody else's fault - are YOU "mind-blowingly stupid"? A moment's investigation will show you that the two situations are not at all similar. However, I can't be bothered to argue with you further because you're obviously too stupid to understand.

Ranjit

California may do the same to preserve the environement and the people displaced from Diego Garcia may find the American forces decalaring independence there. In corporate terms, Kosovo would be a hostile takeover by the West. The goalposts of democracy seem to be ever shifting.

field

Good post Melanie. I think you are right. To recognise Kosovo as independent is to open a can of worms. The best way forward is to create fully free and democratic states who can then deal with such issues sanely - as we saw in Czechoslovakia. This puts the cart before the horse. Presumably it's meant to convince Muslims of our sincere Islamophilia. But they aren't going to be convinced by an EU Police State and they would never expect infidels to like Islam anyway. So that's a waste of time. To the previous poster: recognition of Israel was quite different. This followed a quite clear UN decision in relation to a mandate territory - not a state. It was swiftly recognised by the Soviet Union as well as the USA. Not sure about China and India but I expect so. Kosovo is not going to get anything like the consensus.

Thamarai

This article does not mention that Kosovo's autonomy was revoked by former Serbian President Slobodan Milosovic in 1998. That was the root cause. That is why Kosovans wanted to secede.

a sl voter

The author has written the article from the issues that can come up by recognizing the new country.
I have a few questions before him:
1. why the people of Kosovo want to have a country on their own? Isn't it bacause of the way they were treated by the Serbians?
2. Any country's "right to maintain its own integrity" cannot be used to suppress, kill, loot and rape a group of people and force them to stay togeather. It can be used only against foreign forces.
2. Who decided the Serbia should eb one country? or Who has the right to decide that Serbia should be one country?
3. Solving the problem without seperation is always good and that is what all countries will try from begining. but then the people feel that their voice is not heard simply because they are minority, they tend to move towards a position where they can be majority - Seperatism is a promising point to them.
3. Who declared independance? Isn't it the body elected by the people of Kosovo? By rejecting that, aren't we rejecting the right of the people? Serbian people have no right over the Kosovo people.
I believe this is what true democracy is. We all should join to geather to protect this true democracy.

Mladen Andrijasevic

I am not so sure I quite understand how dangling the carrot of EU membership was supposed to ease the Serbs’ anguish over losing Kosovo, when Europe itself is en route to becoming Muslim Eurabia in a decade or two, as the controversy over the Archbishop of Canterbury has so vividly shown.

Gary Luke

In 1948 the UN ratified a decision made by the League of Nations after WW1 when no-one had rule over the territory. No state was dismantled or split by this. Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan were created from the absence of sovereignty under the same system. If Israel's creation is "mind-blowingly stupid and suicidal" the same applies to the whole of the Levant and its hinterlands. Learn a bit of real history Ms Anonymous, or is it Ms Taken.

Bognor

"I wonder Miss Phillips was it "mind-blowingly stupid and suicidal" for Britain, America and certain other European countries to recognise Israel as an independent state in 1948?" It was the USSR which first recognised Israel to embarrass Britain and Czechoslovakia's Communist rulers who sent the first weapons shipments.....Britain was hardly in a rush to recognise Israel since its troops were on the ground

Michael Medved

Well, I find at least one positive thing in this whole matter of Kosovo independence. The major world powers with one hand movement completely and blatantly disregarded the binding Security Council resolution No. 1244 that had deemed Kosovo a part of Serbia. Surely after that they can't preach Israel to uphold the non-binding UN resolutions No. 242 and 338? Perhaps, this is the first step in dismantling the UN altogether.

David Revelman

Within one, five or ten years there may well be war, civil war or insurgency in Kosovo. There will be heart-rending TV images and a clamour for the West "to do something." In all likelihood the US and her allies, and the few NATO countries that can still field combat troops, will find themselves fighting another unnecessary war that originally had little to do with their vital national interests. America will get the blame as usual; this time she may deserve it.

Ajith

Thank you. Thank you at last I can see Independent Journalism in Spectator. Those liberals led papers and news media like BBC afraid of the truth and some one here talking the truth. Countries who cannot recognise Palestine recognise Kosovo and kicking the world order because they think they are civilised more than others. (Is that the same notion theu used to colonise others in the past)

Barry Larking

This is called, correctly, 'Balkanisation'. I am relieved to find I am not alone in finding this news, and the official US, UK and EU reactions to it, baffling. My thought was "What if the southern states of the USA wished to break away?"

More seriously, this 'granting' (by whom exactly?) of independence to all and sundry would produce, in months, more wars than the State Department or Whitehall could shake a stick at. Look at the map.

This 'independent' Kosova (Kosovo is the Serbian name) – how will this work? Saudi money? EU subventions? Has anyone thought about the future or is the embarrassment of Putin's Russia all that matters? The US is known to be keen on re-focussing its military deployments in Europe towards the South East. What dark purpose is served by creating another fundamentalist Moslem state in Europe?

Joshua

'was it "mind-blowingly stupid and suicidal" for Britain, America and certain other European countries to recognise Israel as an independent state in 1948?' -- Having done its level best to prevent the creation of the Jewish state, in the vote on the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181 on November 29, 1947 (the partition plan), Britain actually abstained. During the subsequent war between Israel and the Arab nations Britain suppled Israel's enemies with large quantities of weapons and not a few military leaders. Some recognition!

Ben-Tsiyon

Anti-Serbian propaganda has been propagated by the British media (with the Biased Broadcasting Corporation in the lead, of course)over the past decade or so in much the same measure as the anti-Israel variety. The Serbs have become the Israelis of the Balkans. It was OK for Nato, with the blessing of the failed UN, to bomb the you-know-what out of Belgrade without concern for the inevitable civilian casualties. Did anyone give out with even one little scream about "collective punishment"! Have there been volumes of protest over the current Turkish incursion into Iraq ! In sharp contrast, whatever actions Israel takes in the interests of its security or militarily against the ceaseles terrorist attacks of the Gazaen "militants" are met with howls of condemnation, accusations of "collective punishment" and even of "genocide". It is said that the Albanians in the Serbian province of Kosovo have been complaining of "oppression" for years. They had their remedy - a return to their homeland, Albania.

vj

Today Kosovo Tomorrow Tamil Eelam

GNO

I see Britain has not yet got rid of the habit, acquired in them hedonistic imperial days, of dividing other peoples lands, and feel all magnanimous and righteous about it! It must be easy to be generous with someone else’s property.

Anand

I believe the reason for the UK and US recognising Kosovo is merely to show Moslems that they are not uniformly anti-moslem in all their transactions with Mosolem peoples around the world. Obviously, there is no harm if the Kosovans could break away without affecting Serbs who either live there or have historical ties with Kosovo. However if the breakaway impacts the Serbs it becomes a lot more complecated. In determining if a country has the right to breakaway there are many factors that should be considered. Lets take the hypothetical case of the UK breaking up into a two Nations with Pakistani Moslems claiming a large chunk of it which includes Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds. 1. How large a proportion of the population wish to break away. If the British Moslems constituted 10% of the population would it be fair? If they constituted only 1% of the population would it be fair? 2. Is the landmass divided fairly between the 2 states? If the 10% of British Moslems lived in a sparsely populated cluster of counties that together constituted 35% of the land mass would it be fair? 3. The demographics of the new state. If the British Moslems constituted only 35% of the population of the new state, with the rest being white would it be fair? 4. If most of Britain's archaelogical heritage lay in this new state. e.g. Sotnehenge, Cantebury Cathedral, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court etc. would it be fair? 5. The history of the secessionist population: If the Moslems arrived in the 1950s would it be fair? If they arrived in 1700 would it be fair? How about 1066? 6. What if the new state also occupies the best agricultural land or the only oil reserves in the UK? The case in Sri Lanka is of two provinces wanting to breakaway or rather the Tamils of one province (Northern Province)wanting theirs plus another province (Eastern Province)of which they constitute only a third of the population. Tamils had a state in most of the Northern Province since the 13th century. However in the Eastern Province which is sparsely populated, Full of Significant Sinhalese Buddhist archaelogical sites that date back to about 175 BC they not only constitute only 33% of the population but also arived there from South India only in the 18th century, during colonial times. So how fair is their land claim? Should the significant Indian populations in Malaysia, Fiji, South Africa and Kenya also have the right to break away?

C Powell

Re your point 3: was this not exactly what Serbs did to Muslims in Bosnia and Kosovo a few years ago? The phrase: "As you sow so shall you reap" comes to mind.

Ian

What I find interesting is the what appears to be a deafening silence in the media generally as to quite WHY the UK has recognised Kosovo in the first place. If there are good reasons in spite of the points raised in posts such as these, what on earth are they??

George Steiner

On the surface this looks more or less as Ms. Phillips has described it. But things are usually not as they look. So why did the US and the UK recognised so quickly? Even the State Department and the Foreign Office understand the domino possibility. So why then? Any suggestions?

alan stoddart

Much as I agree recognition of Kosovan independence is unlikely to result in anything good your second point about religion not being more important than nationality would contradict the creation of both Pakistan and, er Israel..as you say Israel's 'unique Jewish Character'...which it must maintain or else Israel will cease to exist...and with it the Jews in that area. As always T.E Lawrence was there before us....'Moslem's(in Syria) heritage of the Koran and classical literature held the Arabic speaking people together. Patriotism, ordinarily of soil or race, was warped to a language.'(abridged) So I imagine religion does the job just as well as language or other culture....Just ask Hizb ut Tahrir...or see their videos on U-tube...bet Pakistan allows them be shown.

alan stoddart

Why the recognition? Because Islam, in particular Sunni Islam is a counter to Russia and China( and they hope Iran)...both countries have large and growing Muslim populations, Saudi arabia pumped in massive funds to the former Soviet Republics to reinstate Islam, with Mosques in every village and radical preachers sent out to 'energise' the populations. Despite first appearances the US can be seen to be supporting radical Islam aropund the world...starting of course with the original Mujahaddin that kicked the Soviets out of Afghanistan. Naturally there are limits and their 'allies' need to be controlled if elements get too wild....Zaraqawi etc. And Let's face it, Bin Laden was pretty keen to get rid of Saddam himself. Of course those who ride the tiger often end up inside it. Love them conspiracy theories. They're fun.

Kenny

Sadly, you are correct. Goodbye Europe.

widowson

"Thamarai" and "a sl voter" are both correct. If the Serbians hadn't been so brutal to begin with, if Milosavitch hadn't revoked Kosovos' status prior to unleashing the raping, genocidal hordes upon that part of the world when they protested, this wouldn't have been an issue. Blame that man's brutal stupidity for this mess. I believe in fighting Islamic terrorism as well, but if I was a Kosovar, if I was in their shoes, I'd probably be furious at Serbia and want to leave as well. Honestly, the real question is how could Kosovo actually remain part of Serbia after what happened?

field

I think this debate itself shows the wisdom of Melanie's words. The rancour and accusations will be multiplied a thousand fold on the ground. So we've gone from a manageable situation to one fraught with danger. If you speak to Serbs, they will tell you Serbs, a minority in Kosovo, were treated abominably by Muslim Albanians when Kosovo had its autonomy - with beatings and rapes. I've no idea whether that's true but I suspect it might be given the history of the area. We are now expecting a large minority of Serbs in Kosovo to become Kosovan citizens. It's crazy. This despite the fact that two provinces in Kosovo which have a majority of Serbs in the new state are contiguous with Serbia proper. If you are going to have a split on the basis of ethnic identity at least be consistent and allow those Serbs to join Serbia. As I said before, the only hope for the area is the gradual spread of democracy, to take the edge off the worst excesses of ethnic nationalism. This is a very dangerous precedent and one can see why all sorts of countries with ethnic minorities occupying distinct territorial areas are concerned about this.

Scipio

Excellent and chilling article. "Some damn foll thing in the Balkans" will start another war. I agree wtih you also that the vain, incompetent, inoslent and cowardly nonentity of a Prime Minister named Ehud Olemrt is a existential danger to the Jewish state. As for post #1 "/It's always somebody else's fault" - don't get stuck on stupid!

Ross

"Most important of all, an independent Muslim Kosovo is a beachhead for radical Islam in Europe. Al Qaeda has been operating in Kosovo since the early 1990s." Since the early 1990s, when Serbia ran the place. Sounds like a good argument for Kosovar independence.

asim

i m apalled at melanie phillips' bigotry and stupidity. i dont know why people like her even get space to print their nonsense. i wonder about the intellectual integrity and the world view of her admirers

George Steiner

I was talking to Gino Machiaveli, a descendant of the great one. He said, Kosovo was a sore leftover from the Clinton era. It is riddled with Al Qaeda and the Jihadists. By itself it is not viable as a state. Shortly Kosovo will be part of Albania. The Albanians will clean up Al Qaeda and the Islamists. As ex-Commies they know how to do it. The Clintonian sore spot will be stabilized. The Serbs are not going to be unhappy, neither will be Rusia. The Albanians, if they do a good job will get lots of help from the Americans. There, said Gino, nothing is what it seems.

Ann

All this stuff about 'international law' is nonsense. There is no such thing. All there is, is agreements between world powers how to carve up the world. These are voluntary agreements. There is no sovereign source of law superordinate to those countries, from which a body of law can flow. --- Should the Czechs and the Slovaks be forced to live in one country? What about the Serbs and the Slovenians and the Croats - is it also 'stupid' and 'suicidal' to allow them to have their own countries? I haven't noticed any recent international disasters resulting from that partition. Or should Latvia and Estonia be forced to be part of a Greater Russia once again? --- Just because Serbia - which ludicrously calls itself 'Yugoslavia' - is 'recognised' as a country, that is no reason why it should be allowed to repress an ethnic minority.

Ann

"Much as I agree recognition of Kosovan independence is unlikely to result in anything good your second point about religion not being more important than nationality would contradict the creation of both Pakistan and, er Israel..as you say Israel's 'unique Jewish Character' " -- you don't know much about Judaism, do you, Alan? The Jews are a nation, not simply a religion.

Ann

"It is said that the Albanians in the Serbian province of Kosovo have been complaining of "oppression" for years. They had their remedy - a return to their homeland, Albania." --- your scare quotes fool nobody. That oppression was real. And 'Go back to your own country' is a shameful thing to say: that's what the Jews were told in Germany and elsewhere in the 1930s. --- There is nothing inherently sacred about the current Serbian borders: the Albanians in Kosova are not emigrants from some other country.

Ben

"It opens the way for any other breakaway movement to do the same, both in the Balkans and around the world. So Tamils can now claim a precedent for seceding from Sri Lanka, Corsicans from France, Basques from Spain. And after Kosovo, can Scotland be far behind?" Absolutely! Whoa! What a Threat! Imagine if people were allowed to decide for themselves if where they live should be an independent nation! "To recognise the validity of such a secession is to undermine the principle of a country's right to determine its own composition." I do hope you're right. No country should have that right. It is up to the people of Scotland, Taiwan, the Tamils, the coricans, the Basques to decide their destiny. Messy as that sometimes is, it is far more democratic and a bulwark against tyranny. I have lost most of the respect I had for you.

BJ

Unusually I find myself in agreement with Melanie on the issue of Kosovo at least. It is a shortsighted decision to recognise independence when substantial autonomy was on offer from Serbia (indeed more extensive control over their own affairs than was revoked under Milosevic)and a solution could have been found which largely met the aspirations of both the Albanians and Serbs. But as long as the Kosovo Albanian leadership knew that the US and its allies would support independence they had no incentive to negotiate with Serbia or even discuss the alternatives. Nor would partition of Kosovo resolve the issue since most of the Serbian religious sites are not in the north and would still need protection. It is ironic that the most obvious parallel to Kosovo is the Serbian entity in Bosnia, indeed it is difficult to see how maintaining the territorial integrity of BiH could now be justified. I am however, sceptical of the Islamic dimension in this. This is primarily an ethnic conflict between Slavs and Albanians as evidenced by the fact that the Bosniak Muslim population in Kosovo has also been ethnically cleansed along with the Serbs and Roma. We should also not forget that the most extensive ethnic cleansing carried out during the break up of Yugoslavia was the expulsion of 500,000 or so Krajina Serbs from Croatia in 1995 during "operation storm" when Croatian forces were armed and supported by the United States. In other words the double standard with regard to Serbia is not new. The first commenter on this thread also drew a parallel with the recognition of Israel in 1948. He/she was right in that the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian population was largely ignored by the at the time.

Milos

This really isn't about the Serbia's right to govern Kosovo, this is all about the manner in which the "solution" was imposed. The West had to make an effort in finding a solution which suits both sides. Their decision to ignore international law will only destabilize the region. This situation is now giving credibility to nationalists within the country, and can only bring problems in the future. Serbia has gone a long way since the 1999. Slobodan Milosevic is now dead. Serbia is now a democratic, peaceful country. It's a country that turned over its whole former political and military leadership to the Hague war crimes tribunal - no country ever did that. And, yet, it wasn't enough. Problem that most Serbs have with Kosovo being independent is the fact that Kosovar Albanians have no intention of respecting the rights of the Serbian minority (nor any other minority for that matter) and preserving the Serbian cultural and religious heritage in Kosovo. They proved that during the March 2004 rampage. Also, during the 1980's Albanians were in charge, and they were quite intolerant. Milosevic then tried to "solve" the problem through unilateral actions, and where did that lead to?

Adam B.

BJ, you have it the wrong way round. The Jews were ethnically cleansed from Arab lands. In contrast, there is a large Arab population inside Israel. How many Jews still live in Syria or Iraq? 10? 20? How many were ever able to live in Saudi Arabia? How many other minorities flourish in the Islamic world?

Engelbrekt

KLA did start up in the early 1980’s, there was major attack on minority Serbs and Montenegrins in autonomic Kosovo province 1981. It continued during the 80’s. This fight to ethnically cleanse Koso0vo did start after Tito died, and it wasn’t Serbs that aimed to cleanse Kosovo it was the Albanians. It did take some time until the federation did send in army to try to establish security. It is in this light one have to see the revoking of autonomy, and the economic situation in the late 80’s. Hyperinflation, GDP/capita 25% lower than in the late 70’s, foreign debt crisis demands from IMF and VB to make radical economic reforms. A federation with six rather independent republics and two autonomous provinces and a constitution that gave the different parts quite big room to veto the federal government. And huge economic differences between the parts, Slovenia had GDP/capita well double of the federation average and Kosovo 27% of the average. The Serbs in Bosnia was ofcourse aware of the kosovoalbainian 80’s terror on the Serb and Montenegrin minority when Izetbegovic republished his Islamic declaration during the 1990 president election in Bosnia and the later forced declaration of independence. There was a real cause for concern among the Serbs in Bosnia. New York Times July 12, 1982 "The [Albanian] nationalists have a two-point platform," according to Beci Hoti, an executive secretary of the Communist Party of Kosovo, "first to establish what they call an ethnically clean Albanian republic and then the merger with Albania to form a greater Albania Mr Hoti, an Albanian, expressed concern voer political pressures that were forcing Serbs to leave Kosovo. "What is important now," he said, "is to establish a climate of security and create confidence." Belgrade Battles Kosovo Serbs nytimes.com Published: June 28, 1987 The police clashed here early today with about 1,000 Serbs and Montenegrins protesting what they called terrorism against them by ethnic Albanians in Kosovo Province. … Witnesses said squads of policemen seized demonstrators and forced them into buses to be driven back to their homes in Kosovo. Some protesters were detained for several hours. The Central Committee meeting was the first in six years dedicated solely to Kosovo problem. Tensions have been high in the province in southwestern Yugoslavia since the Albanians rioted there in 1981 to back demands for higher status as a republic. Since then, more than 22,000 Serbs and Montenegrins have fled Kosovo. … The police also prevented large groups of Belgrade residents from joining the protesters by cordoning of the entire center of the city. Serbs have said the ethnic Albanians in Kosovo have committed atrocities against them, including murder, rape, desecration of graves and churches and blinding of cattle. September 15, 1987 - New York Times Ethnic Killing Delivers a Jolt To Yugoslavs … During the night from Sept. 1-2, a 20-year-old ethnic Albanian conscript ran amok with automatic weapons in a military barracks at Paracin in southern Serbia. By dawn, four non-Albanian soldiers were dead and five were wounded. The conscript's body was found in nearby woods by troops who had ringed the area; he was officially listed as a suicide. The funeral in Belgrade of one of the victims became the scene of a protest by more than 10,000 people, according to Zivorad Djordjevic, chief spokesman for the Serbian Republic. Kosovo, whose population is 88 percent ethnic Albanian, is an officially autonomous part of the republic. … ''The nationalities issue is deeply disturbed and the deterioration is deepening,'' said Ivica Racan, a member of the Presidency of the League of Communists, the party's ruling body. ''There is an irrational and passion-ridden atmosphere. There is no quick solution; repressive measures won't work.'… Many Yugoslavs have expressed a fear that the barracks killings have intensified the possibility that any new incident might provoke army intervention in Kosovo. ''What is tragic is that we may have to introduce repressive measures for security reasons that we know will not solve the problem,'' Mr. Racan said. New York Times November 1, 1987 Ethnic Albanians in the Government [of Kosovo] have manipulated public funds and regulations to take over land belonging to Serbs. Slavic Orthodox churches have been attacked, and flags have been torn down. Wells have been poisoned and crops burned. Slavic boys have been knifed, and some young ethnic Albanians have been told by their elders to rape Serbian girls. The goal of the radical nationals among them, one said in an interview, is an "ethnic Albania that includes western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, part of southern Serbia, Kosovo and Albania itself." As Slavs flee the protracted violence, Kosovo is becoming what ethnic Albanian nationalists have been demanding for years, and especially strongly since the bloody rioting by ethnic Albanians in Pristina in 1981--an "ethnically pure" Albanian region Serbs and Montenegrins Protest Yugoslav Strife REUTERS Published: August 22, 1988 More than 20,000 Serbs and Montenegrins have threatened to take up arms to settle ethnic strife in Yugoslavia's Kosovo Province. … At a rally on Saturday in the main square of Titograd, the capital of the republic of Montenegro, the protesters demonstrated against what they called persecution by ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. It was the first rally of its kind outside Serbia, and it included chants of ''We want arms'' by the protesters. … More than 30,000 Serbs and Montenegrins have fled Kosovo since bloody riots by Albanian nationalists rocked the region in 1981. Those who fled said the Albanians were driving them out to create an ethnically pure region. …

Chris Ashton

After following the lead up to this declaration and seeing the air-headed comments from the liberal western politicians, I poured a cup of tea, closed my eyes and a phrase that I hadn't heard for decades came to me "EVIL WILL FOLLOW"! It comes from the I-Ching. You don't need to throw the sticks or the coins to know that, its so obvious. Melanie Phillips once again goes straight to the heart of the matter in a well informed and eloquent manner. Scholarship coupled with common sense - now that's a rare commodity.

Michael B

To Ms. Phillips: hear, hear.

BSR

What about Quebec in Canada, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and any number of Hispanic majority states in the US in the future? Sauce for the goose....?

jean shaw

Amazingly as I am normally on the opposite side of the political spectrum to you I agree . Very short term considerations have taken precedence. You reap what you sow and in this case the dangers are obvious.

Danny Queiruga

Ms Phillips, your article is a breath of fresh air. I was so tired and sick of watching all the rubbish including false EU propaganda on this issue. Serbia became the victim of what can only be termed as cheap (popular, but very dirty) politics of the EU and the US. I can foresee this happening in countries like Sri Lanka someday. It makes me sick in the stomach to think how these outsiders, who havent got any regard for the history or the ground realities, can do this to vulnerable countries. If anything EU should be helping democratic countries like Serbia, not breaking them. Shame on you EU & US government for doing the dirty work for the arms dealers.

field

BSR - Yes you are right. Hispanic states in the USA will be an exact replica of the Albania/Kosova/Serbia situation with Mexico/Hispanic (ex Mexican) States/USA. Where's the difference? There is none.

Suzanne Pomeranz

First: TO "It's always somebody else's fault" -
Please tell me what independent, self-governing, sovereign political country did Israel displace in 1948? And if you want to say "Palestine", think again and tell me WHO was it's president or king or prime minister, what sort of national government was in place, describe it's national institutions like flag, national anthem, etc. - the truth is, you can't because there was never in history any independent, self-governing political entity called "Palestine". It only exists in the charters of the PLO and Hamas as a tool to rally the world against the State of Israel and against all Jews everywhere.

2) It seems to me that the renewed idea of ancient tribalism, suggested by the multiculturalists of the 1960s and forward has come to raise its ugly head in this battle and others worldwide. Tribalism was never a good idea and only led to isolationism and killing for the sake of killing "the other"... Nationalism around a political country, no matter the race or religion of the inhabitants was the answer to stop all that nonsense. It has worked for a hell of a long time - why change it back now?!

PS - For those that want to jump on that last comment vis-a-vis Israel, you should know that Israel is NOT organized as a religious country no matter how many people want to think so. Israeli Arabs are citizens, too, as are many others who are not Jewish... by the way, it was Israel who took in and saved many Bosnian Muslims when no Muslim country would lift a finger to do so! The same with many others from war-torn countries around the world!

phil

Why do the Israel haters bring that nation into every argument that occurs in this world -do they also affect the outcome of the superbowl,or even the title race between utd and arsenal-i suppose * It's always somebody else's fault* February 24th, 2008 11:59pm*, thinks so . Anyhow i am declaring my home independent today -does that mean i can have my council tax refunded-i want my own flag and oil reseves -ok

Julia Pascal

Melanie is bang on. If Wales declared itself independent would the EU support that too! Or Westminster?

London Calling

History lesson aside, I would like to contribute a philosophical point of view. Does an Ant crawling on the earth care if he is a Kosovo or a Kosova , Serbian,Yugoslavian, or Aryan ? I think not, but the Ant may care if he had just entered the territory of, or have his own territory invaded by a larger creature, for which his survival was threatened. We are but creatures also, who owns the earth ? we don't.......

RA

How about the south eastern states ceceding from the US?

Lynne T

Posted by George Steiner above: "I was talking to Gino Machiaveli, a descendant of the great one. He said, Kosovo was a sore leftover from the Clinton era. It is riddled with Al Qaeda and the Jihadists. By itself it is not viable as a state. Shortly Kosovo will be part of Albania. The Albanians will clean up Al Qaeda and the Islamists. As ex-Commies they know how to do it. The Clintonian sore spot will be stabilized. The Serbs are not going to be unhappy, neither will be Rusia. The Albanians, if they do a good job will get lots of help from the Americans. There, said Gino, nothing is what it seems." Counting on the Kosovo Albanians to "do a good job" vis Al-Qaeda and other Islamists doesn't strike me as particularly likely, as I expect the KLA as it was knonw, are not unfriendly to A-Q, et al. Likewise the notion that Sunni Muslims can be relied upon to provide a bulwark against Russian, Chinese or Shia Iranian hegemony. We've seen occasion after occasion of "my enemy's enemy" being played out, and very tragically, in many parts of Asia and Africa. The kindest thing to say about the countries who have rushed to recognize an independent Kosovo, is that it is, as the Globe & Mail editorial of Feb. 23/08 put it, "premature" as it is very possible that it will become part of a Greater Albania and not particularly committed to upholding the rights of Kosovo's Serbs, who were the regions majority until relatively recent times. So far, Canada has adopted a wait-and-see approach, but our current Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, and his government don't have a whole lot of influence on the international scene, and more's the pity given their track record on Hamas, Israel's use of force against Hezbollah in the summer of 2006, etc.

John Bull

Would Westminster support an English declaration of independence? I doubt if the Welsh or Scots would.

Ann

Wales SHOULD declare itself independent. It is the homeland of a distinct nation with a distinct culture and a distinct language. It has been under foreign occupation for many centuries. The only reason Wales has only a shadow of the self-rule enjoyed by the Scots is that the Welsh are far too nice for their own good. They don't have sharp elbows. --- Phil asks: why do the Israel haters etc? Do you really want an answer on the back of a small stamp? Hint: it starts with a and ends with m. That is why we have the usual nonsense about 'ethnic cleansing' of the 'Palestinians'.

Neil Saunders

Imagine if, in the 19th century, major nations had officially recognised a breakaway Missouri ruled by Jesse James and his gang, or an independent New Mexico governed by Billy the Kid. "Independent" Kosovo is an artificial, bandit-state that the international community should have united in opposing.

field

Well Wales is on the up, topping the Rugby and the pop charts. How long before we get "Cool Cymru" articles in the Sunday glossies?

Ben-Tsiyon

On Ann's "'Go back to your own country' is a shameful thing to say; that's what the Jews were told in Germany and elsewhere in the 1930s"...It's not "a shameful thing to say" to a hostile people who have a country of their own they can go back to. The Jews in Europe, who were not hostile to their 'host' nations, couldn't go back to their own Land of Israel because the British occupiers of that land, who were in breach of their trustee obligations, prevented them from doing so.

Gazza

Thamarai states "This article does not mention that Kosovo's autonomy was revoked by former Serbian President Slobodan Milosovic in 1998. That was the root cause. That is why Kosovans wanted to secede." The reason why autonomy was stripped was that the local Albanian communists were using their control of the local establishment to actively promote Albanian domination to takeover the province. They ignored the illegal migration of their ethnic brothers coming from Albania itself, discriminated against the ethnic minorities, enforced the exclusive use of Albanian language in street signs and government/public services, and ignored the crimes of the seperatist radical fringe as they began their campaign of violence and intimidation of the Serbs and Roma. Milosevic stripped autonomy as a result of poor behaviour by the Albanians, not because of any nationalist anti-Albanian attitides. Of course this truth will conflict with the established propaganda line, so many will just refuse to believe it. It is the truth nonetheless.

Sergey

What is completely ignored in all these comments is centuries old history of Muslims against Christians battles on Balkans. And this history is the core of Serbian national identity. In WWII Albanians were allies of Nazi, while Serbs launched guerilla war against Nazi and their Albanian allies. They were so devoted to this cause that Hitler had to throw there his best Waffen SS divisions, but could not quell the Serb partisans. It was religious war from the beginning, in which Western nations chose the wrong side. Now Pandora box is open. Abkhazia, Southern Osetia, Nagornyj Karabakh (now under Armenian control, previously Aserbaijan province) and other non-recognized self-proclaimed states will require and will grant recognition from, at least, some states, which Russia for several years was warning about. The next step - annexation of S.Osetia and Abkhazia by Russia. These states already held referendums about joining to Russia. So wait Russian army marching to Tbilisi, Russian air-born special forces land in Prishtina to defend Serbs from Albanian genocide, and so on. NATO had shown that it can not and will not fight, so this will be natural course for Putin to proceed. International law is a gentlemen's agreement, so if one side behave non-gentelmenly, other is free to follow suit.

Aleks

MP is spot on. @Engelbrekt, during the riots of 1981, the Albanians did not just demand elevated rights, but outright independence. To add further information, the riots started in Pristina university over the bad quality of the food. The students claimed that they were being poisioned, then events snowballed. Almost 10 years later (2003), Albanians in Macedonia also claimed that they were being poisioned and went en masse to the hospitals. Yet again, not a shred of evidence was produced. Regarding the UK and US strategy (apart from the usual), they basically adopted the old Titoist policy, "Smaller Serbia, Bigger Yugoslavia", i.e break up Serbia to make it more manageable. They also have adopted the same wholesale limitless subsidy of Kosovo that helped to destroy the Yugoslav economy. Carving up Serbia is seen as the 'simple' solution to Albanian irredentist claims. They dressed this up as 'humanitarian intervention' which got all the limp-wristed pseudo-lefties (New Labout) on board (cretins like Clair Short, and two faced gits like Robin Cooke). The calculation is that any 'short-term' disruption will pass as the 'Serbs are tired' and 'want to be in the EU' - as can be seen from the current spin in the pro-intervention media. There is some truth in this, but it is very risky. Not to mention the Albanians who run Kosovo still do not recognize the 2001 border agreement between Macedonia and Serbia. Former Kosovo Ombudsman (200-2005) Marek Anton Nowicki (who's tenure was not extended and was neither replaced) wrote a parting gift on the situation in Kosovo called "Kosovo: Pro Memoria" - he tells it like it is...

Nemanja, Connecticut

A concise and thoroughly researched article. Well done Melanie! Today, imperial powers are using diplomacy [sic] instead of force to rule nations. Another statelet to do the bidding of its masters, to seek admittance into 'exclusive' organizations to have its resources exploited and its people dependant upon the 'generosity' of said colonialists.

phil

Ann I am sure you realised that I didnt need an answer-the idiots never change -what chance a calmer middle east whilst these people fuel the fires ?they don,t care for the humanity involved ,only for their hatred which makes them feel more important .these bullies just need a victim and at the moment Israel is an easy target -Perhaps the earlier writer will go for a holiday in Sederot and see how it feels to be targeted every day ,well probably not !

David Lindsay

If Kosovo’s UDI is allowed to stand, then there will be no reason why any arbitrary administrative unit at all might not declare itself a sovereign state as soon as it has a Wahhabi-led Muslim majority, or is run by Holocaust-deniers, or is controlled by heroin barons, never mind falling, as Kosovo does, into all three of those categories. What about when the former Metropolitan County of West Yorkshire, which still exists for ceremonial purposes, has a Wahhabi or Deobandi-led Muslim majority? For that matter, what about when the southern-most counties of the United States have Hispanic majorities, if they do not already have them? Both a Muslim majority in West Yorkshire and Hispanic majority in, say, Southern California or Southern Florida will be, and might already be, a direct product of the "free" market. So, is anyone still saying that market is conservative? No, it is not. The BBC nailed its colours firmly to the mast, talking about “Kosova”, reciting a wholly false version of the history of Yugoslavia’s destruction, and referring only in passing to the fact that all the flags on display in Kosovo are those of Albania rather than of this newly “independent” state. The EU, at least, is backing Kosovo because they are both Postmodern constructs, states without nations. There is not, never has been, and never will (since never can) be a European nation. And there is not, never has been, and never will (since never can) be a Kosovar nation. Nor does anyone in Kosovo even want there to be. They want there to be either a Serbian nation with Kosovo in it, or an Albanian nation with Kosovo in it. And after Kosovo, what about Berwick? Seriously. Berwick is a great deal more distinct than Kosovo (or Taiwan - watch that space after Kosovo). Not that that's saying very much, if anything. Indeed, I am now styling myself David Lindsay MLP, which stands for Member of the Lanchester Parliament. That body was formerly Lanchester Parish Council. But if Kosovo can declare its Parish Council to be a Parliament, then so can Lanchester. As, indeed, can absolutely anywhere else at all.

PB

Thamarai - Absolute rubbish. Your dear leader, Thaci, let slip the real reason when he said the Albanians had been waiting for this moment for hundreds of years. a sl voter - Didn't you read the piece properly? "the Kosovars started the killing in their revolt against a sovereign country and drove out between 150,000 and 200,000 Serbs." Convenient how Albanians like to skip the part about them starting the war in the first place!! And in answer to your question 2) the UN decides who should be a country, not the US and EU. Everyone here seems to have missed the point, including Melanie Phillips, as to why Kosovo is being recognised by the US and the EU. It's all about MINERAL wealth in Kosovo. Over a couple of £TRILLION pounds to be exact. There's literally billions of tons of Lignite, cobalt, lead, zinc, and barrels of oil and a few trillion cubic feet of gas. So why do they recognise Kosovo and have to base their troops there? Go figure.

bla

Where does she get her facts? You go into any "muslim" house in Kosovo and you will be offered rakia (same alcohool amount as whiskey) and they will drink it with you. It is a very very relaxed islam in a lot of ways. There hasn't been a single attack on NATO troops in Kosovo, how did she come up with this al qaeda story? The Kosovo Albanians were literally SAVED by US and UK and the other NATO countries, they know where their gratitude and loyalty stand, how can you even think that al qaeda would have operate there? 70'000 dead in a battle in 1389? How many people does she think lived in 1389 in the region? This is a very stupid article, with a lot of wrong facts.

Sebaneau

18:58:18 on 2007-6-10 http://pasta.cantbedone.org http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199900/cmselect/cmfaff/28/28ap01.htm Serbia has no legitimate claim to Kosova Branka Magas A. Kosova's prerogatives under the former Yugoslav constitution fully replicated those of the six republics 1. Kosova had its own territorial identity, its own capital city, its own government responsible to its own assembly, its own constitution and constitutional court, and its own system of justice. 2. It had complete control over its internal affairs, including possession of its own police and state-security service as well as its own Territorial Defence forces. 3. It was a member of the Federation on a par with the other republics and its representative was an equal member of the Yugoslav state presidency (ie Yugoslavia was a federation of six republics AND two provinces). 4. Its full autonomy within the Yugoslav Federation was reflected also in the fact that no intervention in its internal affairs, by either Serbia or the Federal state, could legally take place without its permission. Equally, no change of its borders or its status within the Federation could be made without its (freely expressed) will. B. Difference between Kosova and the republics in former Yugoslavia 1. The only difference between Kosova and the republics was that Kosova was formally not a republic but "only" a province. Not being a republic meant that it had no right to secede from Yugoslavia (ie join Albania). It consequently had to be included in one of the republics: in 1945, after some hesitation, it was placed within the republic of Serbia. As a result of this inclusion Serbia was constituted as a complex rather than a centralised republic, differing in this regard from the other five. 2. Kosova's integration into Serbia amounted to its delegates taking part in the workings of the Serbian republican assembly and the Serbian republican Communist party organisation; but this participation was limited to issues affecting the republic as a whole and did not include matters of concern purely to Serbia Proper (ie the territory of the republic of Serbia minus the territories of Kosova and Vojvodina), so that Serbia Proper functioned as a separate unit from Kosova and Vojvodina. C. Briefly on the history of the Kosova-Serbia-Yugoslavia relationship 1. Kosova came under Serbian rule in 1912 not by the free will of its people, but as a result of conquest subsequently sanctioned by the European Powers. (This was true also of Macedonia.) Soon after, in 1915, Serbia itself became a conquered land. Although in 1918 Serbia re-established physical control over Kosova (and Macedonia), its own separate existence was brief as it soon became part of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The first (Royalist) Yugoslavia fell apart in 1941 and was in 1945 replaced by Federal Yugoslavia. 2. Yugoslavia as constituted in 1945—ie as specified by its own constitution—derived its legitimacy not from Royalist Yugoslavia, but from the National Liberation War (NLW) through which it freed itself from foreign occupation. In this second Yugoslavia, which lasted until 1991, Kosova became an autonomous political entity. According to the Yugoslav constitution, moreover, Kosova's autonomy was not a gift of Serbia or of Yugoslavia, but derived from its population's participation in the NLW. Kosova's relationship to Serbia was thereby radically altered, as it now had its own constitutionally defined political legitimacy resting upon popular consent. 3. In 1989, however, Serbia under Milosevic forcibly stripped Kosova of its autonomy. This happened in the following way: Kosova was placed under a state of siege, and its assembly—meeting in emergency session—was ringed with tanks, while MiG jest flew over the building. Outside the building many thousands of Kosovars demonstrated against Serbia's action. The Serbian authorities have since claimed that the assembly voted in favour of Kosova's full integration with Serbia, but Kosova officials deny that the decision had the necessary majority. 4. Kosova's assembly, indeed, met in strength soon after and proclaimed Kosova a republic within Yugoslavia, or, in the event of the latter's break-up (which was now on the horizon), an independent republic. This decision was subsequently validated by a popular referendum. D. It is important to note that: 1. Serbia's suspension of Kosova's constitution (autonomy), executed without and against the legally articulated will of the people of Kosova, was an illegal act, contrary to the existing Serbian, Kosovar and Yugoslav constitutions. It was ipso facto an act of annexation. 2. The Yugoslav federal authorities, in so far as they actively aided or passively permitted this annexation were also in breach of the Yugoslav constitution. 3. Kosova's altered status within Serbia (specified by the 1990 Serbian constitution) was never constitutionally validated by an act of the Yugoslav Federation, ie it never entered into the Yugoslav Federal constitution. 4. Such alteration of the Yugoslav constitution became in any case impossible, since with the closure of the Kosova assembly by the Serbian authorities all Federal bodies (the two Federal assemblies, the Federal government and the Federal presidency) lost the power to enact laws. 5. The Yugoslav Federal constitution, and Kosova's autonomous prerogatives, consequently remained in force until Yugoslavia's formal break-up in 1991. 6. Kosova's present status is not regulated by the constitution of the Serbian-Montenegrin federation ("FRY") either, since that constitution does not yet exist as an integral and consistent body of primary laws valid for the whole of "FRY". The Serbian constitution, indeed, differs substantially from that of Montenegro and from the (as yet nominal) constitution of "FRY". For example, the Serbian constitution gives the Serbian president exclusive command of the Serbian armed forces, while according to the "FRY" constitution the "FRY" (hence also Serbian) armed forces are under the supreme command of the "Federal" president assisted by the presidents of Serbia and Montenegro. E. Kosova's claim to independence has the same legal validity as that of the former republics 1. Serbia's suspension of Kosova's autonomy was not legalised by the former Yugoslavia, nor could it have been, given that this would have required Kosova's free agreement which was never given. Although Yugoslavia has disappeared, its constitution still nevertheless defines the legal status quo ante. 2. This means that Serbia's claim to Kosova remains to be legally established. This claim cannot refer to the initial act of conquest (since that was invalidated by the former Yugoslav state), nor to Serbia's 1990 constitution (which lacks all legal validity). 3. By contrast, Kosova's claim to independence from Serbia is far stronger, since: (a) it came in reaction to an illegal act of annexation; (b) the independence decision was taken by the (within Yugoslavia's constitutional terms still in force at the time) legally elected assembly; (c) this decision was subsequently validated by a popular referendum. Kosova's claim to independence, in other words, rests on the same foundations as those of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia—all of which have been recognised as independent states and Yugoslavia's legal successors.

Sebaneau

http://www.ukalbanians.org/index.php?module=announce&ANN_user_op=view&ANN_id=485 Kosova Independence: My Debate at the London School of Economics By Stephen Schwartz On Friday, January 26, with the world waiting for word from the so-called "international community" about the future status of Kosova, I was a guest of the Albanian Students' Society at the London School of Economics, on the topic of Kosova independence. While the event was advertised as a panel discussion with the British Broadcasting Corporation's southeast Europe expert Gabriel Partos, it could not help becoming a debate. Mr. Partos is obviously a journalist of goodwill but his presentation, which was first on the panel, was optimistic about the probability that the international community will grant some form of independence to Kosova, as long as the Russians can be appeased. My view is completely different. I say no. No to international humanitarian colonialism; no to special privileges for the Serbs; no to anything short of full independence. I began my presentation by pointing out that I do not believe journalistic objectivity means neutrality; rather, it means accuracy in bearing witness to evil. American journalists did not write on the second world war by treating Hitlerism in "balanced" language, and did not report neutrally on the civil rights movement of African-Americans. Indeed, it would have been obscene to assert that the claims of Hitler and the Ku Klux Klan had equal validity with those of the Jews and other antifascists, in the first case, and Martin Luther King, Jr., in the second. But as I said to the LSE audience, times have changed. Nobody in the past would have reported favorably in Western mainstream media on the propaganda of white South Africans seeking to maintain their oppressive power over the Black majority, but the Western media are once again full of the familiar lies about Kosova as the ostensible cradle of Serb heritage. It is unfortunately now forgotten that the Dutch-descended South African whites once had the audacity to claim that their presence predated that of the African population, just as the Serbs continually reiterate similar myths today. I also affirmed that I am a supporter of the Self-Determination Movement led by my friend Albin Kurti. I am therefore unenthusiastic about the willingness of the international humanitarian colonialists to grant the freedom that Kosovars yearn for. I am genuinely fearful that the international authorities will bow to the will of Serbia, acting through Moscow, and that even if Kosova gains some kind of expanded autonomy, Serbs will continue to enjoy an abusive status under European protection. Further, given the record of the so-called international community in the mismanagement of Bosnia-Hercegovina as well as Kosova, I have no faith in the construction of new and durable civic and other institutions in Kosova, under the incompetent tutelage of the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, or the United Nations. I have seen too much mischief by the international humanitarian colonialists: contempt on their part for the local populace, miserly policies regarding education and other social needs, distaste for privatization, and plain anti-Bosnian and anti-Albanian prejudice among the class of foreign, parasitical functionaries. To further recapitulate my remarks, I object to the presumption that legitimate Orthodox religious mouments in Kosova must be treated as Serb heritage sites. The origin of the Orthodox monasteries remains unclear; they may have been established by Albanian, Vlach, Macedonian, or Bulgarian Orthodox Christians. A famous and beautiful fresco of an Orthodox saint, in one of the main monasteries, has been photographed by Albin Kurti, and depicts rows of plis-wearing worshippers, who must have been Albanians. I further object to the claim that those Orthodox churches built after 1912, and especially after 1987, to symbolize Serb power in Kosova, should be protected as cultural heritage sites. During Russian tsarist rule over the Poles, the massive Orthodox cathedral of Alexander Nevsky was erected in Warsaw -- a squat, ugly thing put in place to embody Russian imperialist power. It was the highest building in Warsaw! But in the 1920s the authorities of liberated Poland ordered its complete demolition, and there is no trace of it today. Similarly, the Koreans, who suffered from Japanese imperialism, promised to remove the Japanese General Government Building from Seoul, so that their people will not be reminded of the massacres and humiliations inflicted on them. What is good for the Poles and Koreans is equally good for the Albanians in Kosova. I also object to the constant clamor in Western media equating Kosova with Chechnya, Kashmir, and the Basque country of Spain, as areas where nationalist movements have committed terrorist acts. Of course, it helps the shrinking Serb lobby in America for the Islamophobic sector of the public to consider Muslim-majority Kosova as equivalent to Chechnya and Kashmir. I am a fervent defender of the Chechens and oppose interference in their just struggle by Wahhabi terrorists from the Arab countries. But the supposition that Russia, India, or Spain would be justified in opposing Kosovar independence in a UN vote, on the basis of their fears about the Chechens and Basques, ignores the essential justice of the Chechen cause. It also elides the reality that the majority of Basques, unlike the unanimous Kosovar Albanian population, do not seek independence from Spain. Violence in Kashmir, backed by the dishonest Pakistani regime, cannot be compared with the aspiration of Kosovar Albanians -- who remained strictly nonviolent for 10 years. It is even worse to hear that Kosova should be denied full independence because of a UN veto by China, because the official policy of China in Eastern Turkestan and Tibet is one of mass colonization by Han Chinese aimed at reducing the Muslim Uighur populace in the first region and the Tibetans in the second. China should be strongly condemned, not appeased, when it tries to explain away its cultural genocide in Eastern Turkestan and Tibet, as well as its aggressive attitude toward Taiwan and its support for the crazed North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il. Above all, China should have no say in the future of Kosova. In contrast with these bad examples, cited far and wide to the detriment of the Albanians, I would compare Kosova with stateless regions that increasingly seek independence, but which have not experienced significant terrorism, such as Catalonia in Spain, Scotland, and Quebec. Kosova resembles these territories far more than Chechnya or Tibet, because Kosovar Albanians are extremely entrepreneurial and have shown that they can achieve great economic success when liberated from the yoke of Serbian and international colonialism. Today, for example, Ulqin is the most attractive town in Montenegro, Tetova is the gem of Macedonia, and Kosova itself has leapt ahead of Serbia in business development. The Catalan and Quebecois examples are especially important for the Kosovars because both countries, regardless of loud complaints by their historical oppressors (Castilians and Anglo-Canadians) induced immigrants to learn the languages of the majority -- Catalan and French. Today Catalan, once considered an endangered language, is the vibrant tongue of the majority in the region, because newcomers realize that they must learn Catalan to get good jobs. Catalonia might have demanded independence long ago but for an important issue for the Catalan people. Catalans are profoundly antimilitarist and do not like the idea of an independent status under which they would have to create a military budget or integrate into NATO. The Quebecois are also historically antimilitarist. I do not believe the Scots, who increasingly speak of independence as a means to gain control over their oil revenues -- now misspent by the English -- would be much more enthusiastic about having to organize an armed forces establishment. Unfortunately, however, independent Kosova will need to create a military to assure its defense against Serbia. This will be a major topic for discussion among Kosovars as the land reaches independence. Entrepreneurship and national destiny call to mind another instructive example. For decades the Irish Republic was an impoverished neighbor alongside Britain, and generations of young Irish folk, most of them Catholic, emigrated to find work in England and the U.S. Meanwhile, the northern Irish Protestants kept an iron grip on employment in the industries of Ulster, excluding Catholics from economic opportunity. Then the Republic entered the EU, and the Irish Republic now has the highest standard of living in the world. Irish-descended people are returning to the Republic and, in a phenomenon I like to call "economic revenge," Ulster Protestants who have seen their shipyards and other sunset industries collapse migrate to the Republic for work. The Ulster Protestants even take Irish Republic citizenship, something once considered impossible to imagine! I would be very pleased to see a similar development in Kosova, where Serbs would fill places in an expanding economy, learning Albanian, and accepting Kosova citizenship. Serbs should remain in Kosova if they accept the Albanian character of the territory. I am opposed to Serbs in Kosova being protected by foreign troops in enclaves where they spend dinars on CDs by Ceca, and not much else except black market consumer goods and trafficking in women from Moldova. At the LSE I also pointed out a few scandalous facts. For example, the people of Greenland, a colony of Denmark, now have greater rights in the European Union than the Kosovars can expect. Serb blackmail against Kosova independence is not limited to that territory; it has also been employed against Croatia and Bosnia-Hercegovina. It is appalling to realize that Romania was allowed to enter the EU before Croatia, especially since one of the first consequences of Romanian membership was the emergence of an anti-Jewish delegation in the European Parliament. The arrival of five despicable Jew-baiters from the so-called Greater Romania party made possible the creation of am EP bloc also including the Islamophobic National Front in France, the similarly-inclined Vlaams Belang from Belgium, Italian neofascists, and other politicians better consigned to history's garbage heap. No such party is represented in the Croatian parliament. In Sarajevo, Bosniaks express serious concern that the international community will create a situation where Serbia obtains permanent status for the mafia-terrorist entity known as the Republika Srpska, in exchange for the independence of Kosova -- perhaps with the Serbian-occupied part of Mitrovica, and other northern areas, lopped off the territory. I further noted that there is one bright spot in the international situation: accommodation of Russia over Kosova, which really means surrender to the demands of Belgrade, has no future with a U.S. administration in power that views Vladimir Putin, the new Stalin, as a dangerous figure, domestically and internationally. When President George W. Bush, or his successor, acts against Russian adventurism and global criminality, Belgrade also will find its space for maneuvers and intrigues restricted. And that will be good for Kosova, and for the world. Finally, given the rumors that Albin Kurti will be arrested by the UNMIK police, I recommended in London, and repeat a call for, immediate preparation of a campaign for his defense. Every Albanian and friend of Albanians everywhere should be ready to demand; HANDS OFF ALBIN KURTI!

Sebaneau

Of course, Melanie Phillips, otherwise a fine observer of islamo-fascism, knows absolutely nothing about Kosovo. And which is worse, she believes Serb propaganda. 90 percent of what the Serbs say about Kosovo is factually false. http://kosovareport.blogspot.com/2005/01/time-for-determined-international.html Time for determined international action on Kosovo - Albin Kurti & Sonja Biserko, Irish Times, January 5, 2005 Without it, the political dynamics of Serbia will continue to thwart the best intentions of the EU, write Albin Kurti and Sonja Biserko. Albin Kurti is founder of Kosovo Action Network (KAN), a multi- ethnic NGO based in Pristina; Sonja Biserko is a founding member of Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia (HCHRS) As the process of European integration proceeds, the western Balkans, the territory of the former Yugoslavia, remains as a standing reproach to this project of political reconciliation and unity. The roots of the recent Yugoslav tragedy lay in the resurgence of extreme nationalism in Serbia: this found its initial outlet in the brutal suppression of Kosovo, especially from 1987, which in turn galvanised the movements for independence in Slovenia and Croatia. Today it is Serbia's continued designs both on Bosnia and on Kosovo and the unwillingness of the international community to deal with these in a determined and proactive manner, particularly regarding Kosovo, which is the primary source of instability in the region. Kosovo is in a state of political turmoil and economic stagnation due to the insistence by the international community on deferring consideration of its final political status until it is deemed that a satisfactory level of political "standards" has been achieved. While this may appear to represent a responsible policy in theory, in practice it is quite the opposite: it ignores realities on the ground, exacerbates intercommunal tensions and prevents any effective inward investment. In reality it represents a failure of nerve by the international community and a desire simply to play for time and defer the difficult decisions that are necessary both to arrive at a peaceful resolution to the Kosovo crisis and to discredit the extreme nationalism emanating from Belgrade. The record of the Yugoslav army in Kosovo in the 1999 war and since is appalling: 12,000 dead; massive numbers of women raped; 120,000 homes destroyed in an orgy of arson and pillage; a million people "ethnically cleansed". The fate of 3,000 missing Kosovars is still unknown while Belgrade continues to hold the remains of a further nearly 700 in morgues as a kind of grotesque bargaining tool. Following an initial spurt of reconstruction, the period since 2001 has seen a precipitous decline in the economy. The greatest contributory factor to this is the failure of inward investment arising from Kosovo's indeterminate political status. The statistics are shocking: unemployment is 57 per cent, with 15 per cent of the population having to survive on an average of 62 cent per day. GDP per capita in Kosovo in the year 2003 was 642. Much is made of the outbreak of violence in March as an example of Kosovo's unpreparedness for self-determination: in reality it is the economic crisis precipitated by Kosovo's unresolved status that is the root cause of intercommunal tensions and resultant instability. At the same time, the problems of Kosovo are inextricably linked with the continued ascendancy of the ultranationalist agenda within Serbia, which manipulates the Serbian minority in Kosovo in pursuit of its own agenda, while the current policies of the EU have the effect of encouraging aspirations in Belgrade towards the ethnic partition of Kosovo. The flashpoints of instability - Serbia and Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia - all have their origins in the as yet incomplete process of disintegration of Yugoslavia and the undefined borders of Serbia, particularly concerning the status of Montenegro and Kosovo. Hence a democratic transformation within Serbia is essential for regional stability: unfortunately the anti-Milosevic coup of 2000 did not fulfil whatever tentative promise it held in this regard. The principal parties to that coup were the nationalist opposition (typified by President Kostunica) in alliance with former Milosevic loyalists who remained committed to the nationalist and criminal agendas typical of the Milosevic period. The influence of progressive and liberal elements was always secondary and was eclipsed following the assassination of Prime Minister Djindic in March 2003. Djindic's policies of political reform were typified in particular by his realisation of the importance of Serbia's co-operation with the Hague tribunal, both for its own sake and also as essential to allowing Serbia's reintegration into the international community. Since Djindic's assassination, Milosevic's Greater Serbia policies are being resurrected, typified by policy towards Montenegro, Vojvodina, Kosovo and the Republika Srpska, by the renewed dominant influence of promoters of ultranationalism, in for instance academia and the Orthodox Church and by Serbia's continuing state of denial regarding its primary responsibility for war crimes. Meanwhile the army continues as a redoubt of extreme nationalism. Last but not least the new financial elite, spawned by the Milosevic regime or enjoying close ties to Milosevic in person, obstructs a comprehensive transformation of the Serb economy, perpetuating instead a continuity with the Milosevic era legacy. Belgrade's policy towards Kosovo is entirely negative: essentially to prevent participation of Serbs in Kosovo institutions, to undermine international engagement and to demonise Albanians; a policy that has to date been successful and that can only lead ultimately to the partition of Kosovo, which would have disastrous consequences for the wider region. Only through concerted EU-US action in support of Kosovan self-determination, Pristina and Belgrade may agree upon a mutually acceptable solution subsequently endorsed by the Security Council: that is the only way to stabilise the Balkans. However, without a more proactive engagement by the EU, the political dynamics of Serbia will continue to thwart the best intentions of the EU in this direction.

bluerose799

It's about time to recognize the historical right of Kosova (Dardania) to have its destiny fulfilled-That is full independence. Kosova never was a Serbian province. It was there, since the times of birth of European civilization, a very distinct Dardanian/llyrian identity. Always populated by Dardanias who, although under constant pressure of forcefully migration by Serbian shovinism, Tito's Yugoslavia & Milloshevic's Serbia, still make up 92% of the population. They speak ilirian language with the dialect GEGE. Serbs always have been a minority there. We know that Serbs appeared in Balkans (then llyria) only by the 6th Century AD, and they speak a language more similar to Ukrainian then Russian. They have always been a minority and 'the story' of Kosova being the Heartland of Serbia is just a pure Serbian nationalist fantasy. Facts Speak Louder Than Words and Serbian’s Lies Will Collapse by Themselves. Serbs always have been considered as oppressors there, not just by Albanian majority, but also by other ethnic groups too. Serbs just occupied Kosova during the rise of the Serbian nationalism early 20th century from Ottomans, who by then were loosing the Balkans after 500 years of occupation. The borders of Kosova are well established and recognized. Now Kosova should be Free! I can’t comprehend how a minority of 7% of the population, pretend to take off the land, the language, culture and the life of the rest of Kosova. Kosovars have the right to live free and independent in their land where they are born, generation after generation, live and will die.