South East Europe Online

Summer Universities in Mitrovica & Ohrid

2008-05-22T11:00:00.001-04:00

International Summer Universities in the Balkans.

The third edition of Mitrovica Summer Courses (MSC) and the fourth International Summer University Macedonia (ISUM) will be organized this year by SPARK (formerly ATA) and its local partners. These Summer Universities offer students - from local to international - the opportunity to participate in an exciting academic program.

Mitrovica Summer Courses 2008

SPARK together with its local partners, is currently preparing the third edition of the MSC which will be organized from the 12^th - 26^th of July 2008 in Mitrovica, Kosovo (1244). Intensive academic courses will be offered in the fields of international relations and conflict studies, among others. Rewarding each successful student with 3 ECTS. Each course will be taught by an international professor and a local co-professor. Additionally, for each course an assistant professor is appointed who will lead workshops and homework classes in the afternoons. All courses will be taught in English. In some courses, translation into Serbian will be provided. Around 150 students will participate and there is no tuition fee. Books, readers, accommodation, and food will be provided free of charge for local and students from South East Europe. Travel costs will be remunerated. For International Students food and accommodation can be provided for a modest price.: around 130 euro's in total for 2 weeks. Besides an extensive academic program, exciting leisure activities such as parties, excursions, public debates, field trips and more will be organized. The deadline for application is the 30^th of may 2008.

For more information please see: http://www.my-program.org & http://www.spark-online.org.

International Summer University Macedonia 2008

ISUM 2008 will be held from the 7^th of till the 20^th of July. This year it will be organized in Ohrid, a beautiful resort also known as 'the pearl of the Balkans'. 12 courses will be offered in the fields of Law, Economics, Business & Public Administration, Gender, Education Science and Teacher Training. Students who successfully complete their course receive 3 ECTS. Each course will be taught by an International professor, a local co-professor and a student assistant. 320 local and international students will participate. A small participation fee of 50 Euros is required but scholarships will be provided for 80 applicants from South East Europe. The scholarship will cover travel expenses, accommodation, and food. Besides the rich educational program, a diverse recreational program with activities such as sports, excursions, course lunches, field trips and parties will be organized.

For more information please see: http://www.spark-online.org

Summer Universities in Mitrovica & Ohrid

2008-05-22T10:59:00.001-04:00

International Summer Universities in the Balkans.

Mitrovica Summer Courses 2008

For more information please see: http://www.my-program.org & http://www.spark-online.org.

International Summer University Macedonia 2008

For more information please see: http://www.spark-online.org

Will the Real Serbia Please Stand Up?

2008-04-23T09:19:00.001-04:00

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP - NEW BRIEFING

Will the Real Serbia Please Stand Up?

Belgrade/Brussels, 23 April 2008: The international community should refrain from counter-productive intervention in Serbia's 11 May elections, including offering to sign a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA).

Will the Real Serbia Please Stand up?,* the latest policy briefing from the International Crisis Group, examines the situation after Kosovo's independence and ahead of parliamentary and local elections. The vote is unlikely to change Belgrade's policy towards the new state, even in the unlikely event a pro-Western government comes to power.

"Public anger over Western support for Kosovo's independence is such that any attempt by the EU or US to support pro-Western parties prior to the elections risks strengthening the nationalist vote", says James Lyon, Crisis Group Senior Adviser.

Kosovo's independence declaration on 17 February 2008 sent shock waves through Serbia's politics and society. Rioting led to attacks on nine Western embassies, destruction of foreign property and looting. The government fell on 10 March, split over whether to pursue a nationalist or pro-Western path. Belgrade's efforts to create a de facto partition of Kosovo's north threaten the new state's territorial integrity, challenge deployment of EU missions there and complicate implementation of the Ahtisaari Plan.

There is a real likelihood the Serb Radical Party will win the elections and form a coalition government. If that happens, Euro-Atlantic integration would halt, and nationalists could be expected to support a more belligerent response in Kosovo, including use of low-level violence by Kosovo Serbs. The nationalists might also encourage Republika Srpska to leave Bosnia-Herzegovina and meddle in Macedonia. A backlash against pro-Western activists and increased media repression could likewise be anticipated.

Yet Serbia could also remain without a government until September. Kostunica would stay caretaker premier and continue to define Kosovo policy. He is likely to play a significant role in forming a new government, perhaps even as premier once again.

At best, the West will have limited influence for many months. Meanwhile, any attempt before the 11 May elections to pressure or induce Belgrade into more cooperation risks strengthening the nationalist vote.

"In the run-up to 11 May, Brussels and Washington would be well served to lower levels of rhetorical support for the pro-Western parties", says Sabine Freizer, Crisis Group's Europe Program Director. "In particular, EU leaders should not appease nationalist forces by offering a Stabilisation and Association Agreement before Serbia has met the long-standing condition for it: full cooperation with the Hague Tribunal".

Contacts: Andrew Stroehlein (Brussels) +32 (0) 2 541 1635
Kimberly Abbott (Washington) +1 202 785 1601
To contact Crisis Group media please click here
*Read the full Crisis Group briefing on our website: http://www.crisisgroup.org

The International Crisis Group (Crisis Group) is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisation covering some 60 crisis-affected countries and territories across four continents, working through field-based analysis and high-level advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.

International law experts debate Kosovo independence legality

2008-04-15T06:04:00.001-04:00

International law experts debate Kosovo independence legality

Source: VOA Albanian

Tuesday, 15 April 2008

Kosovo's independence debated
One of the arguments of those who reject the independence of Kosovo is that it violates the international law based on the UN Resolution 1244. However, a group of international law experts who think otherwise is discussing the issue in a conference organized by The American Society of International Law in Washington DC. The legality of the declaration of Kosovo independence on February 17 has been discussed when it occurred, and it is still being discussed in the international debates. However, what effects will this act have in the future of the international law?
The question has been discussed by The American Society of International Law whilst a thorough lecture to this question was given by the internationally well-known lawyer of international law, Richard Goldstone. Mr. Goldstone, who was a former chairman of an investigative committee on Kosovo’s future status in 1999, said “Even at that time when Kosovo future status was being discussed ‘we unanimously recommended the supervised independence for Kosovo’ because we knew there was neither any legality nor any fairness to ask Kosovars to return under the Belgrade rule, after considering the fact how they were heinously treated, mass murdered and ethnically cleansed by Serbia.” The preposition was rejected by Russia which has demanded to preserve the sovereignty of Serbia over Kosovo. Mr. Goldstone explains that "here is a contradiction because while Russia was demanding to preserve Serbia’s sovereignty over Kosovo, simultaneously Russia was supporting the UN resolution to implement the deployment of the UN administration to run Kosovo."

The resolution 1244, which has become the basic law of the UN mission in Kosovo, was one of the main discussions at the conference. Paul Williams, a professor of the international law at the American University in Washington DC, said that “Resolution 1244 does not preserve the sovereignty of Serbia over Kosovo. If we make a thorough analysis of the UN Resolution 1244, it does not state that the Former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has to be asked or decide over the future status of Kosovo on whether it will be independent or not”, added Paul Williams, a noted professor of international law.

According to Professor Williams, “the declaration of Kosovo independence does not set a precedent, because in the last 15 years we have encountered at least 26 cases of countries that declared independence and became sovereign countries without any agreement with the country they lived under, and the Republic of Kosovo is among them.” John Bollinger, the legal attorney at the US State Department who presented his argument during the discussion said that ”the United States had tried to reach a new resolution over Kosovo but unfortunately it was not possible due to objections from Russia.” He does not agree that Kosovo declared its formal independence in a unilateral way. “This is not a unilateral act but it is a coordinated act by the effort of a large number of countries that worked on achieving this solution, the independence of Kosovo,” added Bollinger, the legal attorney at the US State Department.

The act of Kosovo independence continues to be discussed in various circles. Additionally, one of the experts said that Kosovars will have to work hard to fight all the myths created following the independence of Kosovo. Professor Williams said to VOA that the government of Kosovo should not ignore this debate. “This is a serious debate which the government of Kosovo must participate in a very active way. There are a few myths being created that reject the international recognition of Kosovo independence. Among them is that Resolution 1244 does not permit independence and that the independence is a unilateral act and so forth. All of these are myths, fabricated by the chauvinistic leadership of Serbia that ignores to understand and learn the international law and resolutions,” said Professor Williams.

New Kosova Report - International law experts debate Kosovo independence legality

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Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too | FP Passport

2008-04-10T09:20:00.001-04:00

Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too

Wed, 04/09/2008 - 3:36pm

Armend Nimani/AFP/Getty Images

Kosovo is one step closer to full statehood. Today, its assembly officially adopted a new constitution declaring Kosovo a democratic, secular, multiethnic state. Right from the start, the constitution makes clear that Kosovo will not be partitioned nor will it be joining a Greater Albania. From Article 1:

The Republic of Kosovo is an independent, sovereign, democratic, unique and indivisible state . . . The Republic of Kosovo shall have no territorial claims against, and shall seek no union with, any State or part of any State."

Per recommendations from U.N. Special Envoy to Kosovo Marti Ahtisaari, the constitution also includes an entire chapter spelling out the rights of and provisions for Kosovo’s minority groups, including parliamentary seat allotment. Twenty of the assembly’s 120 seats shall be reserved for minorities, each of whom are guaranteed a respective minimum number of seats as follows:

the Roma community, one (1) seat; the Ashkali community, one (1) seat; the Egyptian community, one (1) seat; and one (1) additional seat will be awarded to either the Roma, the Ashkali or the Egyptian community with the highest overall votes; the Bosnian community, three (3) seats; the Turkish community, two (2) seats; and the Gorani community, one (1) seat. . ."

Bet you didn’t know that Kosovo even had an ethnic Egyptian community.

Pieter Feith, head of the EU-led supervisory office in Kosovo, has already approved of the new constitution, but Kosovo's U.N. mission (UNMIK) has been less than eager to react. In 1999, U.N. resolution 1244 granted UNMIK the authority to administer Kosovo until the Security Council could agree on a more lasting solution. But because Russia has blocked all efforts to pass a new Kosovo resolution, UNMIK now lacks the mandate to actually hand over their authority to Kosovo’s fledgling government, new constitution or not.

Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too | FP Passport

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Abandoned house

2008-04-09T11:20:00.001-04:00

Abandoned village 2, originally uploaded by haxhinexha.

in a Kosovo abandoned village.

Lubinje e Poshtme

2008-04-09T11:18:00.001-04:00

Lubinje e Poshtme, originally uploaded by haxhinexha.

Kosovo village

Albania - Yours to discover!

2008-04-09T06:05:00.001-04:00

Embedded Video

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NATO, UN and Serbia Engage in High Stakes Game Over Kosovo

2008-03-26T05:17:00.001-04:00

NATO, UN and Serbia Engage in High Stakes Game Over Kosovo

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: The UN and NATO accuse the Serbian government of inciting the violence in Mitrovica

Tensions continue on the streets of Mitrovica a week after rioting Serbs clashed with police and NATO troops in the town on Kosovo's northern border. DW-WORLD.DE talked to a Balkans expert about the latest developments.

The violence in the ethnically divided town of Mitrovica last week was the worst since Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority declared independence on Feb. 17. Hundreds of United Nations peacekeepers and NATO soldiers pulled out of the frontier region that abuts Serbia after coming under fire from automatic weapons and hand grenades. A Ukrainian police officer was killed during the unrest.

Three days after the withdrawal, the UN and NATO mounted an operation to retake a courthouse taken over by ethnic Serb protesters and restore military control over the northern border region around Mitrovica. The town is now once again under UN control.

In the days since the violence, the rhetoric coming from Belgrade has increased in its bellicosity as accusations of armed provocation fly between the Serbian government and the Western powers in Kosovo.

DW-WORLD.DE spoke to Professor Stefan Wolff, a political scientist and director of the Center for International Crisis Management and Conflict Resolution at Nottingham University, about the latest developments.

DW-WORLD.DE: Who is behind the current unrest in northern Kosovo? Is it public anger or do you think this violence is orchestrated by organized powers with an agenda?

Stefan Wolff: The violence in northern Kosovo over the past several weeks is both an expression of public anger by local Serbs and something that is at least encouraged by Belgrade. Similar to the violence that happened in the immediate aftermath of Kosovo's declaration of independence when the American and other Western embassies were targeted, the government in Belgrade is not doing enough to send a strong message to the rioters, nor does, for that matter, the Serb Orthodox Church. Quite clearly, the resulting instability serves Serbia's, and to some extent Russia's, agenda well, offering, as it were, proof for the claim that Kosovo's independence is the source of unrest and insecurity.

What is the goal of those who are behind or are carrying out these violent protests?

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: The northern region was soon reclaimed by UN forces

Many of those participating in the violence undoubtedly feel very strongly about Kosovo and the fact that Kosovo's independence has no basis in international law and is a violation of Serbia's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Having said that, those people are also deluding themselves somewhat in believing that any other "solution" would have brought any more stability or that their violence will affect any change for the better.

Attacks on the UN in northern Kosovo, or on Western embassies in Belgrade, merely confirm to Kosovo Albanians and many others beyond Kosovo -- and in my opinion wrongly -- that peaceful coexistence with Serbs and Serbia is very difficult to achieve. Making things difficult for the UN, the EU, NATO and other international organizations in Kosovo and the region is ultimately a futile strategy that may pay off for some politicians in the short term but will harm Serbs and Serbia as a whole in the long term. Thus was the case with [former Yugoslav President Slobodan] Milosevic, who built a reputation on "standing up" against the West. The sooner Serbs realize that Kosovo was lost some 20 years ago when its autonomy was revoked and Milosevic and his allies brutally asserted their control, the sooner they can move on with building a viable, democratic, European state.

Are we watching the beginnings of a new conflict in the Balkans?

It is unlikely that the situation in Kosovo itself will escalate into a new conflict in the Balkans, but in combination with the instability that Macedonia is experiencing in the wake of the fall of its government and the increasing belligerence of Serbs in Bosnia, it is difficult to see how the region would achieve greater stability in the near future. The strong international presence in the region will hopefully prevent anything on the scale of the wars of the 1990s, but similar to the events then, we must be realistic about the limitations of organizations like the EU and NATO to resolve the self-determination conflicts that have persisted since the break-up of Yugoslavia. The best we can hope for, at the moment at least, is effective containment.

The UN has put parts of northern Kosovo back under military control. How can Kosovo hope to be an independent state when its government can be so easily over-ridden?

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: NATO and UN troops came under attack from armed Serbs

The problem with northern Kosovo is that this region has never been under any kind of control from Pristina since the late 1980s. After the end of NATO's humanitarian intervention in 1999 the area around Mitrovica became a military sector of its own, and gradually Belgrade established its own control through its links with local Serbs, paying, for example, all local administrators a salary from Belgrade in addition to what they received from the United Nations Mission in Kosovo [UNMIK]. Belgrade also discouraged local Serbs from participating in elections in Kosovo and from taking up their reserved seats in the Kosovo Assembly.

This has created a situation in which we have almost complete segregation of Serbs in the north from Albanians. While close links between Belgrade and Mitrovica exist, these are links that Belgrade can now exploit in its strategy to effectively partition Kosovo. This has, so far, been resisted strongly by the international community, and it is difficult to see that this position will change any time soon.

So who is actually in control in Kosovo?

Formally, the UN remains in charge, but as we have seen recently, it depends heavily on NATO's military muscle to assert its control. This gives more and more weight to NATO in Kosovo, and through NATO's member states to the EU, which has formally committed to playing a major role in supervising and facilitating Kosovo's transition to full independent statehood.

NATO has threatened to come down hard in Kosovo. What could this mean? Where could NATO's power be directed and against whom? What would it achieve and what could be the consequences?

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: NATO will crack down in response to further attacks

If there is more violence of the kind recently experienced in Mitrovica, NATO is clearly able to respond swiftly and decisively in restoring law and order. More importantly, NATO needs to assert full control of Kosovo's borders to prevent an influx of radical extremists from Serbia bent on destabilizing the situation further.

At the same time, NATO will need to make sure that any unrest in Kosovo does not spread to other volatile areas of the region, such as Bosnia and Macedonia. It is highly unlikely that there will be prolonged and open hostilities with Serbian forces, but there is always a chance that localized violence might occur especially in border areas. The worst case scenario would be that, following parliamentary elections in Serbia in May, a new government deliberately provokes such incidents. This would be a vey dangerous scenario, and an unwise strategy for any government to follow.

What effect is the current unrest likely to have in the wider Balkan region? Is there any chance that the unrest will spread beyond the region's borders?

We have already seen the negative effects of Kosovo's independence in the region: Bosnian Serbs have, unsurprisingly, become more assertive about their own aspirations of eventual unification with Serbia, and even though the Serbian government itself has kept relatively quiet in this respect, it is an open secret that many politicians and ordinary people in Serbia would welcome any developments that brought Bosnian Serbs closer to them.

The collapse of the coalition government in Macedonia has once again raised the specter of further separatist violence there as well. If anything positive has come from the recent unrest, it is NATO's obvious determination not to tolerate any kind of violence that would put into question the borders that exist now or undermine the constitutional frameworks that were put in place in Bosnia in 1995 and in Macedonia after 2001.

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Separatists in the Caucasus apply pressure on Russia

On the other hand, international effects are more difficult to gauge. While several separatist movements -- for example in the Caucasus and in Moldova -- have intensified their rhetoric in the wake of Kosovo's declaration, and its subsequent recognition by so far over 30 states, it is important not to overestimate the "Kosovo effect" --separatist movements existed in these areas before, and they are unlikely to receive any greater degree of international recognition now than they did before.

Could Kosovo's declaration of independence be linked to the pro-independence protests in Tibet? Where could this lead? Could there be a knock-on effect all around the world where separatist organizations and oppressed minorities rise up, emboldened by the Kosovo declaration?

What goes for the South Caucasus and Moldova, equally applies to Tibet and other separatist conflicts. The unrest in Tibet is much more closely related to the international attention that China receives now in light of it hosting the Olympic Games this summer.

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Unrest in Tibet is unlikely to be linked to Kosovo

This is not to say that protesters in Tibet may not have good reason to protest against China, but it is equally a reality -- and a sad one -- that international media attention increases with the level of violence present. This was the case with Kosovo in the late 1990s, with Darfur since 2003, and with both of the Palestinian intifadas.

In this sense, it would be wrong to blame any other violence and unrest merely on Kosovo. We must not forget that it still takes political leaders to decide on a path of violence and their supporters to follow them before we can see the kind of violence that Tibet has experienced again of late -- and this is true for separatists and the states they challenge alike.

If this is the start of a wave of empowered separatist uprisings, who could be next to demand their independence?

Everyone who wants independence probably has demanded it already, and several times over. There have been almost 80 separatist movements worldwide since the 1950s which pursued their goals with violence. At the moment, we have about 25 active armed movements and another 50 or so who pursue their aims by peaceful means. What matters is not whether they declare or demand their independence, but rather how the international community reacts to this.

Short of consensual separation, as was the case with Czechoslovakia, for example, it is unlikely that any declarations of independence would be met with widespread recognition. Turkey is the only state to have recognized Northern Cyprus, and not even Armenia has so far recognized Nagorno-Karabakh even though it fought a long and bloody war with Azerbaijan over this area.

Thus, Kosovo is unique in that its declaration of independence has been followed by significant international recognition. This is unlikely to be the case in relation to almost every other separatist movement. As a consequence, states challenged by separatists, as well as the international community, need to continue looking for other ways to resolve the conflicts that result from these demands. This demands vision, skill, and determination on the part of local political leaders and the international community, yet these qualities are all too often missing when personal agendas turn legitimate political struggles into a tug-of-war over personal power, status and wealth.

Interview: Nick Amies

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The Israel of the Balkans

2008-03-21T05:53:00.001-04:00

"All we want is to reduce the Albanian population to a manageable level." – Zoran Andjelkovic, former Serbian governor of Kosovo

Genocide is the "intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group." – United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide

The State of Israel is divided on the Kosovo question: should the world's newest country be recognized? Some, like former Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman, worry that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia might encourage Palestinians to make the same move. The small Balkan state, however, may have more in common with Israel than with the West Bank and Gaza.

Israelis, as Amir Mizroch notes in the Jerusalem Post, have excellent relations with the Kosovars. "Israel has an interest in helping to establish a moderate, secular Muslim state friendly to Jerusalem and Washington in the heart of southeast Europe," he writes. Indeed, Kosovo is neither an enemy state nor a jihad state. Its brand of Islam is heavily Sufi, which is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the Wahhabism and Salafism that inspire Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.

Kosovo doesn't belong to the Iranian-Syrian-Hezbollah-Hamas axis. On the contrary, Kosovo has thrown in its lot with the West, and especially with the United States. Serbia's breakaway province is perhaps the most pro-American country in all of Europe. Bill Clinton is lionized there as a liberator – a main boulevard through the capital Prishtina is named after him – just as George H. W. Bush and his son George W. Bush are hailed as saviors in Iraqi Kurdistan. It should be no surprise then that Mizroch quotes an Israeli official who says Israel most likely will recognize Kosovo if its "influential friends" in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and France, decide to do so.

Concern that Kosovo's independence might trigger a similar declaration from the West Bank to Spain's Basque country to Chechnya and beyond is understandable but perhaps overwrought. Bosnia declared independence without unleashing a domino effect beyond Yugoslavia. So did Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, and Montenegro. Montenegro declared independence from Serbia less than two years ago. It's doubtful the Palestinians even noticed. Hardly anyone else did. In any case, it had no effect on the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The irrelevance of Kosovo to the Arab-Israeli conflict is underscored by the fact that not a single Arab country has recognized Kosovo. The only Muslim countries which so far have bothered are Turkey, Malaysia, Senegal, Albania, and Afghanistan. The governments of all these countries are, to one extent or another, either moderate, in the pro-Western camp, or both. All aside from Albania have sizeable ethnic minorities of their own. Turkey especially frets about its own separatists – the Kurds in the east – but still went ahead and recognized Kosovo almost instantly.

Many in Kosovo are well aware that they have more in common with Israel than with the West Bank and Gaza. "Kosovars used to identify with the Palestinians because we Albanians are Muslims and Christians and we saw Serbia and Israel both as usurpers of land," a prominent Kosovar recent told journalist Stephen Schwartz. "Then we looked at a map and woke up. Israelis have a population of six million, their backs to the sea, and 300 million Arab enemies. Albanians have a total population of eight million, our backs to the sea, and 200 million Slav enemies. So why should we identify with the Arabs?"

"Many Palestinians also nurtured a similar sympathy for [genocidal Serbian dictator Slobodan] Milosevic," Schwartz himself wrote in Middle East Quarterly. "What may be considered the most surrealistic gesture during the entire decade of recent Balkan wars occurred six months after NATO's bombing of Serbia: on December 1, 1999, the Palestinian Authority (PA) invited Milosevic to Bethlehem to celebrate the Orthodox Christmas. News of this invitation, although more or less ignored in the West, was reported with banner headlines in the Balkans. An Israeli foreign ministry spokesman said that if Milosevic accepted the invitation he would be arrested on arrival, since Israel, as a U.N. member, is obliged to fulfill arrest orders issued by The Hague tribunal, which had indicted him. The PA, not being a U.N. member, was under no such obligation. And the PA was not the only Palestinian element to vacillate over Kosovo. Earlier in 1999, the Palestinian Islamic extremist Hamas movement issued a statement, denouncing U.S. intervention to settle the Kosovo crisis as 'hiding under the slogans of human rights to impose its power in the Balkans.' Hamas thus echoed the allegations of Milosevic's own media, as well as the Russians and various leftists worldwide."

Palestinians weren't the only Arabs to side with Milosevic against their fellow Muslims. Milosevic also had close ties to Saddam Hussein, as did Vojislav Koštunica's democratic government that replaced him. Ed Bradley reported in 2003 that as much as three billion dollars worth of weapons, explosives, and equipment – including equipment that would bolster Iraq's arsenal of Scud missiles – was shipped by the Serb-controlled Yugoslav arms export agency to Iraq before interception by Croatian authorities.

Israelis and Kosovars don't merely line up on the same Western side geopolitically. They share a moral and ethical temperament with each other, one they also share with the Kurds of Iraq. All are ethnic minorities in their respective regions that wish to be left alone on their own land, untroubled by regional ethnic majorities that wish to suppress or eject them.

90 percent of Kosovars are ethnic Albanians. They lay no claim to proper Serbian land. They have no wish to seize Serbia's capital Belgrade and ethnically cleanse it of Serbs, nor to rule over Serbs. They want sovereignty over themselves, not over others. They merely want what the other countries of the former Yugoslavia have managed to hammer out for themselves.

While almost the entire world agrees that the Palestinians must someday have a state of their own, Israel's right to exist is still hotly debated in some quarters, just as Kosovo's right to exist is denied by many and likely will continue to be denied. No one argues about any Arab state's right to exist, or about the right of Serbian or Slavic states to exist. Kosovo has joined a small club.

If Albania were using Kosovo as a launching pad for a conquest of Belgrade, the Serbs would have a case for occupying their land, just as the Israelis occupied the West Bank and Gaza after a multi-state Arab assault with destructive intent in 1967. Albanians generally, and Kosovars in particular, have no such designs in store for the Serbs.

Belgrade's current claim to Kosovo is dubious in any case. Serbia only "owned" Kosovo when Milosevic revoked the autonomy it previously enjoyed before Yugoslavia came apart. The land should be theirs, Serbs say, because Kosovo Polje is a crucial place in their history and in the emotionally-charged myths that make up Serbian nationalism. Kosovo Polje is important because Serbian leader Czar Lazar lost a war there to the Turks in the nearby Field of Blackbirds in 1389. The Arab case for their right to Tel Aviv is stronger than this.

Unlike the Jews of World War II Europe, ethnic Albanians in Kosovo have a state they could move to – Albania – to flee genocide and oppression. They're like the post-1948 Jews of the Middle East who could escape to the state of Israel. This does not, however, mean they should have to.

About the Author

Michael J. Totten is a freelance writer and blogger who has reported from Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, Libya, Cyprus, Turkey, and Israel. His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, LA Weekly, Reason, and numerous other publications.

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Reassuring Kosovo's Serbs

2008-03-20T11:02:00.001-04:00

Reassuring Kosovo's Serbs

The sky has not fallen since Kosovo declared independence, as some predicted it would. The task now is to prevent the ethnic divide widening

Sabine Freizer

March 20, 2008 7:00 AM | Printable version

One month after Kosovo declared independence, the sky has not fallen. As countries have one by one recognised the new state, the predictions of apocalypse have come to naught. Despite the violence in Mitrovica on March 17, massive displacement and regional instability that many said would occur simply never materialised.

The Pandora's box of further independence claims by entities as widespread as South Ossetia, Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus, the Basque region, Scotland and Flanders was not flung open. The international order did not collapse. The US and Europe are still able to talk with Russia.

Most importantly, in Kosovo itself, the new government has reached out to the Serb minority, adopting multi-ethnic state symbols including a new flag. It is passing laws and finalising a new constitution. The EU has acted with remarkable unity. Even in the face of a few member states' hesitancy to recognise Kosovo, the EU approved the deployment of a large rule of law mission and a special representative. Nato is continuing to perform its assigned security tasks, and the UN is supporting governance in advance of turning these functions over to the Kosovans and the EU representatives. A multinational donors' conference is planned for June, and a number of foreign donors have already pledged major financial support.

Of course, it is still early days, and there is ample reason for caution. The violence in Mitrovica, involving Serb attacks on UN and Nato forces as they removed peaceful protestors who had occupied a regional court and led to at least one death, coincides with the four-year anniversary of rioting by ethnic Albanian mobs in which 19 died, hundreds of Serb homes were destroyed, and dozens of churches and monasteries were damaged. Kosovo's Serbs plan to commemorate the deplorable events of March 2004 with more large scale demonstrations. Unlike in 1999 however, most of Kosovo's Albanians and Serbs both now know that violence will do nothing to help their cause.

These ethnic divides are at the heart of the challenge for a future democratic Kosovo. Kosovo's Albanians and Serbs simply do not trust each other, they do not communicate, and they do not give the same meaning to events. The situation is obviously not helped by Belgrade encouraging Serbs to boycott Kosovo's new governing institutions, including the courts, police, hospitals and universities. These are precisely the forums where normal citizens have the chance to interact and overcome their differences.

The new Kosovo leadership also needs to be sensitive to the concerns of its Serb minority and realise that it is going to take time to integrate them into its institutions and society. The March 17 violence in Mitrovica shows how difficult this will be. While resisting an expansion of Serbian links with northern Kosovo and the Serb enclaves, Kosovans should move toward decentralisation of local governance and the creation of a new municipality for the majority Serb area of north Mitrovica.

The biggest tension line in Kosovo today runs along the Ibar river, north of which Kosovan Serbs are insisting on maintaining allegiance to Belgrade as if they were still citizens of Serbia. Serious violent incidents over the past month occurred here not only at the court but also at border crossing points between Serbia and Kosovo, manned by the Kosovo police service and the UN. Serbs do not want the border to be formalised because this would put an end to their illusion of living within Serbia and close down lucrative trafficking routes.

The international community - the UN, EU and Nato - should coordinate its message to Kosovan Serbs and make it very clear: we will protect your rights, but within the borders of Kosovo. The UN and Nato should seek to effectively control the border, police stations, courts and jails, and cooperate in reshaping their northern presence to aid transition and gradually introduce the EU rule-of-law mission (Eulex), first at border and customs posts. This will only work if the internationals have a comprehensive coordinated policy.

The world could also more actively embrace the fledgling state. A month on, 27 countries have already recognised independent Kosovo, including 16 EU member states. The US, EU member states, and Kosovo itself, should push for more bilateral recognitions to increase stability.

As for relations between Serbia and Kosovo, we need to take a long view. Some years from now, both countries will likely become member states of the EU. True, Serbia's upcoming elections may determine that Belgrade will take a nationalist detour first, but in the end, they will get there. As partners within a broader union, the natural advantages of economic, political and social ties between these two nations will help to overcome the tensions and animosity that manifested themselves over the past decades. No doubt, the past few weeks, despite some disturbances, have moved Europe closer to that end goal.

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Albania: once and future glories

2008-03-18T05:16:00.001-04:00

Albania: once and future glories

Jeremy Seal

Last Updated: 5:47PM GMT 17/03/2008

Albania is rich in ancient ruins that could pave the way to prosperity for the country's burgeoning tourist industry, writes Jeremy Seal.

Getty Images

On a promontory high above the Vjose river valley, among olive trees and turban-topped Dervish graves, we came to the ruins of Byllis. We explored the city's stout Roman walls, its agora, theatre and bathhouse, and pottered about the column-strewn foundations of late-antique basilicas. Glimpses of mosaic – a figure milking a goat, or feeding a hunting dog – hinted at the magnificent pavements beneath the protective covering of sand.

It might have frustrated us that – this being Albania – such mosaics could not be displayed for lack of funds. Even so, lunching at a nearby restaurant on pork chops sprinkled with oregano and washed down with a robust local wine, the overall feeling was exhilaration that we had the place – restaurant, view, archaeological site and even, it sometimes seemed, the entire oddball country – all to ourselves.

Albania's abundant archaeology has been recognised since the likes of Lord Byron and Edward Lear discovered this atmospheric Balkan backwater in the 19th century. Even in the 1980s, with the country deep in communist isolation, Westerners holidaying on adjacent Greek Corfu returned bright-eyed and tantalised after day visits to the evocative coastal site at Butrint.

Now, 10 years after pyramid investment schemes bankrupted the population, it is Albania's sites, citadels and monuments – Greco-Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and Venetian – that are nourishing tourism's very first shoots. Improvements to the appalling roads have yet to reduce travelling times, with the 140 miles between Tirana and Sarandë taking an all-too-typical seven hours, but it is now possible to explore Albania in something approaching a comprehensive, coherent and comfortable fashion.

Much of the credit must fall to archaeology tour specialist Andante – one of only two British operators currently featuring the country – and its guide lecturer, Butrint-based archaeologist Oliver Gilkes, who is steeped in Albanian culture and history. Gilkes took us to barely visited sites like the hillside fortifications in the Selo Valley, the domed monastery church at Mesopotam, and the remarkably preserved theatre at Hadrianopolis.

He also showed a knack for turning up memorable cameos from Albanian life, leading us to the restaurant in the Greek-speaking village of Terihat just as a gathering of 30 family and friends, arranged in exact order of seniority, joined in a haunting polyphonic chant to celebrate the 80th birthday of the village man at the table head.

In the government-designated "museum city" of Berat, handsome stuccoed merchants' houses perched above the river, and white beards read their Korans in the late-Ottoman mosques. Bats stirred the dank air in the crag-top citadel's cavernous cistern, and a display collection of exquisite icons by medieval master painters including Onufri, known for the shade of red particular to his work, adorned the nearby St Mary church.

From the window of my room at the faded Tomori, I admired the town square's vehicle assortment – bicycles and a horse-drawn cart, dodgem cars and a period-piece steam roller rusting in a parking space, flanked by shiny Mercedes – before retiring to read by the bare light of a ceiling bulb. My wake-up call took the form of a sharp rap on the door, and for a moment I was back in this hotel's communist heyday.

And so to Byliss, a site barely known beyond Albania, though the approach road through the Mallakaster Hills proved more a reminder of Albanian dereliction. There were rusting oil derricks, blighted housing blocks, abandoned factory buildings and state farms. Written-off cars were stacked at the roadside and unfinished concrete constructions rose alongside the country's 700,000 communist-era concrete bunkers. To the first rule of archaeology – that structural condition is what distinguishes ancient sites from modern buildings – Albania may just prove the exception.

But not always. Where the road led into the mountains and over the Muzinë Pass, we were suddenly among meadows and forests of walnut trees where stone churches perched on picturesque crags. A spring known as Syri I Kalter (the Blue Eye) rises to pool among a glade of plane trees (before flowing on to feed a hydro-electric station formerly named after Stalin).

At the isthmus site of Butrint, where we wandered from the Classical theatre and the columned sixth-century baptistery to the 17th-century forts of the Venetians, it was as if every age had left its mark. We circumvented the momentous walls and climbed through a gateway to picnic on fruit and savoury pastries in the grounds of the superbly displayed museum.

The armaments museum at Gjirokastër, where they had not got round to dismantling the communist propaganda, had an appeal all of its own.

Grim cell blocks remembered the torment meted out by King Zog's imperialists, while a statue showed Mother Albania extending an authoritative finger to banish cringing representations of fascism and religion from the country. An American jet, forced down by the communists in 1957, mouldered on an outer terrace.

Elsewhere, however, visible efforts were being made to save the town, a World Heritage Site since 2005. Gjirokastër possesses a unique stock of late-Ottoman mansions which are now crumbling beneath the weight of poverty, neglect and massive stone roofs.

Elenita, a young woman from the town's conservation office, led us round the recently restored Zekate House where the painted family rooms and walnut wood screens, ornate ceilings and high balconies evoked the one-time decorousness of provincial life in this far-flung corner of empire.

The likes of Elenita, who proved more communicative and capable than many of her communist-moulded elders, suggested the human potential was there to save Gjirokastër, and hinted at a brighter Alabanian future. Tourists would help, too. And when a queue of buses disgorged hundreds of cruise-ship passengers near the great concrete plinth which had once been home to the statue of Enver Hoxha, Gjirokastër-born Communist tyrant, it was clear that a great many people – Elenita and Oliver Gilkes among them – were very happy indeed to see them.

Essentials

Andante Travels (01722 713800; www.andantetravels.co.uk) offers nine-day Albania tours in May and October at an all-inclusive cost of £1,850 per person.

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Bear convicted for theft of honey

2008-03-15T08:11:00.001-04:00

Bear convicted for theft of honey

By Paddy Clark
BBC News

Temptation was too great for the bear

The taste of honey was just too tempting for a bear in Macedonia, which repeatedly raided a beekeeper's hives.
Now it has a criminal record after a court found it guilty of theft and criminal damage.
But there was an empty dock in the court in the city of Bitola and no handcuffed bear, which was convicted in its absence.
The case was brought by the exasperated beekeeper after a year of trying vainly to protect his beehives.
For a while, he kept the animal away by buying a generator, lighting up the area, and playing thumping Serbian turbo-folk music.
But when the generator ran out of power and the music fell silent, the bear was back and the honey was gone once more.
"It attacked the beehives again," said beekeeper Zoran Kiseloski.
Because the animal had no owner and belonged to a protected species, the court ordered the state to pay for the damage to the hives - around $3,500 (£1,750; 2,238 euros).
The bear, meanwhile, remains at large - somewhere in Macedonia.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Bear convicted for theft of honey

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Bulgarian Music Idol 2 - Mariah Carey - Without You (Funny)

2008-03-12T18:38:00.001-04:00

Ken Lee

Massive Tree Planting in Macedonia

2008-03-12T11:44:00.000-04:00

Massive Tree Planting in Macedonia

"Plant Your Future" Logo

12 March 2008 Skopje _ Athletes, pop stars, actors, politicians and police in Macedonia are taking part in a massive tree planting campaign on Wednesday.

Thousands of people are pouring in to various pick up points from where they will be transported on buses, leaving every two hours, to 63 locations around the country where tree planting is underway.

The campaign, under the slogan "plant your future", was initially launched by local and international non-governmental organisations but has gained in momentum after the government gave its backing to the project at the beginning of the month.

The aim is to plant some 2.1 million trees across Macedonia on Wednesday - one to match each citizen residing in the country.

Wednesday has been designated a non-working day in order to achieve a greater response.

The start of the campaign was marked with a symbolic planting of a cherry tree, near the grave of the recently deceased pop icon, Tose Proeski who was killed in a car accident in Croatia on October 16 last year. His death shocked the country and there was a outpouring of emotion for several days after the tragedy. Read more at http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/6051/

The Jewish community has also announced it will plant 7200 trees to mach the number of Jews that perished during the fascist regime which occupied Macedonia during the Second World War.

In a sign of friendship, the country's border police together with colleagues from neighbouring states will plant trees along the main border crossings.

"We want to see Macedonia as a small oasis of forest," government spokesman Ivica Bocevski told media two weeks ago when he announced backing for the campaign.

The campaign is part of a bigger programme that envisages planting some 10 million trees by the end of 2008. Macedonia was hit by a series of wildfires that raged across the whole Balkans region during the summer of 2007.

The government has previously calculated a damage of over 60 million euros, but ecologists claim that the harm to the environment is in fact incalculable.

Organisers have said they would like to see this campaign in other Balkan countries as well.

Kosovo Isn’t the Problem, Serbia Is

2008-03-06T08:32:00.000-05:00

Kosovo Isn't the Problem, Serbia Is
Testimony of Vice President for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations Daniel Serwer before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

March 4, 2008

It is a pleasure to be here today to offer my personal views—not those of the U.S. Institute of Peace, which does not take positions on policy issues—on the challenges facing the United States and Europe in the aftermath of Kosovo's independence.

My main point is this: Kosovo isn't the problem, Serbia is. I will offer a policy on Serbia that departs from what we have been doing. I call it the Clear Path Forward, because it makes clear what Belgrade needs to do to make its way towards Europe.

Kosovars celebrate but have not misbehaved

Independence generated excitement and celebration in Kosovo, but its Albanian population—about 90 per cent of the total—has refrained from violence against minorities. Despite provocations, Kosovars have not sought, as some feared they might, to chase Serbs from the new state. This correct behavior needs to continue.

Kosovo needs massive assistance, but it also needs wise restraint to develop as a state. While providing international judges and prosecutors as well as police monitors, we need to be careful not to create dependency: politicians who feel no obligation to take on tough issues because they know the internationals will act. States need to make their own mistakes. We should intervene only to prevent the potentially fatal ones.

Belgrade is trying to turn back the clock

While Albanians celebrate, Serbs are protesting. Serb police supported rioters who burned UN and Kosovo police checkpoints near the now international border. Serbia's minister for Kosovo hailed these efforts as consonant with government policy, thus disrespecting UN Security Council resolution 1244, to which Belgrade often appeals, and causing Kosovo Serbs to ask him to resign. Young extremists attacked the U.S. and other embassies, left unguarded during a government-endorsed demonstration. There have also been riots outside Belgrade, as well as attacks on independent media.

The Serbian government is trying to turn back the clock. Parliament, where no Kosovar has sat since Milosevic deprived the province of autonomy almost 20 years ago, announced it had annulled the independence declaration and declared deployment of an EU mission to maintain rule of law unacceptable. The Supreme Court failed to act when the Serbian government struck Kosovars from the voter rolls to ensure approval of a new constitution prohibiting recognition of Kosovo's independence, but it quickly denounced the independence declaration as illegal.

The Prime Minister praised the youthful rioters after the U.S. embassy attack, accused the President of the United States of violence against Serbia and claimed, "As long as the Serbian people exist, Kosovo remains Serbia," no matter what its population wants. Serbia's ambassador to Washington has been recalled. Serbia's president has pledged he will never accept Kosovo independence. One of its leading bishops has called for the Serbian army and police to retake Kosovo, after rearming with Russian supplies. Belgrade has encouraged secession rumblings in the Serb half of Bosnia.

The situation in northern Kosovo is particularly dangerous. If NATO and the EU allow continued Serbian control there—as the UN and NATO have for nine years—there will be division along ethnic lines, with consequences for Bosnia and Macedonia. Pristina cannot assert sovereignty in the north without creating big problems; the EU and NATO need to do it on Pristina's behalf, blocking Belgrade's partition plans.

Serbia is the problem

Serbia, not Kosovo, is the problem in the Balkans.

Its leadership promised to hold on to Kosovo and cannot now deliver. By keeping the issue open, the prime minister aims to strengthen nationalists, whose most extreme political party is already the largest in the Serbian parliament, and slow Serbia's democratic transition. Belgrade's refusal to accept a sovereign Kosovo will limit its influence in international bodies and scare off foreign investors. Serbia's current path leads to isolation from Europe and the U.S. as well as alignment with Russia, which has been paid off for its role in blocking a UN Security Council resolution on Kosovo with advantageous Serbian energy deals.

Brussels and Washington tried to prevent this sad turn of events by offering, up front and without conditions, a series of incentives. These included normal trade relations, membership in NATO's Partnership for Peace, negotiation of a Stabilization and Association Agreement opening European markets, over one billion euros in assistance in 2007-11, facilitated visas for EU entry and extensive protection for Serbs remaining in Kosovo. Since Milosevic's fall, the EU has already provided billions of euros in aid and preferential credits; the U.S. has provided $635 million in assistance.

Serbia has pocketed these incentives and provided little in return since 2003.

We need better policy

It is time for Washington and Brussels to get smarter. While hoping that Serbia will come to its senses sooner rather than later, both need to plan for a long period in which Belgrade, aligned with Moscow, will try to block NATO and EU expansion in the Balkans. Transitional democracies in Croatia, Macedonia, Albania and Kosovo will have to share the Western Balkans with a backward-looking, resentful and ill-spirited Serbia. NATO and the EU should move quickly to welcome as members those countries that are doing the right thing, in the hope that will encourage Serbia to come along.

Washington and Brussels should also signal that they are determined not to give Serbia any more freebies. Ambassadors should be recalled for consultations on a new, coordinated EU/U.S. Serbia policy. The still unsigned Stabilization and Association Agreement should be taken off the table. The people, including Serbian security officials, who participated in attacking checkpoints inside Kosovo should be brought to trial quickly in a Pristina courtroom, under EU supervision.

At the same time, Brussels and Washington need to make clear that there is a route out of the dead end into which Serbia has driven itself, provided it meets reasonable conditions. American and European ambassadors should return to Belgrade once Serbia ends violence against the legitimate forces of law and order in Kosovo and begins to cooperate with NATO and the EU there. If Serbia turns indicted war criminal Ratko Mladic over to the Hague Tribunal, the Stabilization and Association Agreement should proceed. Serbian candidacy for EU membership should be conditional on Kosovo's entry into the UN, currently blocked by a Russian veto threat at Belgrade's behest.

By laying out a Clear Path Forward to improved relations conditional on Belgrade's behavior, Brussels and Washington can over time bring Serbia out of its funk and enable it to occupy its rightful place in Europe. Offering more freebies without conditions will have the opposite effect, encouraging reactionary forces in Serbia and strengthening its alliance with Russia.

I hasten to add that generous support should go to the courageous Serbs who have continued—despite the prevailing political winds—to advocate human rights, free media, dialogue with Kosovars and doing what is necessary to get Serbia into the EU. Likewise, Voice of America and RFE/RL should continue to broadcast in Serbian and Albanian.

Collateral damage

Let me briefly address the issue of collateral damage due to Kosovo's independence, in particular in Bosnia and in American relations with Russia.

In Bosnia, the only serious risk arises from Belgrade encouraging Serb separatists. Left to their own devices, Bosnia's Serb leaders prefer being someone in Sarajevo to being no one in Belgrade. The U.S. and EU need to make it clear that Republika Srpska can either exist within Bosnia, or not exist at all and have its territory—which was home to a Muslim majority before the war—become part of a unitary Bosnian state.

With Russia, it is time to put Kosovo in the past, starting at the April NATO Summit in Bucharest. This can be done by considering Russia's interests across a wide spectrum of issues—including anti-ballistic missile radars, NATO enlargement and Moscow's ties to South Ossetia and Abkhazia. We need Moscow to abstain from using its veto to block Kosovo's UN membership. Without caving to the Russians, we need to ask ourselves what they will value that the U.S. can give up without high cost.

Conclusion

We have done the right thing to join our European partners in recognizing Kosovo as a sovereign state, a move that has prevented much worse violence and instability than we have seen so far. We need now to repair relations with Serbia by delineating a Clear Path Forward and patiently awaiting Belgrade's realization that its citizens will be far better off if their government embarks on it. It may take a long time for that to happen.

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Newborn

2008-03-05T05:39:00.001-05:00

Mon Mar 3, 11:25 PM ET

A newborn harp seal pup with its distinctive white coat on an ice floe in the Gulf of St. Lawrence March 3, 2008. The annual Gulf of St. Lawrence seal hunt is tentatively set to begin later this month.

REUTERS/Paul Darrow (CANADA)

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The limits of analogy in Kosovo's independence bid

2008-03-04T19:04:00.001-05:00

The limits of analogy in Kosovo's independence bid
By Shlomo Avineri
Commentary by
Wednesday, March 05, 2008

The ensuing resistance - initially peaceful, later violent - led to ever harsher Serbian measures, culminating in threats of massive ethnic cleansing, verging on genocide. For the first time in modern history, this brought about an effective American-led international humanitarian intervention. Many of the intellectuals and public figures all over the world who supported the intervention were Jewish: Elie Wiesel, Michael Walzer, Richard Holbrooke, Bernard-Henri Levi, Bernard Kouchner and others. They called on the world community, which failed so dismally to protect the Jews from the Nazis, not to abandon Kosovo's Albanians. US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright explicitly mentioned her Jewish roots in her insistence that the US could not abandon the Kosovars.
That Kosovo's independence did not enjoy the support of all European Union members has very little to do with the merits of the case, but stems from the realpolitik considerations of countries with territorially-based national minorities. That is why Spain, Slovakia, Romania, Greece and Cyprus did not follow the United States and the majority of the EU in recognizing Kosovo's independence. Russia's opposition is similarly motivated by obvious analogies with the Chechen uprising. Even democratic Canada is hesitant, because of Quebec.
Obviously there have been echoes in the Middle East, and from opposing camps. In Israel, the nationalist right wing expressed concerns that Kosovo may become a precedent for a Palestinian unilateral declaration of independence, and even for an attempt by Palestinian Arabs in Israel, especially in the Galilee, to secede unilaterally. In parallel, some Palestinians maintained that if the current post-Annapolis Israeli-Palestinian talks should fail, the Palestinians might adopt the Kosovo model and declare their independence unilaterally.
These analogies seem plausible, but are fallacious for a number of reasons. First of all, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not limited to the post-1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. It is a conflict between two national movements - the Jewish national movement, Zionism, and the Arab Palestinian movement, both laying claim to the same piece of land. The Kosovars, on the other hand, never claimed Belgrade and all of Serbia as their patrimony. Hence in the Israeli-Palestinian case a two-state solution, based on partition, is the only reasonable and fair solution, and is viewed as such almost universally. Such national conflicts can be resolved only by mutual consent and agreement: That this is difficult and may take time is obvious, but there is no alternative to negotiations.

Secondly, while the Kosovars gained almost universal support and the international community, under US leadership, used force to intervene on their behalf, the Middle East situation was totally different. Here it was the Palestinians who in 1947-1948 rejected the United Nations partition plan and went to war not only against the emerging state of Israel but also against a UN decision. It was the Arab side then that was condemned by the UN, with both US and Soviet support, for combating Israel.
Thirdly, since the Oslo accord there exists a legitimate, albeit not sovereign, Palestinian Authority. Its legitimacy has recently been greatly attenuated by the Hamas putsch in Gaza - and solving this is a serious challenge to the Palestinian national movement. Moreover, since Annapolis both Israel and the Palestinians have been continuously negotiating. That no agreement has yet been reached is the consequence of both the complexity of the issues and the relative weakness of both leaderships. Nothing similar to this existed in the Kosovo context.
There is, however, a case in the Middle East that is similar to Kosovo: the Kurds in Iraq. Here, like in former Yugoslavia, an ethnic minority with a distinct culture, language and history has been continuously oppressed by a series of brutal Arab regimes. Like the Kosovo Albanians, Iraqi Kurds are entitled to self-determination and sovereignty. That Turkey, Iran and Syria oppose this has as little relevance to the merits of the case, as has Spanish or Russian opposition to the independence of Kosovo. It is difficult, on moral and political grounds, to support the independence of Kosovo while opposing the same rights for Iraqi Kurdistan.
All this shows the limits of analogy and the sometimes cynical and propagandistic use made of it. Each conflict has its own characteristics and has to be addressed - and hopefully settled - on its own merits, difficult as this may be.
Shlomo Avineri is professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and was director general of Israel's Foreign Ministry under Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. He is currently visiting professor in the Nationalism Studies Program at the Central European University in Budapest. This commentary first appeared at bitterlemons.org, an online newsletter.
The recent declaration of independence by Kosovo is an important victory for the ideas of self-determination and national sovereignty. Ever since most of the old Ottoman vilayet of Kosovo was annexed to Serbia in 1912 after the First Balkan War, the province's mainly Muslim Albanian population suffered under Serbian rule. After 1918, Yugoslavia tried to change the demographic balance by encouraging Serbs to settle in the province, viewed as the birthplace of the Serbian nation. In Tito's Yugoslavia, Kosovo enjoyed an autonomous status, but with the reemergence of Serbian nationalism under Slobodan Milosevic this was cancelled: Albanian-language schools were closed, and Serbian functionaries from Belgrade replaced local Kosovar Albanian officials.

The Daily Star - Opinion Articles - The limits of analogy in Kosovo's independence bid

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Zabrane vode u lager

2008-03-04T11:55:00.001-05:00

Otvoreno pismo drugu Ivici Dačiću, koji bi ponovo da zabranjuje nepodobne

Zabrane vode u lager

Lazar Stojanović

Pišem Vam u vezi s Vašom izjavom da valja zabranjivati organizacije koje priznaju Kosovo. Nisam organizacija, ali ne samo da podržavam nezavisnost Kosova nego sam na tome aktivno i neskriveno radio koliko sam umeo i mogao od 1972. godine. Sagledao sam temeljno prikrivanu kolonijalnu suštinu tog problema dok sam kao disident robijao s Albancima drakonski osuđenim za organizovanje otpora srpskoj okupaciji Kosova, koja je trajala od 1912. do 17. februara ove godine.
Poreklom sam pet kilometara od Orašca. To Vam kažem jer znam da se u šovinističkim krugovima poreklo shvata vrlo ozbiljno, "krv i tlo". Utoliko me je više stid zbog nedavnog paleolitskog nasrtaja jedne od vladajućih partija na "Peščanik" u Aranđelovcu i nacionalno ostrašćenog sretenjskog govora koji je pre par dana u tom Orašcu održao političkom kombinatorikom i ucenom nametnuti premijer Srbije.
Okupaciju iz 1912. Evropa je rado i lako priznala, jer je to bilo slabljenje i komadanje poražene Turske, a države Albanije tada još nije bilo, njene granice utvrđene su tek 1913. Broz je planirao da 1945. Kosovo ustupi Albaniji, a kasnije se predomislio, da bi se umilio partizanskoj ali ipak nacionalističkoj Srbiji, pomoću koje je vladao Jugoslavijom, jednako kao Austrijanac Hitler Nemačkom, Korzikanac Napoleon Francuskom i Gruzijac Staljin Rusijom. To SANU nikada neće priznati, jer njen famozni "memorandum" tvrdi da je Broz činio upravo suprotno, da je naročito radio protiv interesa Srbije. To evropsko priznanje okupacije Kosova i Brozovo predomišljanje čine jedini okvir legitimiteta na koji biste Vi i ini kolonijalisti mogli da se pozovete u vezi sa potraživanjem teritorije Kosova i prava na vladanje tamošnjim stanovništvom.
Dve neuspele kolonizacije, 1913. i 1919, dokazuju da je reč o pukoj koloniji, odocneloj i neuspeloj, naravno. Kosovo je bilo jedina kolonija u Evropi ikad. Zato je to specijalan slučaj u savremenoj svetskoj politici. Evropa je upravo ispravila svoju grešku iz 1912. O devedeset šest godina kolonijalne represiji pitajte Albance, oni o tome znaju više nego Vi.
Za potrebe novih kosovskih bojeva, SANU i SPC oživeli su imperijalni kosovski mit koji uz državni blagoslov propagiraju glavna TV i glavni dnevni list već čitavih dvanaestak godina posle Osme sednice. Kosovo je 1999. oslobođeno kolonijalne stege, a ta propaganda još traje i Vi ste deo nje.
U sadašnje vreme kakvog-takvog pluralizma medija i partija "pranje mozga" javnosti, pretvorene u tupu gomilu, ne amnestira pojedinca. Ko god je svojedobno digao ruku za Slobodana Miloševića odgovoran je i danas, politički i moralno. Znam da je to sedamdeset procenata tadašnjeg stanovništva, ali to nije moj nego njihov problem. I Nemaca je bilo oko sedamdeset procenata kad su "demokratski" izabrali Hitlera.
Vi ste, gospodine Dačiću, digli više od ruke. Vi ste mali, ali ne i zanemarljivi deo tog aparata. I sada biste Vi nekoga da zabranjujete. Vi ste puka, greškom pretekla, štetočina nelustriranog aparata za vršenje zločina. Zakon o lustraciji je usvojen, iako voljom tekućeg premijera i njegovog bivšeg, za lustriranje idealno podobnog, ministra pravosuđa Stojkovića, nikad nije primenjen. Nemojte da računate s tim da taj zakon neće da se svali na Vaša pleća i na mnoge takve kao Vi kad vrh vlasti bude promenjen. Bolje Vam je da ćutite. To nije dovoljno, ali je bolje nego ništa.
Vi ćete možda moći nekoga i nešto da zabranjujete tek kad se srećno sparite s Putinom i Lukašenkom, čemu neskriveno težite. Decenijama, od 1948, trajalo je naše oslobađanje iz tog zagrljaja smrti u koji Vi hoćete da nas vratite. Mislite da će ova ogromna većina birača sklonih Evropi da odluči da se okrene Aziji i da podrži Vas i Vaš politički projekat refeudalizovanja Srbije i vraćanja u lager?
Ako moram da prihvatim realnost političkog uticaja velikih i zlih nacionalističkih partija u Srbiji (ne mislim na premijerovu, ona je džepnog formata kao i Vaša), ne moram da respektujem političku olupinu Vaše partije čiji se jedini značaj sastoji u veličini zla koje je nanela kome god je uspela, prvenstveno tokom ratova koje je planski izazvala i vodila dok god je imala topovskog mesa. Ne postoji ni jedna jedina sitnica koju ste Vi ikada uradili, koja je bila od koristi stanovništvu ili državi, dočim je spisak stvari koje ste uradili na korist sebi, a na štetu svima drugima, vrlo dug. Uključujući i onaj kofer.

www.danas.co.yu

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False Fears and False Hopes - Kosovo as "Muslim State in Europe"

2008-03-03T08:57:00.001-05:00

Kosovo as "Muslim State in Europe"

False Fears and False Hopes

The declaration of independence in Kosovo has brought a new nation to Europe, with a population that is 90 per cent Muslim. Islam, however, has no influence on the country's politics. Balkans and Kosovo expert Konrad Clewing explains why

| Bild:
Independence Day in Kosovo. The region was under Ottoman rule for almost 500 years, up until 1912. In February Kosovo declared independence from the Republic of Serbia |

The newest member in the community of states, Kosovo, brings with it an assorted baggage of hopes and joys, but just as much in the way of troubles and worries.

Hope is centred on the belief that a line has finally been drawn under the long-standing territorial conflict between the country's Albanian majority and Serbia – a struggle that has taken a heavy toll on both sides. Joy has been in evidence mainly in Kosovo itself, where February 17th's declaration of independence was greeted by scenes of delighted celebration among 95 per cent of the population.

Trouble, meanwhile, has been brewing in Belgrade and in Serbia, where the feeling is that the country has been robbed of a part of its territory.

The worries are worldwide and centred on the possible repercussions for international law if it should turn out that a precedent has now been set with regard to the right of self-determination of peoples at the expense of national law where territorial integrity is concerned.

There is worry, too, about the potential consequences for international diplomacy, about the new state's feared lack of viability, about the repercussions for Serbia – and about the emergence of Kosovo as a "Muslim state".

Islamist terror or democratised Islam?

Here, in the middle of Europe, a future stronghold of global Islamism is being nurtured, which will serve as a springboard for Islamist terror. So, at least, runs one argument that is finding favour not only in Belgrade, but also in neighbouring countries such as Romania, as well as on German Internet forums, for example.

There are also very different hopes being aired with regard to "Muslim Kosovo". In the Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper of February 20, for example, Avi Primor, former Israeli ambassador to Germany set out his vision of how Kosovo could become the first truly democratic, secular Muslim country in a Western sense, as well as becoming a model for the entire Islamic world and for Muslim minorities in Western Europe.

The US government is hoping, as it did ten years ago when it gave its support to the Bosnian Muslims, that its actions in Kosovo will show to Muslims all over the world that Washington is by no means anti-Muslim.

Kosovo's Muslim majority

But both the worries and the hopes that are circulating over the "Muslim state" of Kosovo are wide of the mark. It is certainly true that over ninety per cent of the population of Kosovo consider themselves Muslims or at least as people of a Muslim background. The Kosovar Albanians, who make up around ninety per cent of the population, fall almost entirely into this category, a small Roman Catholic minority notwithstanding.

Among the local minorities only the Serbs are non-Muslim. The smaller groupings of Turks, Bosnians, other Slavic-speaking Muslims and Romanies, on the other hand, are all, in the traditional sense, followers of Islam.

A national rather than a religious project

Contrary to the illusions harboured by the international community operating there, however, the state of Kosovo is not primarily a multi-ethnic country and the state project that is "Kosovo" certainly cannot be properly understood as anything other than an Albanian national project.

In paragraph 2 of its independence declaration, this state is already referring to itself not only as "democratic," but also as "secular".

And the contradiction inherent in the spectacle of Prime Minister Hashim Thaçi being accompanied by Mufti Naim Tërnava at the televised announcement that preceded the declaration of independence on February 17th, was one that was more apparent than real.

Because, while Thaçi was flanked by the Mufti on one side, the Catholic bishop of the diocese of Kosovo was on the other. It was a gesture clearly intended to provide a vivid counter image to offset the tendency among Serbs to equate Albanians with "dangerous" Muslims

Nation before religion

The scene does point to something fundamental, however. It is not just the case that Kosovo Muslims are generally and rightly regarded as not being particularly religious, or that strict observance of Muslim beliefs and practices is a rarity in the country, or that the mosques are usually to be found deserted, with hardly a visitor in sight.

No, it is also the case that since in its earliest beginnings in the late Ottoman period, modern Albanian nation-building has been based to a very large extent, both within and beyond Albanian national territory, on the idea that the nation must take precedence over religious belief.

One of the foundations of this nation-building, that has taken place in a religious environment around eighty per cent Muslim (Sunni and various Sufi groups) and twenty per cent Christian (orthodox in the south, Catholic in the north of the Albanian language area), was, and is, that there is no Muslim core to the nation, no fringe of non-Muslim minorities that are at best tolerated.

In this respect, it appears that Albania really is a special case in the Muslim world. Whenever religious loyalty has endangered or shown signs of endangering national loyalty, the defenders of national Albanianhood and the Albanian societies have taken to the barricades to ensure that religion knows its proper place. In this sense the Albanians are not a "Muslim" nation at all, that is to say, not a nation dominated by the religion.

It is much more the case that all three (or four) traditional confessions are seen as equally national Albanian (or during the period of the atheist communist dictatorship as equally anti-national).

Organised Albanian religion

The representatives of organised Albanian Islam, which is spread over Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia, express themselves in national rather than religious terms when referring to Kosovo.

On his first visit to the new Kosovo, or more precisely to the Islamic community of the new neighbouring state, Reis ul Ulema of Macedonia, Sulejman Rexhepi, passed on his congratulations on the independence of the "new Albanian state", which he praised as the realisation of a "centuries old dream whose fulfilment the Albanian people deserved". No mention here of Islam or Muslims.

And although, since 1999, Arab money has been increasingly in evidence as a source of pressure or incentive towards the promulgation of "Middle East" style Muslim attitudes in Kosovo, it is unlikely that this will make any serious inroads against the dominance of nationalism in the coming years.

Looking ahead

Reassuring for "Europe". At the same time, however, the role model function attributed to an "Islamic" community that is hardly discernible as such, is unlikely to be of any significance. And whether the American support for Kosovo will do anything to improve the standing of the US with Muslims in the rest of the world must also remain doubtful. The Muslim component of the Kosovo question, then, remains marginal.

Most of all, perhaps, it is likely that the secular majority of Kosovo's Muslims may just succeed in making some of their European neighbours begin to wonder whether Islam really is as all-pervasive an influence on the life and political attitudes of all Muslims as people here like to think.

Konrad Clewing

© Qantara.de 2008

Konrad Clewing is deputy director of the Südost-Institut of Regensburg University. His main research interests include nationalism, Muslim history in the Balkans, the history of the Hapsburg monarchy, and the Kosovo conflict.

Translated from the German by Ron Walker

Kosovo: Time For Serbia To Wake Up

2008-03-03T08:47:00.001-05:00

Kosovo: Time For Serbia To Wake Up

By Gordana Knezevic

Serbs protesting in Mitrovica

(AFP)

Last week's pictures from Belgrade were ugly. Broken windows in the city center, the burned flags of foreign embassies, and thinly veiled justifications of the violence by Serbian officials. A government minister, Velimir Ilic, went so far to say that violence against foreign embassies was the appropriate answer to the "violence" committed against Serbia by taking away its province.

However, Kosovo left Serbia a long time ago. Most Serbs did not notice that departure, since Kosovo was not present in their conscience as a place to visit or, God forbid, a place to move to with a business or the family.

Despite this ignorance of the real Kosovo, the former Serbian province plays a key role in Serbian identity -- an identity that is very much shaped by the idea that Serbs have always been victims, throughout history. In the hands of local politicians, Kosovo is inevitably mentioned as a symbol of a great loss, producing an instant image of a battle against the Turks -- a battle that took place 600 years ago. It has always been packaged as an event that took place yesterday (or might as well have), and conversely, what happened as recently as yesterday is somehow directly related to that medieval battle.

The myth of Kosovo, as an integral part of Serbian identity, was created and cemented by Serbian writers, poets, politicians, and academics. If Serbs happened to disagree on other issues, Kosovo would always be their common ground, their rallying point. A romantic picture of Serbs as both heroes and victims at the hands of brutal Ottoman Turks would suspend all disputes and produce an idyllic picture of national unity.

In other countries, politicians have to work hard and come up with good ideas and policies in order to get reelected. In Serbia, it was always enough to just mention Kosovo and to have the entire nation clapping hands. But what Serbs want to have is not Kosovo as it is, inhabited by an ethnic-Albanian majority. It is Kosovo as it was a few centuries ago, inhabited by Serbs. Or, in the face of the demographic reality, inhabited by whomever, but run by the Serbs.

Selective Curfew

In 1981, as a young journalist, I was sent to Kosovo in the aftermath of large student demonstrations that took place a year after Tito's death. The demonstrations were brutally suppressed by the Yugoslav Army. By the time I arrived in Pristina, hundreds of Albanians had been imprisoned, special police units from all over Yugoslavia had been deployed in the streets of the Kosovo capital, and a curfew was in force after 8 p.m.

Apart from me, two other journalists from Zagreb and Ljubljana were the only guests at the Grand Hotel, run by the Serbian secret police. It was rather unpleasant to have to listen to the frequently drunk policemen singing at the hotel bar every evening. We felt that we were trapped in that place as a result of the curfew. After many boring and uneventful nights at the hotel, we decided to test the curfew and to leave the building long after 8 p.m. Thus the three of us started our dangerous walk through the empty streets of a city that had not yet recovered from the violent demonstrations and the brutal army action. Without ever being stopped or asked for any ID, we spent most of the night moving from one bar and restaurant to another.

The only obvious conclusion was that the curfew was only in force for Albanians, and that each and every police officer in Pristina was aware of the three journalists from outside, so they didn't even ask for our identification. Humiliation and torture by the police were meant for Albanians only. We left Kosovo with the bitter taste of injustice and oppression against the Kosovar Albanians.

Even in those fractious times, most Albanians thought of themselves as Albanians as well as Yugoslavs -- and they did not feel any necessary contradiction between those two identities. Once Yugoslavia ceased to exist, however, they couldn't possibly declare themselves to be Albanians and Serbs, since in that case one clearly excluded the other.

No Serbian policeman or army officer has been allowed in Kosovo since 1999. The terrible crimes committed by Serbs in Kosovo before the NATO intervention were hardly an invitation for Albanians to remain inside the borders of Serbia. Breakup was imminent, and it was not a question of whether it would happen, but when the separation would take place. Even as Serbian officials extended the talks about Kosovo's future, they continued to advance only legal arguments, and never expressed any desire to share a country with Albanians. They wanted only a piece of paper that would give them ownership of Kosovo. A Serbian historian from the beginning of the last century once said that the Serbs would "grow up" as a nation only once they realize that Albanians are human. It is time for Serbs to grow up.

(Gordana Knezevic is the director of RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian Languages Service.)

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What happened to Kosovo could never happen here

2008-02-29T04:22:00.001-05:00

What happened to Kosovo could never happen here

Written by Hana Marku, Contributor

Wednesday, 27 February 2008

Assessing the situation, Canada's stand on Kosovo

In 1989, the autonomy of Quebec was revoked by a single decision by Brian Mulroney. This decision was to be a final solution to the "Quebec problem." Quebec ceased to exist. French-speaking schools closed and French-speaking Québécois children learned how to read and write French in basements and backrooms. All French-speaking citizens employed in governmental agencies were forced to sign "loyalty" pledges to Ottawa or resign and submit to police questioning. The Canadian military moved en-masse into the province and established military bases in Montreal and Quebec City. Police and military forces patrolled the streets, enforcing strict identity checks and making sure no one was on the street past curfew. Student protests, which sought the reestablishment of provincial autonomy, were repressed with tear gas and tanks. Charter rights were suspended for the province, and a state of emergency was announced. Ottawa declared Quebec's legislature unconstitutional. English-speaking enclaves were favoured and granted special privileges, and anglophones across the country believed Quebec was the very soul of their civilization.A francophone shadow government was created, which held a referendum in 1990. Eighty-seven percent of the population voted, and 99 percent voted for secession from the federation of Canada. Ottawa responded by relocating anglophones from other provinces into Quebec, expelling francophones from their houses and apartments to make room for the newcomers. Independent francophone TV stations, newspapers and radio stations were shut down. Between 1989 and 1999, half of the adult population of Quebec would be interrogated, beaten, arrested and detained by police forces.
A Quebecois Liberation Army (QLA) was formed in 1995, which used guerrilla tactics to attack governmental military bases and police stations. Clashes with the QLA and the military increased in intensity and frequency throughout the 1990s.
Rumours of routine civilian massacres performed by Canadian military forces were verified when 45 bodies were found in Joliette. Humanitarian agencies reported 70 bodies found in Trois Rivieres, 14 bodies found in St. Honore and 100 bodies found in Barraute. These massacres included close-range shootings, rape and mutilation. Images of burnt and disfigured bodies were broadcast to the rest of the world.
A massive expulsion of francophones began in the spring 1999. The QLA had grown in size, but were not equipped well enough to present a great threat to the Canadian military. The American border with Quebec became a site for massive refugee camps, overcrowded tent sites with little food, no electricity and no running water. The international community, seeing no other solution despite attempts at a negotiated settlement, opted for a NATO military intervention to halt the ethnic cleansing of the province. Only when a heavy air campaign was well underway and major Anglo-Saxon cities of Canada were bombed did the Canadian military begin to pull out of the province. The exact figures of dead and missing francophones are still unknown.
The above dates and numbers are directly taken from the history of Kosovo, the last piece of former Yugoslavia to break away from Serbian control. NATO's mission in Kosovo was launched to stop Serbian genocide and to allow for the return of Kosovar refugees. Since 1999, the UN and a locally elected government have administered Kosovo, though it remained legally a part of Serbia, until last Sunday when it announced its independence.
Canada currently has no position on Kosovo out of fear of what legal precedent may be created in future clashes with Quebec by doing so.
"We are assessing the situation," was the statement of the Department of Foreign Affairs. Drawing a parallel between Quebec and Kosovo is not only historically irresponsible, it is shameful. Canada did not choose to intimidate, attack or deport any of its Quebecois citizens, despite its historical political difficulties with the province. Arguments for the integrity of state borders become irrelevant when those living within those borders find life intolerable. If a precedent is set by Kosovo, it is one of warning as to what the singling out and mistreatment of an ethnic group can result in.
Serbia has lost the moral authority to rule in Kosovo. Through its brutality and unexplainable hatred towards all non-Serbians, Serbia has broken its own borders and the country which once was called Yugoslavia. This is why Kosovo's declaration of independence is a legal and long-delayed act of justice. This is why it has been recognized by 19 UN members and counting. The United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany all recognized Kosovo within three days of its declaration.
Will Canada have the courage to join, or will it continue to draw non-existing parallels? I will end this letter by quoting journalist Roger Cohen: "Persecute a people with enough savagery, and they will in the end unite, rise up, fight and go their own way."

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Thank you Russia - For what?

2008-02-28T10:05:00.000-05:00

BEOGRAD, 27. 02. 2008.
(FoNet)

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RUSSIA'S SUPPORT OF SERBIA IS MORE ABOUT OIL THAN KOSOVO

2008-02-28T06:03:00.000-05:00

RUSSIA'S SUPPORT OF SERBIA IS MORE ABOUT OIL THAN KOSOVO

By Georgie Anne GeyerWed Feb 27, 7:48 PM ET

WASHINGTON -- Since the end of the Balkans wars in the 1990s, the European attitude toward Serbia has been that this renegade of Europe would eventually, inevitably, join the European Union (E.U.).

Of course, Serbia had started the horrific ethnic-nationalist wars that ended with tens of thousands dead. Of course, Serbia's greatest backer was the former Soviet Union, with whom it shared a heritage of the Orthodox Church.

But the world had changed. The U.S.S.R. had become simply "Russia" once again, or the "Russian Federation." Now one could argue that during these last two weeks everything has changed once more -- back to the past.

The transformed Russia of Vladimir Putin -- who will step aside temporarily as Russian president in putative elections this Sunday (March 2) -- has dramatically reinstated its historic relations with Serbia through its partnership with the Serbian gas and oil industry. Along the way, it has taken two other Eastern European nations who are already E.U. members with it into the transaction.

Serbia, with its mix of a political leadership of the old ethnic-nationalists of the '90s and some more pro-European Serbs, has angrily turned eastward once again. Any remaining pro-American tendencies have been decidedly dampened.

And one would not be too far off the mark by speculating that this could be part of Russia's potentially threatening move back into Europe, this time using its energy resources as the pivot, and that new Balkans conflicts could well be arising that we had thought settled.

It is easy to find, in little, long-oppressed Kosovo, that formerly Yugoslav and then Serb enclave of 2 million mostly ethnic Albanians, an excuse for Moscow to move closer again to Belgrade -- for both the United States and the E.U. supported Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia on Feb. l7. Meanwhile, anyone left in Serbia's more moderate political class proceeded immediately down the road to oblivion.

For comic relief, listen to the words of Serbian President Boris Tadic. At an emergency U.N. Security Council session, he warned that Kosovo's unthinkable act of wanting to rule itself would embolden other separatists across the world. "If you allow this illegal act to stand," he declared, "you will show that right and justice may go unrespected in the world. You will show that, unfortunately, this body of the world organization is losing its authority."

Now it may well be that the United Nations' authority is forever dicey, but to claim "right and justice" for the marauding Serbs of the 1990s should be saved for a Belgrade version of "Saturday Night Live."

Meanwhile, in an ominous sign in Kosovo itself, many Serb policemen in the Serb majority areas were pledging loyalty to Belgrade while separate Serb government and law enforcement bodies were being formed, this probably marking attempts to partition Kosovo still further.

As the new "candidate" for the Russian presidency, Dmitry Medvedev, said with unmistakable clarity, "We proceed from the understanding that Serbia is a single state with its jurisdiction spanning the entire territory."

It was, furthermore, Medvedev, already chosen as interim president by Putin, who traveled in the interesting period between Kosovo's independence and the upcoming Russian elections to Belgrade to sign -- what? -- amazing deals with Serbia on a gas pipeline and almost certainly on buying into the rundown Serb oil refinery in Pancevo.

Medvedev's pipeline deal for Moscow clears the way for the construction of the planned 550-mile South Stream pipeline through Serbia en route to Western Europe. Costs are reported to be in the area of $1.5 billion.

In addition -- and substantively expanding the energy ambitions of Russia toward Europe -- the president presumptive said that the deal to buy Serbia's state oil refinery, NIS, would be signed soon. Russia has offered $600 million for the refinery, with an additional $730 million to modernize the company.

But perhaps surprising for the publicly "progressive" Medvedev, who often speaks out on behalf of liberal issues and personal freedom, was the fact that he spoke out clearly on these deals with Serbia, saying that these energy treaties and agreements "form the foundation of energy stability for all of Europe in the future."

Let's repeat part of that: "for ALL of Europe in the future."

Perhaps it is not all that surprising for the man who is chairman of Gazprom, Russia's natural gas monopoly -- and, yes, that has been his main job -- to take an interest in energy monopolization and its rewards.

What is surprising is that other recent E.U. members are also embracing deals with Russia and Gazprom. In the same week that the Serbian gas deal was consummated, Hungary also backed it; Bulgaria had already done so.

But then, "outgoing" President Putin -- who is scheduled to return as president when Medvedev's term is over -- is rumored to be "suspiciously wealthy." According to a remarkable article, "Putin's Choice," by respected scholar Zbigniew Brzezinski in the upcoming issue of The Washington Quarterly, Putin is reported by Russian sources to have a calculated wealth of billions, "most of it in shares of state-controlled energy enterprises ... including 4.5 percent of Gazprom."

The purport of all of this? To see that the genie of radical nationalism, released so tragically 20 years ago in Serbia, is threatening to pop up again in the Balkans. An angry Russia is attempting to use its energy wealth to move once again into Europe. And the West had better look out.

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Unrest hurts Serbian economy

2008-02-27T05:19:00.001-05:00

Unrest hurts Serbian economy

Sapa-AFP

Published:Feb 26, 2008

Belgrade - Foreign investors have been backing out of Serbia since violence erupted during protests last week against Kosovo's independence, Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic said.

"At the moment, foreign investors do not consider Serbia as a heaven for financial investment," Dinkic told reporters here.

"The situation is not alarming, but we certainly should not neglect and underestimate it," said Dinkic.

"We have had a week of stoppage, crisis on the stock market, attack against the dinar. We should not let this period continue," he warned.

Citing some examples, Dinkic said several Italian companies had ordered their lawyers to sell previously purchased Serbian land intended for greenfield investments.

He added that representatives of General Motors, the giant US car-maker, had also cancelled a visit to the Balkan country planned for Tuesday.

On Thursday night, hundreds of rioters stormed and set ablaze the US embassy of Belgrade during an anti-Kosovo independence rally, leaving one Serbian man dead.

Also attacked were several diplomatic missions and businesses of other mostly Western countries that have recognised Kosovo's independence, which was proclaimed unilaterally on February 17.

Nationalist Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said Monday that there would be no normalisation of relations with states that recognise Kosovo until the move is "annulled."

But Dinkic said this was only a form of "diplomatic pressure."

"It is important to separate the diplomatic effort (over Kosovo) from what economic departments of the government are doing," Dinkic said.

"If there is peace and order on the streets of Serbia, investors will continue to invest," he said, adding all foreigners were welcome to invest in Serbia "regardless of the country they come from."

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Belgrade smash 'n' grab becomes YouTube smash hit

2008-02-26T11:27:00.001-05:00

Belgrade smash 'n' grab becomes YouTube smash hit

Fri Feb 22, 2008 11:00am EST

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BELGRADE (Reuters) - A video of two young women looting with gay abandon during rioting in the Serbian capital Belgrade was becoming a Balkan smash hit on the video-sharing Web site YouTube Friday.

Police arrested some looters but public humiliation by YouTube may prove a far more painful punishment for the pair, whose spree Thursday night was also aired on local television stations and was being discussed across the Internet.

A persistent amateur cameraman followed the women as they loaded up with chocolates at a corner shop, came out giggling, then went after designer bags, shoes and clothes at Belgrade's swankiest stores in its vandalized main shopping street.

"Get lost, stop filming," one of them shouted, so laden down with booty that clothes and bags dripped to the ground amid the broken glass below emptied storefronts.

"But you are the heroines of this protest for me," the cameraman replied sarcastically above the din of burglar alarms.

Looters seized their chance as rioters attacked Western embassies during a mass rally to protest at U.S. and European support for Kosovo's independence.

The second woman covered her face with a pair of looted shoes when she saw she was being filmed.

"Have you found your size yet?" asked the cameraman.

YouTube viewers were not amused.

"Shame on you," was the general message of hundreds of comments about the women's behavior, though most used unrepeatable vocabulary.

The video was entitled "Swapping Kosovo for a pair of sneakers" and the person who posted it, "Gvantanamo," gave a description:

"Belgrade bimbos exploit unrest to steal from smashed-up boutiques without the slightest shame. They are so greedy they even have to carry things in their teeth."

The next day text-message jokes about the video and the looting swept around Serbia.

"Swap you 11 left Nikes for 11 left Reeboks," read one.

To see the video use this address:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=5VWZoKWBYXE

(Writing by Richard Meares; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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Is Kosovo Serbia? We ask a historian

2008-02-26T07:37:00.001-05:00

Is Kosovo Serbia? We ask a historian

Noel Malcolm
The Guardian,
Tuesday February 26 2008

"Kosovo is Serbia", "Ask any historian" read the unlikely placards, waved by angry Serb demonstrators in Brussels on Sunday. This is rather flattering for historians: we don't often get asked to adjudicate. It does not, however, follow that any historian would agree, not least because historians do not use this sort of eternal present tense.

History, for the Serbs, started in the early 7th century, when they settled in the Balkans. Their power base was outside Kosovo, which they fully conquered in the early 13th, so the claim that Kosovo was the "cradle" of the Serbs is untrue.

What is true is that they ruled Kosovo for about 250 years, until the final Ottoman takeover in the mid-15th century. Churches and monasteries remain from that period, but there is no more continuity between the medieval Serbian state and today's Serbia than there is between the Byzantine Empire and Greece.

Kosovo remained Ottoman territory until it was conquered by Serbian forces in 1912. Serbs would say "liberated"; but even their own estimates put the Orthodox Serb population at less than 25%. The majority population was Albanian, and did not welcome Serb rule, so "conquered" seems the right word.

But legally, Kosovo was not incorporated into the Serbian kingdom in 1912; it remained occupied territory until some time after 1918. Then, finally, it was incorporated, not into a Serbian state, but into a Yugoslav one. And with one big interruption (the second world war) it remained part of some sort of Yugoslav state until June 2006.

Until the destruction of the old federal Yugoslavia by Milosevic, Kosovo had a dual status. It was called a part of Serbia; but it was also called a unit of the federation. In all practical ways, the latter sense prevailed: Kosovo had its own parliament and government, and was directly represented at the federal level, alongside Serbia. It was, in fact, one of the eight units of the federal system.

Almost all the other units have now become independent states. Historically, the independence of Kosovo just completes that process. Therefore, Kosovo has become an ex-Yugoslav state, as any historian could tell you.

· Noel Malcolm is a senior research fellow at All Souls College, Oxford. He is the author of Kosovo: A Short History

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JUSTICE FOR KOSOVO - CHANCE FOR SERBIA

2008-02-25T09:08:00.001-05:00

JUSTICE FOR KOSOVO - CHANCE FOR SERBIA

22.02.2008.

By Andrej Nosov and Dragan Popovic

After the declaration of independence of Kosovo and the "spontaneous" reaction of "rage and anger" depicted in the Prime Minister's words, demolished Embassies, public lynching of those with different political opinions, as well as the declarative call to "peace and peaceful protests", Serbia has hit the bottom.

It is less of a problem that in the previous decades we have gotten used to seeing violence, living in it every day and doing it spontaneously to people around us. It is more of a problem that the state politics of Slobodan Milosevic, the politics of violence, has officially returned as the main, driving force, that on which there is a consensus even of the democratic Presedent Tadic, and almost President Nikolic and all the other actes gathered around the leader of the defense of Kosovo, Vojislav Kostunica.

This rock bottom, and this fear that every normal citizen feels regarding what is going to happen the next day, is actually another big chance that we are once again missing. It is a chance for the society in Serbia to face their errors of judgement, to reconsider the politics of the past few decades, to look back and draw the line underneath the decade of conquest, murder, ethnic cleansing, terror over their own citizens and the inhabitants of the region. Kosovo has not been under the rule of Serbia since the day Slobodan Milosevic ended his project by retreating the army and police forces from Kosovo. The politics of conquering territories and nineteenth-century centralistic nationalism is facing a breakdown. Whether it will take something else on its way down, depends on the elite groups in Serbia. Or maybe new politics will arise in its place, appropriate for the modern age, based on cooperation and respect.

Everyone is in wonder because 17 February has happened to us, because there was a celebration and declaration of something we knew had happened in June 1999. Everyone makes excuses for violent behaviour, ancient rights and other mythologies by "our" right to rule "them". Breaking things in Belgrade, they say, is not much in relation to what has happened to us. They talk of cultural heritage, NATO bombing, the Serbs that died in Kosovo.

There is no mention of the Albanians except as "separatists, terrorists, immature people, uncivilized snatchers of our land". Everyone is silent about Albanians. Because, I guess, one does not mention the name of evil. And the evil that Belgrade has done to the Albanians has symbolically ended for them on that very 17 February.

State enemy No 1 is human rights defender Natasa Kandic, because she dared to sit in the Kosovo Parliament in the name of different values. Some media say that she shouldn't exist. Others have a problem with Sonja Biserko, Biljana Kovacevic Vuco. The rest would be satisfied with banning and destroying LDP or the expedition to the apartment of Ceda Jovanovic and insulting and lynching the politics and citizens which he represents. These steps are well known, Milosevic used them too. Kostunica is now simply applying the matrix he had inherited from his predecessor. Just as he had copied the rhetoric, he also did everything to leave Serbia in the gutter and through fear and terrot enforce the final establishment of the new Russian province, which is obviously his goal.

The last colony in Europe gained its freedom on 17 February 2008. From 1912 Kosovo has been ruled by boot and sabre. The people living there had no say in anything. Military authorities were imposed on them since the occupation. At that time, they were pronounced to be a nation not mature enough for democracy. Instead of a civil state and civil management, they recieved a hoard of officers and officials, mostly the worst ones, sent by punishment to Kosovo. Many testimonies from that time speak of violence, discrimination and collonial behaviour of the new masters towards the Albanian population in the region.

While Kosovo was ruled by the army, the intelligence in Belgrade was making plans on how to change the national make-up of the population. The documents of the Serbian Culture Club lead by Slobodan Jovanovic speak of horrible and cruel entertainment of the Serbian national elite. People are refered to as merchandise, something not alive, calculations are made about how many people should move in and move out from different places. The exact same standards will be applied much more efficiently at the end of the 20th century by academics, writers, poets, bishops... "Humane displacement" will become the official politics which will finally result in the creation of Republika Srpska. That is why it is possible today to speak of territory, but not the people, to pledge in Kosovo, but not give pensions to the Albanians, to erase the complete population from the electorial register or the share of free stocks.

The parties changed names, from the National Radical to the League of Communists, from the Socialist Party of Serbia to the Serbian Radical or the Democratic Party of Serbia. The continuity of colonial rule was maintained after the Second World War through military management. Even though the former colonists were forbidden to return to Kosovo, new ones soon arrived. Authority was established through bloody massacres in Drenica and all over Kosovo. Once again there were no "conditions" for civil authorities. The UDBA (State Secret Agency) sovereignly ruled Kosovo until 1966. Many people, rich today, owe their family posessions to the gold stolen from Kosovo Albanians. After the Brioni Plenum there was an ease, but as soon as the ruling circles saw that Kosovo inhabits people who want their rights and who will not reconcile with the existing situation, everything went to the way it used to be.

One year after Tito's death, the Yugoslav National Army "establishes order" in the streets of Pristina, Pec, Prizren... The number of killed Albanians has never been revealed. In the end, in 1989, the "easily promised speed" completely overtakes the legitimate politics. The sovereignity of Kosovo is annuled by tanks, martial law is established and a system very similar to apartheid.

During the nineties, if you were an Albanian, you could not live without fear, let alone work in a school, hospital, the police, or government institutions. Even when the Albanians reacted to such a situation with violence, the elite circles in Serbia did not wonder why, but ravaged villages, civillians, women and children. To be an Albanian, male or female, meant a death sentence. Many were saved by some money or gold. For others, there was no way out.

The nineties are a disgrace for Serbain history, and that must be said out loud in reference to Kosovo. Today in Kosovo, as well as Serbia and the other countries in the region, a large number of people is waiting for the answer to the question where their loved ones are, what happened to them, who killed them. Vojislav Kostunica and his security services hide the answer to that question. Boris Tadic surpresses the answer to that question becase of "stability and the future" and tycoon interests. There is no justice for the Serbs either, if we do not tell the others what we have done to them. There will be no other future if we conceal the facts. And it is futile to rant about crimes over Serbs, world injustice, double standards... Ivica Dacic (Milosevic's party President) clearly stated on the parliamentary speakers stand that the politics of the nineties has been confirmed once more.

When in 1999 revenge and retaliation against the Serbs started, there were no academics or scientists who would look for the cause in the behaviour of the state of Serbia. Or even to be determined according to the 800.000 banished people, mass murders in Meja, Djakovica, Suva Reka, Podujevo, Izbica, Vucitrn... Maybe that would have saved more Serbs than any books written in the name of the defense of Kosovo and such politics. Or any journalist scribblings which announced lynching, which the newspapers are full of these days.

The complete state apparatus was involved in hiding the tracks of mass crimes. Bodies were buried all over Serbia, burned in factories and power plants, sunk into the Danube or Perucac. The policemen, officers, members of National Security, politicians, local tycoons and enterpreneurs, judges and prosecutors, the Government and political parties were involved too. And after all that, Serbia is in wonder. Not a trace of regret, sense of responsibility, readiness to change behaviour. The people directly responsible for Serbia's loss of the right to rule the Kosovo people, today decide our own fate. They will not admit to their mistakes. Instead of that, they will try to tailor the international legislature according to their own dreams. To turn it into a calcified shell which cannot be adjusted to new situations. Because that is how one rules Serbia. That is how laws and constitutions are made here. Full of strong words and phrases, but inapplicable.

Legitimately and legally, the democratic and free part of the world estimated that we cannot terrorize our own citizens forever. Maybe Russia or China still can, but that time will soon pass too. Then the people in Chechnya or Tibet will also gain their deserved place in the community of independent nations. The world's decision (at least the better part of it) to recognize Kosovo, should not be taken as punishment by Serbia. It is not a punishment, it is an opportunity. Not only for Serbia, but for the whole world to strengthen the mechanisms of the protection of human rights and more decisively defy the terror of local dictators. From Beijing to Havana, from Teheran to Moscow.

Serbia is obliged to recognize the Republic of Kosovo. To give a hand of friendship to their legally elected representatives, to help them establish a modern, democratic society. Not because we are more advanced or cultured, but because we owe at least that much to the Kosovo society. And through Kosovo, we can open the issue of the society in Serbia. To reconsider all the illusons and false values, reform institutions, start creating a critical conscience in young people, to reverse the value system and set things in their place. Serbia must, from the mistakes of the past, learn the lessons which will take us to building a new society and a different future. By making violence legitimate and attacking people with different political opinions, the authorities are only continuing the old and already seen practice.

Those who think that they will destroy critical thinking and the need for different relations with the neigbours in this way, are sadly mistaken. The mass "events of the people" just take us back and create new mistakes which will cost us dearly.

Andrej Nosov is President and founder of YIHR and Dragan Popovic is International Justice Program Coordinator

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Serbia's choice

2008-02-25T07:44:00.001-05:00

Serbia's choice

For Americans, last week's fiery attack on the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade evoked unpleasant memories of the more calamitous Iran hostage crisis three decades earlier in Tehran, when 52 U.S. diplomats were held for 444 days.

For Serbs, the violence underscores the stark choice they face about their future. They can either stick with the nationalist pipe dream promoted by the late Serb strongman Slobodan Milosevic, or they can enter the modern world.

The ghost of Milosevic hung over the attacks on the U.S. Embassy and other diplomatic compounds. It is his specter, and all the madness it symbolizes, that needs to be put to rest.

(Photo — In Belgrade: A rioter throws a street sign into the burning U.S. Embassy on Thursday. / By Marko Drobnjakovic, AP)

The immediate trigger of the riots was that the United States and others recognized a declaration of independence by Kosovo, the latest part of the former Yugoslavia to break away. For many Serbs, that recognition was like waving a red rag at a bull. Although Kosovo has for decades been a semiautonomous province of Serbia, inhabited mainly by ethnic Albanians, for Serbs it is not just any old piece of land.

Kosovo has so much significance for Serbs that it was where Milosevic chose to make a speech in 1987 that ignited his ruinous wars for a Greater Serbia. Even though few Serbs live there, it is the place they consider the cradle of their civilization, and it is littered with Serb monuments and monasteries.

Yet the hard reality is that Kosovo is not going to be part of Serbia again. It has been administered by the United Nations since 1999, when NATO fought a war against Serb troops sent to ethnically cleanse the province. Although violence in the Balkans has subsided in the past decade, tensions continue to simmer. Russian President Vladimir Putin has played a singularly unhelpful role in stirring the pot and encouraging Serb stubbornness; Russia blocked U.N. recognition of Kosovo in the Security Council, putting its declaration of independence into a legal limbo and reviving Cold War antagonisms.

As for the Serbs, recent elections showed them split fairly evenly between stubborn nationalism, including intransigence over Kosovo, and the opportunities of European Union membership that come with facing reality. Voters narrowly re-elected a more pro-Western president, Boris Tadic.

Serbs are suffering badly from their isolation from Europe. Once the most prosperous center of the former Yugoslavia, Serbia has become an economic backwater with about 20% unemployment.

If there's any hopeful news, it is that younger Serbs, for the most part, tend to side with the future. They'd rather join Europe and end their isolation than keep Kosovo. Over the weekend, the world condemned the violence in Belgrade. That should help send a two-pronged message to Serb leaders: They have an obligation to protect embassies — and the best choice for their nation's future is to banish Milosevic's ghost.

Posted at 12:21 AM/ET, February 25, 2008 in Foreign Affairs - Europe - Editorial, Foreign Affairs - Russia - Editorial, Politics - Editorial, USA TODAY editorial | Permalink

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RIP Janez Drnovsek

2008-02-24T13:46:00.001-05:00

Slovenia's former president Drnovsek dies

1 day ago

LJUBLJANA (AFP) — Former Slovenian president and long-time prime minister Janez Drnovsek, who had been suffering from cancer, died overnight at his home on the outskirts of Ljubljana, his office said Saturday.
The Slovenian government declared February 25 a day of mourning.
The 57-year-old, who retired after five years as president in December due to ill health, was considered one of the main architects of Slovenia's successful transition from a Yugoslav republic to an EU member state.
Before being elected president, he held the post of prime minister almost uninterruptedly from 1992 -- the year after Slovenia's independence from the former Yugoslavia -- until 2002, two years before it joined the European Union.
Drnovsek started his career as a banker, entering the political stage in 1989 to become Slovenia's representative to the collective eight-member presidency of former communist Yugoslavia.
After independence, he led the centre-left Liberal Democracy party (LDS) into power in 1992, and remained prime minister for 10 years with only a brief interlude in 2000, before quitting due to health problems.
He had been diagnosed with kidney cancer in 1999, and decided to run for the less demanding role of president in 2002 elections. In this post, he became an active pacificist and strong critic of centre-right Prime Minister Janez Jansa.
After discovering in 2005 that his cancer had spread, Drnovsek became a vegetarian and moved to a village in the mountains outside Ljubljana, where he cooked his own meals and kept to himself.
Last year his health visibly deteriorated and he began to withdraw from the media spotlight. Rumours had been circulating about his condition in recent weeks, although a friend denied as recently as Wednesday that he was gravely ill.
"Drnovsek was largely responsible for Slovenia's social and economic development," centre-right prime minister Janez Jansa, one of Drnovsek's main political opponents over the last two years, said in a statement.
The date and place of Drnovsek's funeral are still not known but the ceremony will be organized only for his family members, Drnovsek's cabinet said.
Drnovsek was not married and had two children.

AFP: Slovenia's former president Drnovsek dies

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Kosovo for sneakers

2008-02-24T07:03:00.001-05:00

Kosovo Assigned 'KV' Code

2008-02-22T05:28:00.001-05:00

Kosovo Assigned 'KV' Code

21 February 2008 Pristina _ Kosovo's international indexing code will be KV, the United States Intelligence and Research Bureau writes.

Kosovo has been added to the list of independent countries on the U.S.. Department of State website, and assigned the KV code, by which countries are identified.

KV will be the U.S. Federal Information Processing Standard code for the Republic of Kosovo.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on February 17, and the United States, together with a handful of European Union members and other countries, have recognised its new status.

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It's a Kosovo!

2008-02-19T17:29:00.001-05:00

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New country, new flag

2008-02-19T09:58:00.001-05:00

Tue Feb 19, 5:57 AM ET

Kosovar Albanian teacher Luljeta Rama introduces Kosovo's new national flag to her class, on the first school day after Kosovo declared its independence, on the Albanian side of the ethnically divided town of Kosovska Mitrovica, Kosovo, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. The predominantly ethnic Albanian leadership of Kosovo, Serbia's medieval heartland, proclaimed independence from Serbia Sunday with Western backing. Serbia lost control over Kosovo, whose two-million population is 90 percent Albanian, since NATO bombing drove out Serb forces in 1999 to halt their killing and ethnic cleansing in a two-year war against separatist rebels.

(AP Photo/Bela Szandelszky)

Tue Feb 19, 5:40 AM ET

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Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci (C) poses with schoolchildren as they hold the new Kosovo flag during his visit to Ismail Quemali primary school in Pristina February 19, 2008.

REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov (KOSOVO)

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BBC NEWS | Europe | Kosovo celebrates 'dream come true'

2008-02-18T08:00:00.001-05:00

Kosovo celebrates 'dream come true'

Helen Fawkes
BBC news, Pristina

Kosovo's new yellow and blue flag has been unveiled

Thousands of ethnic Albanians packed into Pristina to celebrate what they regard as the birth of Europe's newest country.
Kosovo's capital's main street was a sea of red with most people wearing and waving the flag of Albania.
Despite the bitterly cold weather, many arrived hours before the declaration, viewing this as a defining moment for Kosovo.
''This is a climax, I can't believe I am seeing my dream come true,'' said Driton Ademi, a 23-year-old student.
The declaration of independence was made in Kosovo's parliament by the Prime Minister Hashim Thaci.
Outside there were no loud speakers or big screen for the crowds, so when the historic announcement was made it took some time to filter through.
'What we fought for'

Then there was a wave of excitement.
A few guns were fired into the air, butt most of noisy celebrations came from firecrackers and fireworks. Glasses of champagne and slices of cake were handed amongst the crowd.
The stars and stripes along with union jacks were dotted among the revellers.
Kosovo's independence has been co-ordinated with the United States and the European Union.

For some in Kosovo, the declaration marks a new beginning

''Thank you USA, thank you. I am free of Serbia, my grandchildren are free of Serbia.,' said 72-year-old Beqir Peci who had a large American flag draped over his shoulders.
Independence day has also been a time for reflection.
A decade ago thousands of ethnic Albanians were killed in a conflict with Serb forces.
''This is what we fought for. We knew we would achieve what we wanted,'' said 51-year-old teacher Rifat Ademi.
''Albanians have gone through horror to come to this point. We thank everyone who supported us. We thank United States of America, United Kingdom, Europe and everyone,'' said Teuta Bokshi, a housewife from Pristina.
For many, Sunday marks an exciting new beginning.
Just after the declaration of independence, Kosovo's new blue and yellow flag was unveiled.
''I know what my identity is. I feel ecstatic that I will now have a name and that's Kosovan, from the Republic of Kosovo,'' said 20-year-old student Besmir Kuqi.
Just a couple of hours after the declaration, the new Kosovo flag could be seen flying proudly on the streets of this new European capital.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Kosovo celebrates 'dream come true'

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Serbia makes fresh Kosovo threat

2008-02-13T05:10:00.001-05:00

Serbia makes fresh Kosovo threat

Temperatures have been rising ahead of the expected declaration

Serbia intends to pronounce any declaration of independence by Kosovo annulled even before any declaration has been made, its PM has said.

Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica said that Serbia would "in advance cancel out the... creation of a fictitious state" on Thursday.

Kosovo is expected to make the declaration in a matter of days.

A high-level Serbian security council has been meeting to discuss a secret "action plan" if that happens.

The defence ministry has ruled out military intervention and the energy ministry disruption to electricity supplies, Reuters news agency reported.

But Serbia could disrupt telephone or internet services in Kosovo, reports suggest.

It could also take diplomatic or legal action against countries that recognise Kosovan statehood - which Kosovo could announce as early as Sunday.

International split

"We shall not allow such a creation to exist for a moment," Mr Kostunica said on Tuesday, according to Reuters.

"It has to be legally annulled the moment it is illegally proclaimed by a leadership of convicted terrorists."

The US and most members of the EU say they will support independence for Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority, while Russia has spoken out against it.

Serbia has requested a UN Security Council meeting on the issue on Thursday, to coincide with its formal rejection of the Kosovan move.

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BALKANS: Promises of EU More Sweet than Serious

2008-02-13T04:25:00.001-05:00

BALKANS: Promises of EU More Sweet than Serious
By Vesna Peric Zimonjic

BELGRADE, Feb 12 (IPS) - Sweet talk on the joys of European Union (EU) membership is quite a favourite among leaders of the Balkans, particularly in their public appearances. But when it comes to serious talk, the EU looks quite far.

EU membership is one of the principal foreign policy goals of the former Yugoslav nations Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia, surrounded as they are by EU members Slovenia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.

But developments in Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia in recent days have cautioned people against any early EU membership.

Over the weekend, leaders of six ruling parties of Bosnia-Herzegovina (BH) met at Siroki Brijeg near town Mostar. Under the auspices of EU representative for Bosnia Miroslav Lajcak, they were due to agree on constitutional reforms of the complicated state structure.

Two of the three ethnic groups in Bosnia, Croats and Serbs, oppose any centralisation that would put them under the "rule of Muslims". But constitutional reform is a pre-condition for signing the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) that leads to EU membership.

Instead of agreement, the six leaders unexpectedly withdrew from an agreement on police reform adopted in December, another EU demand for the SAA.

Muslims leader Sulejman Tihic rejected the December agreement. Serb leader Milorad Dodik criticised him for "obstructing the road to the SAA agreement," and suggested that Tihic's Party of Democratic Action (SDA) be excluded from the talks.

At a press conference after the disastrous weekend meeting, Lajcak said Tihic was endangering the EU prospects for Bosnia.

"Tihic should know that his behaviour is now contrary to what the EU and most of people in BH (Bosnia Herzegovina) expect," Lajcak told BH TV. "Further rejection of police reforms would only leave BH behind other countries in the region."

Recent polls show 65 percent support for EU membership in the Serb-dominated Republic of Srpska, and at 82 percent in the Muslim-Croat Federation. The two make Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Croatia was at odds over the weekend with neighbouring Slovenia, currently the presiding nation of the EU. Croatia, with an SAA agreement already in hand, stands closest among former Yugoslav nations to EU membership, expected by the end of the decade.

Croatia imposed an Ecological and Fisheries Protection Zone (ZERP) in its Adriatic waters bordering Slovenia. Slovenia has only a small part of the Adriatic coast, and unresolved issues over sea borders with Croatia.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn repeated his warning to Croatia last week to withdraw the ZERP, warning that it could jeopardise Croatia's access to the EU. Non-implementation of the ZERP was one of the conditions agreed with Brussels when the SAA agreement was signed.

"We should be able to solve this problem in good European spirit, so I call all sides to lower the tensions and try to find a political solution," Rehn said in Brussels.

The government of Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader has done little to explain the issue to the public, and the media spoke of the ZERP as a "condition" being set for Croatia to join the EU. Support for EU membership plummeted as a result to 49 percent, according to Cro-Demoscope polling agency.

"If the referendum on EU membership was held today, it would not be positive in Croatia," said Zagreb daily Jutarnji List. But it pointed out that the ZERP was not the only problem; Croatia has not introduced the judicial and administrative reforms demanded by the EU.

"The whole issue is a false dilemma imposed by the government -- either ZERP or the EU," it added.

Serbia has initialled the SAA agreement, but still has to meet some conditions such as extradition of alleged Bosnian war criminals Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic.

But as the expected date for declaration of Kosovo independence draws near, probably Feb. 17, the government is becoming increasingly nervous. Serbia opposes both independence for Kosovo and plans to bring in an 1,800 strong EU mission which would take over from the UN administration and implement judicial, police and other reforms.

As the EU announced the mission last Monday, Kostunica refused to call a government session which should have confirmed the signing of the interim agreement with the EU for Feb. 6. It has now been postponed indefinitely.

Olli Rehn said he regretted "the obstruction by certain politicians in Belgrade to blocking the signature…they have really failed to hear the choice of the Serbian people."

Kostunica said on the other hand that "the political agreement that the EU has proposed while it deploys a mission to dismember our country is a deception...by signing, Serbia would indirectly recognise the independence of Kosovo."

"Despite the 75 percent support among people to come closer to the EU, Serbia now looks like a nation that does not want that," analyst Misa Brkic told IPS. (END/2008)

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Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

2008-02-04T15:17:00.001-05:00

February 04, 2008

Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing
-- Recently Albania has put itself firmly on the map, both as an increasingly popular tourism destination, and an emerging market on the international property investment scene. --

/24-7PressRelease/ - NOTTINGHAM, UK, February 04, 2008 - Things that shrewd investors and experts in the field like David Stanley Redfern Ltd look for are rapid growth, and/or reasons and factors that make rapid growth in the near future probable. In the case of Albania, these factors include: entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization later this year, into the European Union in 2014, and of course rising tourism, growing by 10% per year.

Other major advantages Albania offers investors are the lack of restrictions on foreign ownership of property, the only restrictions being that foreigners can only make a commercial investment if its value exceeds three times the cost of the land, and foreigners cannot buy agricultural land - they can however lease it for 99 years. Also worth a mention is that Albania is already attracting some of the major European banks, which will make financing an investment easier.

Albania also has many tax advantages like the lack of capital gains tax, no withholding tax, no inheritance tax, no Value Added Tax on property purchases, no state or wealth taxes and no transfer tax. The total round-trip transaction cost is also very low, with less than 1% going on public notary fees.

Albania's potential for growth is definitely among its biggest attractions: Gross Domestic Product growth is an almost incredible 6% and likely to accelerate, and capital appreciation can reach up to 30% depending on the investment.

As always, with a finger on the pulse of international property markets, David Stanley Redfern Ltd had to give their clients the chance to get a piece of the Albanian action. David Redfern told me why:

"Just as the other Eastern European States hit us hard and fast with their capital growth, we believe Albania will do the same. It is becoming a pattern, these under-developed states, that were once surrounded by similarly under-developed neighbouring states, see their neighbours jumping onto the international tourism and property markets with a bang, and start to take steps rapidly to ensure that they are not left behind. They have a lot of room to work with; property prices and living costs are generally low, which become immediate selling points to tourists and to overseas property investors. Their generally good climate, which is always big business in the tourism industry, means their low prices make them a low cost alternative to some of Europe's hottest tourist destinations."

David Stanley Redfern Ltd are offering investors the chance to get in on the action with 1-2 bedroom apartments in the Shengjin Beach development. Starting from 32,088, most of the apartments enjoy sea views and will be supplied finished with ceramic tiling, electrical and plumbing connections ready for installation. The development is two buildings frontline to the beach, both have lifts, the ground floors will be retail units and there is a communal garden to the rear. Activities in and around the development include, surfing, windsurfing, beach volleyball, skiing, caving, trekking and sampling the variety of restaurants and bars from the diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds in the area.

A few years ago Albania was a destination very few people (if any) would consider a holiday destination, but huge advances in democracy and development in the last few years have made Albania not only an attractive holiday destination but a very affordable one.

Albania: "it's a place where history is still waiting to be discovered", wrote Matt Gross in the December 14 edition of the French newspaper: The International Herald Tribune. In two paragraphs about Albania's history he had me wanting to drop everything and jump on a plane. Something that exponentially growing numbers of tourists are doing year upon year.

Undoubtedly not all those tourists will be going in search of the history, the climate is another big plus point. The quickest way I can introduce you to the tourism extraordinaire that is Albania is to tell you that you can rent a double room in a good hotel in Albania's Sarande for the equivalent of around 20, from where you can also take a short hydrofoil ride to the Greek Island and tourist hot-spot of Corfu.

This is symbolic of another tourist attracting feature of Albania, it's cheap. For decades Albania has been one of the poorest states in Europe and so on holiday there you will, as I said enjoy the temperatures and sunshine of Greece for a fraction of the cost.

Call David Stanley Redfern today for a free no-obligation chat.

Find out more about David Stanley Redfern Ltd's investment properties in Albania at:
http://www.davidstanleyredfern.com/investment-property/albania/

About David Stanley Redfern
David Stanley Redfern Ltd is one of the U.K.'s leading overseas property investment specialists. The reasons for this are an incomparable range of international properties spanning 40 destinations worldwide, and unrivalled customer care, which lasts long after the purchase has been completed. Experienced, professional staff and membership to the overseas property market's regulatory body: the Association for International Property Professionals, as well as their stringent due diligence procedures gives buyers the confidence that any purchase with David Stanley Redfern is a safe one.

DSR have just branched out into the _a href="http://www.overseaspropertyrentals.com"_Overseas Property Rentals_/a_ industry.

Media enquiries should be directed to Liam Bailey: media@davidstanleyredfern.com

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Albania honors resistance efforts that helped save Jews from Holocaust - Haaretz - Israel News

2008-01-29T17:21:00.001-05:00

Last update - 20:44 29/01/2008

Albania honors resistance efforts that helped save Jews from Holocaust

By The Associated Press

Tags: Holocaust, Israel, Jews

Albania held a ceremony in parliament Tuesday to commemorate resistance efforts during World War II that helped the country's tiny Jewish minority escape the Holocaust.

Some 1,200 Jews, residents and refugees from other Balkan countries, were
hidden by Albanian families during the war, according to official records.
The ambassadors of Israel and the United States attended the ceremony in parliament.

"The Holocaust was the defining moment of the 20th century. ... Most nations and their people failed to meet the challenge. But that did not happen in Albania," said Warren Miller, head of the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of American Heritage Abroad.

Parliament Speaker Jozefina Topalli said the success of saving the country's Jews was a source of national pride.

"But we have convened [a special session] not only out of pride in our past but also in respect of the innocent victims of one of the darkest time of humanity," Topalli said.

Albania was occupied from 1939 to 1943 by fascist Italy and then by Nazi
Germany until 1944. Partisan groups who helped liberate the country formed the communist party that ruled Albania until 1990.

About 300 Jews lived in Albania until the collapse of communism, but most have since emigrated to the United States and Israel.

Albania honors resistance efforts that helped save Jews from Holocaust - Haaretz - Israel News

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Book Review: German Diplomats Remember Kosovo

2008-01-24T19:30:00.001-05:00

Book Review: German Diplomats Remember Kosovo
24 January 2008 For historians it is may still be too early to assess the Kosovo war, but German’s former foreign minister and a retired diplomat provide a valuable insight into Berlin’s role in the 20th century’s last war.
By Paul Hockenos
Diplomacy on the Edge: Containment of Ethnic Conflict and the Minorities Working Group of the Conferences on Yugoslavia, by Geert-Hinrich Ahrens (The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2007, 672 pages.)

Die rot-grünen Jahren: Deutsche Aussenpolitik—vom Kosovo bis zum 11. September, by Joschka Fischer, (Kiepenheuer & Witsch, Cologne, pp. 444.)

Most of Ahrens's nearly 700-page account of international diplomacy in the Balkans takes place in the early and mid-1990s. Ahrens, a veteran German negotiator, led some of the earliest European efforts to bring together Kosovar Albanians and the Belgrade leadership.

Ahrens’s small mediation teams were able to make sporadic progress improving the situation on the ground in Kosovo — in human rights, education, and healthcare - and defusing tensions that could then easily have, and later did, spiral out of control.

Even though neither the Serbs nor the Kosovar Albanians budged from their maximalist positions on Kosovo's status, Ahrens shows that there was room for negotiation and compromise between moderate factions of both camps. At the very least, "containment" of the potential conflict was possible.

With considerable bitterness Ahrens underscores the thin political support from both the American and major European capitals, which, he argues, caused the international community to miss real chances to make progress. He says Kosovo was, at best, treated as a "side show", and after the 1995 Dayton conference, Kosovo disappeared completely from the international agenda.

As a result, in early 1996, the International Conference on Former Yugoslavia working group on Kosovo, which Ahrens had led, was scrapped for lack of funds. Shortly afterwards, the first Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) attacks began.

Red-Green and Kosova

Armed hostilities in Kosovo had already begun when the autumn 1998 elections in Germany ousted Helmut Kohl's conservative government. The Serbs had responded to KLA guerrilla activity with military offensives that targeted the civilian population. Tens of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees were fleeing their homes, many of whom were homeless as winter approached. The incoming Social Democrat-Green coalition had the Kosovo crisis thrust upon it even before the administration entered office.

The Fischer memoirs cover the first three years of the red-green coalition, from autumn 1998 to September 11, 2001, a formative period for German foreign policy during which the novice leadership struggled with crises of major proportions. At least one-third of the book is about Kosovo (the section aptly titled "The Red-Green Nightmare"), and offers a fascinating look into the decision-making of the German leadership.

Ironically, in foreign affairs, the red-green years delivered anything but the "continuity" the German Greens and Social Democrats had promised beforehand. In fact, it was in Berlin’s Balkans policies that the contradictions between humanitarianism, Germany's historical limitations, and alliance responsibilities would sweep away the Cold War coordinates of German foreign policy.

Fischer responds explicitly to critics, many within his own party, who opposed the military campaign against Serbia. He repeatedly underscores that the purpose of the NATO-led military intervention was humanitarian: to "prevent another Bosnia", as he puts it. "Milosevic," concluded Fischer after visiting Belgrade in early 1999, "obviously wanted to break the Albanian resistance using military might, special police, terror, and expulsion." After having waited much too long to stop genocide in Bosnia, the West had no other choice.

Fischer contends that Germany and its Western allies did everything in their power to bring Milosevic to accept a political solution. At the Rambouillet negotiations in early 1999, the Serbs wasted their last chance to hold on to Kosovo.

Fischer rejects the charge that negotiators had "held the bar too high" for Serbia, making it impossible for them to sign, and thus triggering NATO’s military intervention. Annex B of the draft agreement, which would have given NATO full occupation powers in Yugoslavia, played no role at all in the Rambouillet negotiations, he asserts. It reflected NATO's maximalist negotiating position and would have been addressed after the signing of the agreement's political section, which never happened.

Another bone of contention was the January 1999 massacre by Serbian security forces in the village of Racak in Kosovo, which helped tip the scales in favour of intervention. According to Fischer, the report of Finnish medical specialists affirmed that the dead were overwhelmingly civilians who were shot at close range, not KLA fighters. Moreover, this was not an isolated incident, underlines Fischer, but part of a pattern, the purpose of which was to deprive the KLA of support by driving out the ethnic Albanians.

As for "Operation Horseshoe," an alleged Serbian plan to ethnically cleanse Kosovo, Fischer says he was told of the plan’s existence by the Bulgarian foreign minister on April 1, 1999. Its authenticity was subsequently confirmed by German intelligence services.

The mass expulsion of ethnic Albanians from Kosovo in spring 1999, argues Fischer, was obviously planned in advance, well before the beginning of NATO bombing. The exodus was triggered by the Serb offensive, which commenced four days before the first NATO bombs fell. In other words, atrocities were not “imminent,” they were ongoing.

Fischer has harsh words for the European left that protested against the bombing campaign but never lifted a finger for the Kosovar Albanians during their eight-year campaign of passive resistance. “The fate of the Kosovar Albanians did not seem to interest the radical left in Europe at all," he says.

Equally fascinating is Fischer’s blow-by-blow description of the emergence of the "Fischer Plan" (which he claims he had no role in naming). The peace plan set aside the Rambouillet conditions, and brought the UN and Russia back into the game, paving the way to end the war, which came none too soon for an ever shakier red-green coalition.

Memoirs, by their very nature, are one-sided, self-serving, and self-promoting. Fischer’s account will probably not convince anyone who did not already believe that the 1999 intervention in Kosovo was justified. But the historical record is now richer with these two publications, even if they are not the last word.

Paul Hockenos is an American, Berlin-based writer and author of Joschka Fischer and the Making of the Berlin Republic: An Alternative History of Postwar Germany (Oxford, 2008).

BalkanInsight.com - Book Review: German Diplomats Remember Kosovo

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Nationalism Rising in Serbia? - TIME

2008-01-22T12:06:00.001-05:00

A banner reading "Russia Help Us!" is seen in front of a poster of Tomislav Nikolic in the Kosovo town of Mitrovica.

Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP / Getty Images

Nationalism Rising in Serbia? - TIME

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Kosovo's Thaci seeks independence timetable at EU

2008-01-22T11:56:00.001-05:00

CTV.ca

Kosovo's Thaci seeks independence timetable at EU
Reuters - 2 hours ago
By Matt Robinson PRISTINA, Serbia, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci meets top European Union and NATO officials this week in the hope of securing a timetable for the province's independence from Serbia within the next two months.

AFP

Rice warns EU against dithering on Kosovo status
AFP - 1 hour ago
BERLIN (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sent a warning to European nations here Tuesday that there was a "danger" in delaying resolving the issue of Kosovo's status. "I don't think we have a gap with Europe on Kosovo.

'We all share the same heritage'
Scotsman - 16 hours ago
By SUE WILSON FOR most of us in this country, knowledge of the Balkans pretty much starts and ends with the conflict that wracked the region in the early 1990s, following the demise of Soviet-bloc Yugoslavia.

Italian firm to build power link with Albania
Economic Times - Jan 21, 2008
MILAN: Italian construction and energy firm Moncada Costruzioni plans to start this year building a 400-kilovolt power link with Albania to boost electricity imports to Italy. "We have received all necessary authorisations for building and starting up ...

Albania to Fight Grey Economy
BalkanInsight.com - 2 hours ago
Underlining the significance of introducing flat rate taxes at an exceptionally low rate at the beginning of the year, Berisha said on Monday that this was an important “welcome” sign for foreign investors in Albania. “We have increased incomes.

Albania to Build Major Wind Farm
BalkanInsight.com - 23 hours ago
21 January 2008 Tirana _ Albania is to host one of the biggest wind farms in Europe, according to plans announced by the Italian Moncada construction company.

Croatia bans smoking in public places; amends zero tolerance for ...
Southeast European Times - 1 hour ago
By Natasa Radic for Southeast European Times in Zagreb -- 22/01/08 One of the first actions by Croatia's new ruling coalition government earlier this month was to ban smoking in public places and to amend the zero tolerance alcohol policy for drivers ...

The Moscow Times

Russia and Bulgaria build South Stream
Courrier International - 2 hours ago
Russia and Bulgaria have signed the contract for building the South Stream gas pipeline, which is to pass through the Black Sea.

Peninsula On-line

Macedonia, Greece fail to resolve name dispute in fresh talks
Xinhua - 19 hours ago
21 (Xinhua) -- Macedonia and Greece demonstrated willingness but failed to resolve the two Balkan neighbor's differences over Macedonia's name following the fresh talks at the lakeside town of Ohrid on Monday, said reports reaching here from Macedonia.

Help.me, love.me: new registry for Montenegro domain
Heise Online - 5 hours ago
Montenegro's governmental council for the top level domain (ccTLD) .me has opted for a consortium of US registrar GoDaddy, Afilias, and the local ME-Net.

gibfocus.gi

Montenegro citizen arrested for 'practical joke' No 6 Bomb Hoax
gibfocus.gi - 12 minutes ago
A man from Montenegro has been arrested for a hoax phone call made to No 6 Convent Place two weeks ago stating there was a bomb on the Government premises.

CBS News

Serbia Agrees to Russian Pipeline Deal
The Associated Press - 4 hours ago
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) - Serbia said Tuesday it had agreed to a multibillion dollar gas pipeline project as part of an energy deal with Russia that would boost Moscow's control over supplies to Europe.
Serbia agrees Gazprom energy deal BBC News
Serbia agrees to Russian pipeline deal BusinessWeek

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Who will he vote for?

2008-01-20T11:01:00.001-05:00

A Serb man casts a vote in a small roadside cafe turned into a polling station decorated with a picture of Bosnian Serb war crime fugitive Ratko Mladic in the village of Banjska in Kosovo January 20, 2008. The plum brandy was free-flowing at polling station number 9 in Banjska, northern Kosovo, as Serbs voted for a new president under a 2007 calendar of Bosnian Serb war crime fugitive Ratko Mladic.

REUTERS/Damir Sagolj
Kosovo - Yahoo! News Photos

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Rallying with the Serbian nationalists

2008-01-17T08:39:00.000-05:00

Rallying with the Serbian

nationalists

Mark Mardell
16 Jan 08, 09:05 PM

The streets of Belgrade are still brightened by Christmas decorations.

Twisted ropes of lights adorn every tree down the main roads; a parade of miniature Christmas trees in bright white light paves the way to the city hall and, especially impressive, four big ones lit up in shimmering purple stand in one of the main squares.

The Orthodox Christmas was on January 7 and Serbia is only slowly shaking its head free of holidays.

Perhaps that is why campaigning has been so sluggish in the presidential elections.

Yet they could hardly be more important: looming over them is the all but inevitable declaration of independence by Kosovo, shortly after the election of a Serbian president.

Kosovo politicians have been persuaded to delay their long planned announcement until after the vote for fear of inflaming and swelling nationalist sentiment.

East or West?

And behind this question lurks another. Does Serbia turn east or west?

Does it snuggle up to Mother Russia, which is fighting Serbia's fight over Kosovo on the international stage?

And then does Serbia become the first of the post-communist countries of eastern Europe to reject the lure of the European Union? Reject joining an organisation that, however derided in Britain, is seen by most such countries as a symbol of civilisation, modernity and wealth.

Like many crunch-points it may turn out to be a little mushier than that, not quite so crunchy, but in crude terms and over years that is what is at stake.

Nine candidates battle it out this weekend but most expect that the two left standing for the big fight in February will be the current President Boris Tadic and radical, that is right-wing nationalist, Tomislav Nikolic.

But the radical party certainly tried to make up for lost time during Christmas with a rally in the city's central stadium. In many ways it was like many high octane political rallies I've been to both in Britain and throughout Europe. But it had certain, shall we say, unusual features?

It certainly wasn't speaker after speaker punching the air and making very vague promises.

It wasn't the huge Serbian flag taking up one side of the auditorium.

Patriotic melody

The patriotic melody sung by a girl of 12 or 13 was striking. Dressed in black and white costume-dress, her pure voice soared about the accompanying choir of women in evening dresses, miners in blue hard-hats and matching overalls and, for some reason, a couple of men in chef's tall, white hats.

"Far away from the sea is my village where the lemon blossoms,
Along the way that was the only road for the army …
Did that awful night have to come when you my darling went to the bloody battle?
Far away, the white flower blooms.
That is where a father and a son gave their lives…I am living in my sorrow but still happily calling out Long Live Serbia."

It perhaps loses a little in translation but it is a song that the audience knows is about Kosovo, just as this election is about Kosovo and how Serbia reacts to its almost inevitable loss.

Kosovo, for which Nato bombed this European country less than a decade ago.

Kosovo which looms over this election. Kosovo, so often called the cradle of Serbian civilisation, the Serbian Jerusalem.

Kosovo, which speaker after speaker declared must remain part of Serbia.

Much more unusual than this emotive melody was the speech that boomed out, powerful and eerie because no one stood at the lectern to deliver it.

Their master's voice

Some recorded voice delivered the words in a letter written by the radical party's leader. He couldn't be at this rally or any other because he is imprisoned in the Hague awaiting trial for war crimes, encouraging murder and massacre during Yugoslavia's civil war.

But in the end that wasn't what made me sit up. We had been tipped off that the widow of the notorious Arkan , the murdered mobster and paramilitary, might sing.

How would we spot her?

The intellectual who had just given me a lengthy and erudite run down of the election issues was succinct: breasts like torpedoes, he said.

But it wasn't she who roused the crowd before Tomislav Nicolic's big speech.

Getting the winner of last year's Eurovision song contest to perform before the big speech certainly was a coup.

Marija Serifovic looks pretty normal for a pop star. Shortish, slightly plump with short, dark hair, dressed in grey check trousers and a black tee shirt, she's a million miles from the high heels, caked-on make-up and bags of bling favoured by most Serbian pop stars.

In any other European country she'd have been campaigning for civic partnerships or more cycle lanes but here she was bouncing around the stage, egging on the crowd on behalf of a party where some supporters come dressed in paramilitary uniform and see men accused of mass murder as heroes.

I caught up with her by the side of the stage, as nice and as ordinary as I had guessed.

Returning a favour

What did she like about the party?

Well really she was just returning a favour. They'd been good to her. She knew nothing about politics.

What about Kosovo?

She started on a complex analogy about somebody being in your flat and saying they liked your TV set.

"It's been stolen from you?" I interrupted.

No, she didn't say that: "What do I know, I've never even been there?"

Of course neither had most in the hall or indeed most Serbs. Nor, I would guess, have most of the presidential candidates.

To many Serbs, Kosovo is like the garden of Eden, a place of enormous mythical significance but not somewhere you go for the weekend. And that was what WAS striking in a rally designed to raise emotions, banish doubt and unite everyone around the unquestioning belief that Kosovo must remain Serbian.

A moment of more than hesitation. Of genuine indifference… from the star guest.

Remaining oblivious to the claims of a whole political class that the loss of Kosovo is a hurt that can't be borne is quite a feat.

In the coming weeks, Serbia as a whole might be more comfortable if it imitated the pop star, not the politicians.

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'The Date for Kosovo Independence Is Set'

2008-01-17T08:29:00.001-05:00

Q&A: 'The Date for Kosovo Independence Is Set'
Interview with Hashim Thaci, Prime Minister of Kosovo

Hashim Thaci

PRISTINA, Jan 17 (IPS) - Every passing day brings more pressure on the two million people of Kosovo over the future of the province. Demonstrations on the streets of Pristina and Mitrovica, for and against independence respectively, are strong indication of the social unrest in anticipation of a decision.

The newly elected Hashim Thaci, previously political leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army (UCK) and now prime minister who seems likely to lead Kosovo towards its declaration of independence will face a complicated reality of ethnic tensions, underdevelopment and corruption.

"My will is to create conditions for cooperation and not manipulation. Still, any decision about the final status of the region will be taken in coordination with Washington and Brussels," he told IPS correspondent Apostolis Fotiadis. Excerpts from the interview:

IPS: Are you ever afraid that the international community might look for new excuses to postpone the final status? This has happened many times.

HT: This time we are on a completely different stage of the process. I am absolutely convinced about the commitment of Washington, Brussels and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation), and we have a clear agenda on which we will proceed. Pristina, Washington and Brussels already know the date of the declaration of independence. It is not going to be unilateral but a co-ordinated act.

IPS: Will you declare independence after the Serbian presidential election at the end of January?

HT: Perhaps; the weather will be much better then.

IPS: How do you respond to those who are concerned that independence of Kosovo will accentuate irredentism in surrounding areas with a strong ethnic Albanian element?

HT: Allow me to begin by saying that independence is the only solution for the people of Kosovo. Much more, it is the only solution that not only guarantees peace and stability but also that no change of borders will take place in the region.

IPS: Still, there is recent evidence, like the fighting between police and armed Albanians in the village Brodec of Macedonia and the declaration of the Albanian minority party 'Democratic Movement for Progress' based in Presevo valley (an area in Serbia with Albanian majority), which asked for international mediation in the region, that vindicate these concerns to some extent.

HT: What I would like to see is a stable Macedonia with a European perspective. Furthermore I don't believe there will be trouble in Presevo Valley; I think there will be peace and stability there as well. Sometimes there are declarations that get exaggerated or misinterpreted. But whoever exercises violence will be condemned by me.

IPS: To what extent is tension in the region the invention of media who come here looking for a great story?

HT: Some of it is indeed imaginary. Some is the result of efforts of people who don't want to see peace and stability in the region, and constantly spot issues wherever Albanians live, finger-pointing Kosovo as the source of the problem because we have entered the final stage for declaration of independence. What these people do not understand is that independence is an irreversible process.

IPS: What are the major challenges Kosovo will face after independence?

HT: Our task is the creation of a new democracy, in a new country and homeland which will belong to its citizens. On a political level the big challenge will be the integration of minorities, especially Serbs, in the democratic structures and processes. Then there are other priorities like reforms in social welfare and education, adaptation to European legal standards, and creation of employment especially for the youth. On an economic level we should create the infrastructure which will attract foreign investment in Kosovo.

IPS: Which means you intend to increase your effective control in Northern Kosovo, in areas inhabited by the Serbian population?

HT: I have stated several times that Kosovo will be an independent and united country which belongs to all its citizens, and not a space with division between Albanian and Serbs. I understand that Mitrovica is a very sensitive issue. But I am committed to make Mitrovica a space of integration and not a space of partition and separation. After independence there will be international presence there as well as NATO forces. There will also be United States troops stationed in Northern Kosovo; so things are moving for the good. I am visiting the Serbian community, I am talking to them. I want to reassure them that they can live in their houses and not be afraid for their property or themselves.

IPS: Are there specific policies you will implement for fighting corruption?

HT: I feel bad, embarrassed and offended with the fact that Kosovo is ranked number four (according to Transparency International's report published the first week of December) on the corruption list. I know it will not be an easy task because unfortunately corruption in Kosovo is institutionalised. This government will not make any compromise in the fight against corruption and organised crime, and in the real implementation of the rule of law. I am committed to working in this direction.

IPS: This means you are prepared to pay the necessary political cost in order to advance in this direction. Are you really confident that the political capital you have accumulated is enough?

HT: Certainly yes; there will be no selectiveness in my battle against corruption. I am not going to have some kind of compromise even with some internationals in civilian structures that might be involved. So far some of them have tolerated corruption or were involved in it. I am going to fight them as well. They have started a big investigation in United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIC) about this.

IPS: How do you think your previous role as a military man can be combined with a role as politician?

HT: I have always been a politician. I was the political leader of UCK, and the partnership we established back then with NATO, Washington, and Brussels was the result of co-operation on a political level. Of course realities have changed and so have I.

IPS: Are you ever afraid that you could fail?

HT: So far I have only had successes in my life. There have been three objectives for me. First, to push Serbian troops and administration out of Kosovo. For some people that was beyond imagination. It succeeded in June 1999. The second project is independence. Now we are at the final countdown of this success, we are reaching it. The third is development of my country. We fight, we win. Without independence there will be no development for this country. (END/2008)

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Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

2008-01-16T06:00:00.001-05:00

Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

Published on: January 16th, 2008 12:01am by: LiamBailey

(OPENPRESS) January 16, 2008 -- Recently Albania has put itself firmly on the map, both as an increasingly popular tourism destination, and an emerging market on the international property investment scene. Things that shrewd investors and experts in the field like David Stanley Redfern Ltd look for are rapid growth, and/or reasons and factors that make rapid growth in the near future probable. In the case of Albania, these factors include: entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization later this year, into the European Union in 2014, and of course rising tourism, growing by 10% per year.

Other major advantages Albania offers investors are the lack of restrictions on foreign ownership of property, the only restrictions being that foreigners can only make a commercial investment if its value exceeds three times the cost of the land, and foreigners cannot buy agricultural land – they can however lease it for 99 years. Also worth a mention is that Albania is already attracting some of the major European banks, which will make financing an investment easier.

Albania also has many tax advantages like the lack of capital gains tax, no withholding tax, no inheritance tax, no Value Added Tax on property purchases, no state or wealth taxes and no transfer tax. The total round-trip transaction cost is also very low, with less than 1% going on public notary fees.

Albania's potential for growth is definitely among its biggest attractions: Gross Domestic Product growth is an almost incredible 6% and likely to accelerate, and capital appreciation can reach up to 30% depending on the investment.

As always, with a finger on the pulse of international property markets, David Stanley Redfern Ltd had to give their clients the chance to get a piece of the Albanian action. David Redfern told me why:

"Just as the other Eastern European States hit us hard and fast with their capital growth, we believe Albania will do the same. It is becoming a pattern, these under-developed states, that were once surrounded by similarly under-developed neighbouring states, see their neighbours jumping onto the international tourism and property markets with a bang, and start to take steps rapidly to ensure that they are not left behind. They have a lot of room to work with; property prices and living costs are generally low, which become immediate selling points to tourists and to overseas property investors. Their generally good climate, which is always big business in the tourism industry, means their low prices make them a low cost alternative to some of Europe's hottest tourist destinations."

David Stanley Redfern Ltd are offering investors the chance to get in on the action with 1-2 bedroom apartments in the Shengjin Beach development. Starting from £32,088, most of the apartments enjoy sea views and will be supplied finished with ceramic tiling, electrical and plumbing connections ready for installation. The development is two buildings frontline to the beach, both have lifts, the ground floors will be retail units and there is a communal garden to the rear. Activities in and around the development include, surfing, windsurfing, beach volleyball, skiing, caving, trekking and sampling the variety of restaurants and bars from the diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds in the area.

A few years ago Albania was a destination very few people (if any) would consider a holiday destination, but huge advances in democracy and development in the last few years have made Albania not only an attractive holiday destination but a very affordable one.

Albania: "it's a place where history is still waiting to be discovered", wrote Matt Gross in the December 14 edition of the French newspaper: The International Herald Tribune. In two paragraphs about Albania's history he had me wanting to drop everything and jump on a plane. Something that exponentially growing numbers of tourists are doing year upon year.

Undoubtedly not all those tourists will be going in search of the history, the climate is another big plus point. The quickest way to introduce you to the tourism extraordinaire that is Albania is to tell you that you can rent a double room in a good hotel in Albania's Sarande for the equivalent of around £20, from where you can also take a short hydrofoil ride to the Greek Island and tourist hot-spot of Corfu.

This is symbolic of another tourist attracting feature of Albania, it's cheap. For decades Albania has been one of the poorest states in Europe and so on holiday there you will, as I said enjoy the temperatures and sunshine of Greece for a fraction of the cost.

Call David Stanley Redfern today for a free no-obligation chat.

Find out more about David Stanley Redfern Ltd's investment properties in Albania at: http://www.davidstanleyredfern.com/investment-property/albania/

About David Stanley Redfern
David Stanley Redfern Ltd is one of the U.K.'s leading overseas property investment specialists. The reasons for this are an incomparable range of international properties spanning 40 destinations worldwide, and unrivalled customer care, which lasts long after the purchase has been completed. Experienced, professional staff and membership to the overseas property market's regulatory body: the Association for International Property Professionals, as well as their stringent due diligence procedures gives buyers the confidence that any purchase with David Stanley Redfern is a safe one.

Media enquiries should be directed to Liam Bailey: media@davidstanleyredfern.com

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A Union of the West? Balladur says it's time

2008-01-11T08:41:00.001-05:00

A Union of the West? Balladur says it's time

By John Vinocur

PARIS: And now for something radical. It's an idea that comes from a dour-looking man with an acute political mind whose ecclesiastically scarlet or royally purple socks peak out from under the dark trousers of Savile Row suits.

Here's his notion: The United States and Europe soon risk being overtaken by the rest of the world. To hold on to their place and value system, they ought to form an organic alliance, a Union of the West.

The time to get moving is now.

The idea comes from Edouard Balladur, the former French prime minister whose belly-of-the-beast Gaullist establishment credentials stretch back 40 years. Today, part of his pertinence lies in a close relationship with Nicolas Sarkozy, once his budget minister and spokesman, who a decade ago argued that Balladur would make a better president than Jacques Chirac.

For all its deliberately provocative and spiky aura, Balladur's Union of the West concept is not a bolt out of the blue.

Rather, it extends into a Great Notion a current, but still hesitant, attempt to bring the United States and the European Union closer together.

That project involves the sketchy outlines of a trans-Atlantic economic zone. Pushed by Angela Merkel, and backed in principle by Gordon Brown, it led last year to promising meetings between groups of EU commissioners and U.S. cabinet-level officials aimed at a vast harmonization of trade-related issues.

Worthy stuff, not radical or sexy, yet an undertaking that, an American participant said, "I think has legs."

But its wide, underlying premise has been left without substantial articulation by Merkel and Brown - and avoided by the Bush administration:

Europe and the United States acting in concert can best deal with China and Russia's advance, and the instability brought by radical Islam. Reality insists that alone, the Americans and Europeans have growing disadvantages in a world where the rule of law and democracy are not serving as controls over newly distributed economic and political power.

Balladur confronts the issue. He makes the case that half-measures that fail to bundle the West's strengths won't be a sufficient response. In a 120-page essay titled "Pour une Union occidentale entre l'Europe et les États-Unis," he says:

"History is starting to be made without the West, and perhaps one day it will be made against it.

"There's a simple method for avoiding this. The people of the West must become aware of the risk and convince themselves that the greatest possible solidarity between them is the only means for dealing with it."

For Balladur, there must be "a new alliance between Europe and America, and even more - a true union."

Twenty years ago, he told me, the idea was premature. That was just after the fall of the Berlin Wall and in the midst of the Soviet Union's implosion, when Secretary of State James Baker called for the development of a new, organic relationship between the European Union and the United States.

America was too uniquely all-powerful, and Europe too weak and suspicious of American dominance, for it to happen then. Now, in a new context, with the limits of U.S. power more apparent, and Europe's chances as a go-it-alone superstate limited or rejected, the concept has become actual.

Last autumn, Merkel, heightening the tone of her interest, said Europeans and Americans mistook "the mission of the trans-Atlantic relationship" if they did not to see that "combining our strengths goes in our interests, to our conception of being able to live by certain values."

Now, according to Balladur, France, as a former symbol of anti-Americanism, which realizes a weakened America disserves European interests, must take the initiative in creating a Union of the West.

The practicalities: a permanent Union secretariat to prepare common positions for international meetings; gradual creation of a common trans-Atlantic market; linkage between the dollar and euro; converging policies on energy supply and its security; and the creation of a trans-Atlantic executive council of leaders that would convene every three months.

Balladur won't say if that council should have decision-making powers. But he insists it would represent "immense progress" if it met frequently, and if "neither Europeans nor Americans could decide anything about common problems without having talked them through beforehand."

Drivel born out of desperation? An escapist proposal that excuses the rich and comfortable from looking closer and less indulgently at their own failures?

"Too great an ambition?" Balladur asks the question himself, and sounds Oswald Spengler-ish in providing an answer.

"There aren't any others that will allow the West to escape the decline threatening it." America's indispensability has a 20-year time frame; Europe has to stop "nourishing" its "illusion of power."

Sarkozy's old mentor sent his essay to the president, and he has telephoned Balladur to thank him for it.

For a politician who lives his life and makes policy outside the confines of convention, great ambitions don't confront much inhibition.

Seven months into a five-year term, Sarkozy has already struck a claim to European leadership, proposed a Mediterranean Union for the European and Arab countries along its shores and readied France's reintegration in NATO on the condition it gets its share of prestigious commands.

He plays big.

Sarkozy's New Year's to-do list includes making France the "soul" of a "new renaissance" with "a policy of civilization" required by "our old world."

On a Union of the West, if Sarkozy played a little smaller against the background of a leadership change in America, reaching not so much for effect but for the proposal's nuggets of practicality and general good sense, it might just have a long-shot chance at some success.

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U.S. and Germany Plan to Recognize Kosovo

2008-01-11T04:50:00.000-05:00

U.S. and Germany Plan to Recognize Kosovo

By DAN BILEFSKY

Published: January 11, 2008

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia — The United States and Germany have agreed to recognize Kosovo after it declares independence and to urge the rest of Europe to follow suit, say senior European Union diplomats close to negotiations over Kosovo's future.

In a recent conversation about Kosovo, a Serbian province that has been under United Nations administration since 1999, President Bush and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany agreed it was vital to recognize Kosovo to stabilize the western Balkans, European officials said Wednesday evening. After months of failed negotiations, Kosovo is expected to declare independence after the second round of Serbian elections, planned for Feb. 3.

The European officials said the United States was aggressively pressing the European Union to ensure that the recognition of Kosovo was not delayed by even a week. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because diplomatic negotiations were continuing.

"The cake has been baked, because the Americans have promised Kosovo independence," a senior European Union official said. "And if Washington recognizes Kosovo and European nations do not follow, it will be a disaster."

The government of Serbia and Russia, an ally, vehemently oppose independence for Kosovo. Several European Union countries — including Spain, Slovakia, Romania and Cyprus — fear spurring secessionist movements in their own territories. But European Union diplomats said a majority of European nations — including Germany, France, Britain and Italy — planned to recognize Kosovo, regardless of dissenters.

The German Foreign Ministry said no decision had been reached on when the European Union would recognize Kosovo.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the American ambassador to the United Nations, said in December, when the Security Council was unable to resolve the issue of Kosovo's future, that the time had come to proceed with granting independence. "The continuation of the status quo poses not only a threat to peace and stability in Kosovo but also to the region and in Europe," Mr. Khalilzad said then.

Slovenia, which took over the European Union presidency for six months on Jan. 1, is pressing members to make good on a pledge to send an 1,800-member police and civil force to Kosovo this month. European officials said Slovenia was determined to have the force in place before Kosovo declared independence.

Dimitrij Rupel, the Slovenian foreign minister, said this week that the European Union's best hope out of a potentially explosive situation in Kosovo was to soften Serbia's recalcitrance by offering it closer ties to the European Union and the prospect of joining the bloc. "The financial situation of Serbia is terrible, and coming closer to the E.U. will help change that," he said.

Kosovo legally remains part of Serbia, and the two rounds of Serbian elections are scheduled for Jan. 20 and Feb. 3. A declaration of independence before then would be likely to play into the hands of Serbian nationalists.

The European Union has said it will not fully embrace Serbia until it hands over those indicted on war crimes charges, including Gen. Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serbs' wartime military commander. But Mr. Rupel hinted that the European Union could show more flexibility if Serbia softened its stance on Kosovo.

He stressed that the ethnic Albanians who are the overwhelming majority of Kosovo's population were brutally subjugated by Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslav president who died in 2006. Mr. Rupel said the Albanians had the same right to self-determination achieved by Slovenia, which declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 as the nation began to disintegrate.

Kosovo, a territory of two million people, has been in limbo since NATO intervened in 1999 to stop repression by Serbian forces against the ethnic Albanians.

Some Slovenian diplomats are concerned that tiny Slovenia's efforts will be upstaged by France, which takes over the European Union presidency in July. But Prime Minister Janez Jansa said Slovenia's size could prove an advantage.

"The fact that our political work might be perceived as lesser than other E.U. member states could give us an advantage by giving us more room for maneuver," Mr. Jansa said. "It will help us to be an honest broker."

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Huge Oil & Gas Reserve Found in Albania

2008-01-11T04:48:00.001-05:00

Huge Oil & Gas Reserve Found in Albania

10 January 2008 Tirana _ Vast and untouched reserves of oil and gas have been discovered in northern Albania, one of Central Asia's and Eastern Europe's leading petroleum corporations announced Thursday.

The report was compiled by Gustavson Associates LLC on behalf of Manas Petroleum Corporation, which has been awarded a contact by the Albanian government to explore the north of the country for oil and gas reserves.

According to their findings, the unproven reserve holds up to 2.987 billion barrels of oil and 3.014 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

However if the oil is capped with a layer of gas, Gustavson calculates the field to total 1.4 billion barrels of light oil and 15 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

And in the event that only gas is present, the reserve is expected to contain 28 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

The Balkans region has proven oil reserves totalling approximately 345 million barrels. Of that, 198 million barrels is located in Albania .

Proven natural gas reserves in the Balkans region add up to approximately 2.7 trillion cubic feet.

Under the licence awarded to Manas Petroleum Corporation, the company is allowed to explore oil and gas reserves in an area approximately 780,000 acres in size, located along a geological fold in north-western Albania.

'The probability of success for a wildcat well in a structurally complex area such as this, is relatively high due to the fact that there exists a proven hydrocarbon source and analogous production exists only 20 to 30 km away,' notes Gustavson in the report.

Manas is currently still analysing the findings and will make further announcements on its next steps in the coming weeks.

The corporation is an important player in the development of Albania's terrestrial oil and gas reserves.

In December 2007, Albania's Council of Ministers agreed to allow DWM Petroleum AG, a subsidiary of Manas, to assist in the exploration, development and production of Albania's land-based hydrocarbon reserves in conjunction with the government's Agency of Natural Resources.

Battle of Kosovo

2008-01-09T06:29:00.001-05:00

Battle of Kosovo

Kosovo's aspiration for independence has come face to face with the very same forces that bloodily denied it to Bosnia

Anna Di Lellio

In her fascinating memoir, Paix et Châtiment , Florence Hartmann writes that so long as the survivors are denied justice, "the dead of Srebrenica will haunt the Old Continent like ghosts". From 2000 to 2007 Hartmann was spokesperson for Carla del Ponte, the chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia. Hers is a passionate, but bitter j'accuse against western powers, not just Europe, but also the United States. They have traded justice for security, Hartmann says. As diplomats, intelligence services and even peacekeepers, they have impeded the arrest of Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic (indicted for the Srebrenica massacre), in a quiet conspiracy with the nationalist Serbian leadership that continues to shelter the two war criminals.

What makes this book urgent reading is that the riveting story of the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia is more than a morality play on the role of international justice and human rights in post-conflict. It is a tale of what the near future might look like in the region, especially now that Kosovo's aspiration for independence must face, once again, the very same forces that bloodily denied Bosnia its own.

Hartmann sifts through key documents that the tribunal was refused for long time, among them, the minutes of the meetings of the Supreme Defence Council of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, still unavailable for public viewing. She reconstructs how Milosevic and other Serbian authorities orchestrated and co-authored the criminal war of Bosnia, while pretending to be disengaged from it; how they dissimulated their involvement, by adding to local Bosnian military units their special units under the interior ministry; and how they funded and protected Mladic and Karadzic from the time of their indictment until today.

This is a claim that warrants close attention. There is nobody among the post-Milosevic leadership, with the notable exception of prime minister Zoran Djindjic, who deviated from Milosevic's policies. Djindjic delivered Milosevic to The Hague and even tried to turn in Mladic, but was assassinated in March 2003. Kostunica succeeded him as prime minister of Serbia. As president he had opposed Milosevic's arrest and only reluctantly retired Mladic from the Serbian army as late as May 2002. It is under his government that Karadzic and Mladic have lived free in Serbia for years, often visiting Bosnia.

Kostunica is now getting ready to fight the battle of Kosovo, as he likes to say. He is not alone. As the new Kosovo parliament is preparing to declare independence from Serbia, a united Belgrade delivered a message of defiance: Serbia will defend Kosovo at all costs. Minister of foreign affairs Vuk Jeremic incessantly repeats that this does not mean that Serbia will go to war. Speaking to military forces at a facility near the border with Kosovo, President Tadic recently assured: "Serbia's armed forces will act in compliance with domestic and international laws."

If there is no threat of war, why talk about it so much? The truth is, as in Bosnia, special forces are already on the ground. When Kosovo declares independence, they will join Serb police currently part of the Kosovo Police Service to seize control of any municipality with a Serb majority. They will make sure that these areas will be free of Albanians. And Belgrade will blame any violence on extremist elements, unknown to the government. The major blame of course will be pinned down on the US and any other country that unilaterally decides to recognise Kosovo independence.

Although nothing happens exactly in the same way, this looks a lot like a replay of Bosnia. What is astounding is the willingness of western powers to see it happen again. As Hartman reveals in excruciating detail, in Bosnia they had enough information to foresee the tragedy of Srebrenica, as well as Sarajevo and many other massacres. They knew the architects of ethnic cleansing were in Belgrade. In wiretappings obtained by the tribunal, Hartmann hears a giddy Milosevic congratulate Mladic for the victory of Srebrenica, disbelieving that the west let them gain a territory where Serbs had never lived before.

Western powers put a stamp on ethnic cleansing, divided Bosnia, and forfeited justice for security. They never had any intention of risking their peacekeepers in Bosnia in order to bring Mladic and Karadzic to justice. Although they always knew exactly where these criminals were hiding, they pretended not to. They even tried, as Hartmann angrily claims, to shield Milosevic from the indictment of genocide. Local extremists, as the argument went, were responsible for the Bosnian genocide, not Belgrade.

They thought they could contain the crisis. It spread to Kosovo, where the survivors have not been yet granted the simple right to choose, with a referendum, freedom from Serbia. Serbian nationalism, briefly subdued after the fall of Milosevic, is back in full force with its old tactics. Momir Stojanovic, the former director of the Serbian Army's intelligence, recently told Glas Javnosti that Albanian civilians are planning a pogrom of Serbs in Kosovo. This is the same propaganda that prepared the arming of Serb militias and led to the war in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo. It is an ominous signal for the region, and a reminder that without justice there will be no security.

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New Kosovo Coalition Eyes Imminent Independence

2008-01-08T10:27:00.001-05:00

New Kosovo Coalition Eyes Imminent Independence
Deutsche Welle - 5 hours ago
Kosovo's two leading parties have formally sealed a coalition agreement, giving them a parliamentary majority. Party leaders have set a clear agenda of independence for the break-away province.
Kosovo parties form coalition San Jose Mercury News

Concert for the needy of Kosovo
ic Wales - 4 hours ago
For the past four years the charity has focused its attention on Kosovo, working closely with the Mother Teresa Society, whose role is to identify the refugees, displaced persons, hospitals, and schools, which are in most need of assistance from Hope ...

Bora Cosic on the inhabitants of Kosovo
Courrier International - Jan 7, 2008
Serbian author Bora Cosic recalls how Kosovo Albanians were always treated as somehow less worthy than other Yugoslavians - even under Tito.

Euronews.net

Slovenia to concentrate EU attention in Western Balkans
Euronews.net - 1 hour ago
Host prime minister Janez Jensa talked about the main priorities: "We place great importance on the Western Balkans, the coordinated starting out point being the question: what will their future be.

RTE.ie

EU presidency wants Serbia deal
BBC News - 40 minutes ago
Slovenia has raised the prospect of Serbia taking a step closer to joining the EU, possibly by the end of January. Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the EU presidency, says he believes Serbia should sign a pre-entry accord as soon as ...

Serbia refuses to register Montenegrin Church
B92 - 1 hour ago
BELGRADE -- Belgrade has rejected a demand by the Montenegrin Orthodox Church (CPC) to be registered in Serbia. The Ministry of Religion made the decision, and explained it by saying that "from the point of view of Orthodox churches the CPC is not ...

Bulgaria and Romania to enter Schengen in 2011-2012 - Slovenian ...
Sofia Echo - 6 hours ago
An evaluation of Bulgaria and Romania's readiness to join the Schengen area was launched, Slovenia interior minister Dragutin Mate told journalists, who had been invited to Ljubljana on the occasion of Slovenian EU presidency.

BalkanInsight.com - Albania in Big Privatization Drive

2008-01-07T11:08:00.001-05:00

Albania in Big Privatization Drive

Albania’s centre-right government is planning a big round of privatization in 2008, which will spell the end of public ownership of the last major assets currently controlled by the state.The distribution branch of Albania’s power utility, KESH, the state-owned insurer, INSIG, and the only oil-refinery in the country, ARMO, will all be sold off later this year, according to a plan presented by Prime Minister Sali Berisha.“This year will be marked by a privatization wave, as we view ourselves as a liberal government that believes in free enterprise,” Berisha said at a cabinet meeting on Saturday.The Albanian premier also detailed plans to conclude concessionary contracts with private enterprise for the construction of new hydro-electric generating plants.Over the past two years, Albania has been hit by an acute energy crisis, with regular power cuts throughout the country, including the capital Tirana.International organizations that monitor the Albanian economy, including the IMF and the World Bank, have expressed concern that the energy crisis could have an adverse effect on the country’s robust economic growth, which has been averaging close to 6% per annum in recent years.The current wave of privatization is being structured with expert assistance provided by the International Finance Corporation, a branch of the World Bank, and the United States Agency for International Development, USAID.In 2007, Albania sold a majority stake in its fixed-line telephone company, Albtelekom, to a Turkish consortium led by Calik Enerji, for €120 million.The offer also included a mobile telephone operating licence, which is expected to start operations in March, under the Eagle Mobile brand.The government's sweeping privatization plans follow the introduction of a flat-rate tax system at the exceptionally low rate of 10% at the beginning of the year. Read more at http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/7207/

BalkanInsight.com - Albania in Big Privatization Drive

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Bora Cosic recalls how Kosovo Albanians were always treated as somehow less worthy than other Yugoslavians

2008-01-07T10:50:00.001-05:00

Bora Cosic on the inhabitants of Kosovo

Serbian author Bora Cosic recalls how Kosovo Albanians were always treated as somehow less worthy than other Yugoslavians - even under Tito. "Now the end of the history of these poor people is looming on the horizon, people who have subsisted on grapes and sardines in their cellars and who make a great effort today to live off their land, according their own preference and with the right to independence, handling their own freedom with care. These industrious, proud and tough people have already made it clear how hard it is to deal with freedom. And so far they have managed to disappoint many of those who sympathize with them: Why do they have to burn down their neighbours' houses of worship? It's another reason why it's so hard for me to convince my fellow Serbians to leave the Kosovo Albanians in peace and let them deal with their own fate for once and for all."

Neue Zürcher Zeitung (Switzerland)

Courrier international, eurotopics : the european press in 3 languages

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"Koštunica does not want Serbia in EU"

2008-01-07T07:04:00.001-05:00

The Age

Serbian Orthodox Church lashes out at 'world power-mongers' over ...
International Herald Tribune - 2 hours ago
AP BELGRADE, Serbia: The Serbian Orthodox Church used its Christmas message Monday to lash out at what it called world "power-mongers" seeking to take away Kosovo from Serbia. The church said that world powers were "shamelessly violating all norms of

Bosnia more of threat to stability in Balkans than Kosovo: EU
EUbusiness (press release) - 12 minutes ago
(LJUBLJANA) - The future of Bosnia, currently made up of two highly autonomous halves, poses a "more serious" threat to stability in the Balkans than Kosovo does, the EU's current president Janez Jansa said Monday. "Bosnia-Hercegovina is a more serious ...

Mrkonjić: I will never allow Kosovo independence
B92 - 15 minutes ago
“It’s our duty to the Serbian people, tradition, the Constitution and the policies led by the socialists over the past century in defending Kosovo,” said the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) presidential candidate at a rally in Priložje, ...

BALKANS: Serbs Wait For Free Wealth
IPS - 13 minutes ago
By Vesna Peric Zimonjic BELGRADE, Jan 7 (IPS) - Going by official media, the Kosovo dispute seems to top the nation's agenda. But Serbs have their mind more on visions of free wealth that they believe will be theirs, after the Law on Free Distribution ...

Balkans minnow takes over as leader of the EU
Telegraph.co.uk - Jan 3, 2008
It takes the helm as the issue of the Balkans and Yugoslavia burst back on to the international agenda with Kosovo. The small Alpine country along with Croatia sparked the break-up of Yugoslavia by declaring independence in 1991.

Putin to visit Bulgaria on January 17 and 18
Sofia Echo - 2 hours ago
Russian president Vladimir Putin would visit Bulgaria on January 17 and 18, the press office of the Bulgarian President said.

China Daily

Greece hit by strong earthquake
Tehran Times - 41 minutes ago
Reports say the quake was felt over much of Greece, which is the most earthquake-prone country in Europe. BBC Athens correspondent Malcolm Brabant said the quake shook his house vigorously for 20 seconds and sent him sprinting for the front door.

Rival Orthodox churches in Montenegro in Christmas clash
B92 - Jan 5, 2008
CETINJE -- The Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro and the Montenegrin Orthodox Church today sent Xmas greetings. Both churches will hold their central Christmas Eve festivities in Cetinje.

"Koštunica does not want Serbia in EU"
B92 - 3 hours ago
BELGRADE -- Vojin Dimitrejević believes behind Vojislav Koštunica’s most recent comments lies his wish for Serbia not to enter the EU.

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Albania Hosts 1st Rally Championship

2008-01-06T07:07:00.001-05:00

Albania Hosts 1st Rally Championship

04 January 2008 Tirana _ Albania marked its entrance into the world of motorsports on Friday with the start of the Petrela Grand Prix, the first stage of the 2008 Albanian Rally Championship.
Rally Albania 2008 is the first professional motorsport race to be held in the country, and will include various contests, such as go-cart, motocross and off-road racing.

“This year the rally in Albania comes in the shape of a championship, with five races and a championship title,” race commissioner Edvin Kasimati explained at a news conference.

In a country where only two decades ago private ownership of cars was banned, and a vehicle was the privilege of a few communist party cadres, rally races have generated an incredible media buzz and caught the public’s imagination.

A number sponsors, such as Vodaphone and Birra Tirana, have jumped on the bandwagon to support the event.

“We are surprised by the number of participants this year, it definitely exceeds our expectations,” Kasimati said.

After the Petrela Grand Prix, on the outskirts of Tirana, races will be held in Lezha, Korca, Vlora and Saranda.

The 2008 event has also captivated regional attention with 20 teams coming from Kosovo, Macedonia, Greece and Italy.

BalkanInsight.com - Albania Hosts 1st Rally Championship

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Your words are not mine Mr Prime Minister

2008-01-03T18:04:00.001-05:00

Letter to a Serbian friend

2008-01-03T05:21:00.001-05:00

Jan 2, 2008 20:24 | Updated Jan 2, 2008 20:42

Letter to a Serbian friend

By SHLOMO AVINERI

Dear A - I am writing this because some of my best friends are Serbs, and because of the historical links between Serbs and Jews. Some of my best friends are also Kosovar Albanians, and as Jews, who have been stateless for such a long time, many of us understand and support their quest for self-determination and independence.

This is a crucial time for Serbia, and it appears that because of a fixation on the past - revered and sacred as it may be - Serbia may be forfeiting its chance of future association with the European Union, to which by history and culture your country certainly belongs.

Let us first start with the incontrovertible facts of the present: 90% of the population of Kosovo is ethnic Albanian, and they will never willingly revert to Serbian rule, which after the annexation of Kosovo to Serbia in 1913 has been to them a continuous history of exclusion, discrimination and eventual ethnic cleansing. Nor will the democratic West accept a return of Serbian rule.

Does it mean that the Kosovar Albanians are blameless? Of course not. In ethnic conflict no side is totally right or totally wrong.

I know you view Kosovo as your Jerusalem, and this argument falls on willing ears in Israel and among Jews generally.

But if the population of Jerusalem would have been 90% Arab, the Israeli claim to it would certainly be very tenuous.

I know you have deep historical associations with Kosovo, which since the emergence of Serbian nationalism in the 19th century has been christened "the cradle of Serbian civilization."

Yet one cannot draw 21st century borders according to historical links which overlook the wishes of the present population. The question is not territory, but people. It is for this reason that most Israelis today are willing to give up claims to the historical regions of Judea and Samaria, even willing to consider Palestinian rule over parts of Jerusalem. History clashes with reality: this may be unfortunate, but one has to confront it.

I KNOW you claim that for centuries Serbia has been a bulwark of Christian Europe against Islam. I leave aside the unpleasant "clash of civilizations," if not racist overtones, of this claim. But - let's again be realistic: after all, you lost the battle of Kosovo in 1389 to the Ottomans, so you were not that successful in defending Europe against Islam (whatever this may mean).

You offer the Kosovo Albanians autonomy, not independence. Put yourself in their shoes. Was "autonomy" under Turkish rule in the 19th century sufficient for the Serbs? What's the difference?

I know all this may be very painful to you; and with some justification you may ask me: How can you call yourself a friend of the Serbs after saying all these things?

For a simple reason: I would like to see Serbia join Europe, just a Slovenia did and Croatia may in the future. Do not exclude yourself because of historical memories, do not be your own worst enemy. Do what modern nations - the French and the Germans, for example - have done after centuries of warfare: emancipate yourself from the shackles of the past, cut you loses (yes, modern nations have to do this too) and shape your future according to the values of self-determination and mutual acceptance.

And those Serbs, who would like to visit the monasteries and other historical sites in Kosovo, could do this - as today ethnic Germans visit their ancestral sites in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, without laying claims to these regions because of their centuries-old associations with them.

Serbia is a proud nation. It has a bright future ahead of it. Don't let the past steal it away from you.

The writer is professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the author of a recently published intellectual biography of Theodor Herzl.

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Coming Soon to a Country Near You: Kosova Sovereignty

2007-12-26T09:51:00.001-05:00

Coming Soon to a Country Near You: Kosova Sovereignty

By Daniel Serwer

December 2007

This article was originally published by Bertelsmann Stiftung's "Transatlantic Thinkers" series. It was done in collaboration with the "Europe's Global Responsibilities" project.

§ Moral obligation exists but is not decisive

§ Why independence? Why not partition? Why now?

§ How can the consequences be contained?

§ Conclusions

Why does the United States support Kosovo's independence, even putting at risk its relations not only with Serbia but also with Russia? And how does Washington plan to contain the consequences?

It is often assumed that Washington's position is based on a sense of moral obligation, deriving not only from the mistreatment of Albanians under the Milosevic regime but also from American promises since. While this factor unquestionably weighs on the side of the Kosovars, it is not I think decisive. Understanding Washington's support for Kosovo's independence requires an analysis of the consequences of further delay as well as the consequences of moving ahead, even in the absence of a UN Security Council resolution.

Moral obligation exists but is not decisive

Considering first the question of moral obligation, there can be no doubt but that it exists. Washington was the prime mover behind the 1999 NATO intervention that saved the Albanian population of Kosovo from Slobodan Milosevic's attempt to expel them from Kosovo, which resulted in perhaps 10,000 deaths and the displacement of roughly half the Albanian population of around 1.7 million people. That war ended with a Security Council resolution 1244, which allowed the Albanians to return under NATO and UN protection and led in turn to the expulsion of about half the Serb population of Kosovo, about 150,000 people. In the American view, resolution 1244 foresaw a process by which Kosovo's status would be decided in the future, by inference largely in accordance with the will of its population, which was already clear. The acknowledgement of Yugoslav (now without doubt Serbian) sovereignty in resolution 1244 appears only in the preamble.

At the time of its drafting, Russians, Americans and Europeans all regarded resolution 1244 as highly beneficial to the Kosovars and NATO, and prejudicial to Belgrade and Moscow. Among other things, having the UN take over Kosovo as a protectorate as a consequence of an intervention that NATO undertook without Security Council approval indirectly and implicitly gave the results of the intervention a Russian seal of approval. When in addition the Americans blocked a Russian military maneuver to take possession of Pristina airport, Moscow's humiliation seemed complete.

The Americans from the passage of resolution 1244 onward have made increasingly explicit promises to the Kosovars that they would never be returned to Serbian sovereignty and that they would realize their independence ambitions. The Contact Group went half-way in this direction as well, when it launched the negotiations on final status led by former Finnish President Marti Ahtisaari with the explicit condition that Kosovo could not be returned to its former status, which certainly will have sounded to the Albanians like an echo of the American promise of no return to Serbian sovereignty.

Belgrade and Moscow did not however see things this way. Slobodan Milosevic snatched something like victory from the jaws of defeat when he agreed to end the NATO/Yugoslavia war with a UN Security Council resolution. He was unconcerned with the specific wording. From Belgrade's perspective, the important thing was the fact of the resolution, which established Kosovo as a UN protectorate. The only universally acceptable way of changing its status thereby became another UN Security Council resolution, or at least the consent of all five permanent members of the council.

History is littered with American diplomats who thought they were smarter than Slobodan Milosevic, who in a similar fashion snatched a kind of victory from the jaws of certain defeat at the end of the Bosnian war when he got a Dayton agreement establishing Republika Srpska as an internationally validated entity on 49 per cent of Bosnia's territory, rolling back Muslim/Croat territory from 65 per cent to 51 per cent. The Americans, triumphant at the end of both NATO interventions in the Balkans (Bosnia in 1995 and Kosovo in 1999), are now finding it difficult to do what they want to do most: extricate themselves from the region, leaving behind stability that can be maintained by the Europeans.

Milosevic's election defeat in 2000 left his successors with a choice: whether to take advantage of the Russian veto over Kosovo's future status (and continue to insist on Republika Srpska as a separate entity within Bosnia, with the potential to threaten its independence or its annexation to Serbia) or to seek a quick settlement of Serbia's outstanding "national" issues and turn the country towards a European vocation.

Serbian prime minister Zoran Djinjdic let it be known to anyone who would listen that he did not care about the national issues and would happily settle them quickly, in return for greater prosperity for Serbia's citizens. A former leftist with no interest in supporting the Serbian Orthodox Church, Djindjic would likely have offered partition of Kosovo at the Ibar River—three of Kosovo's northern municipalities were majority Serbian before the NATO/Yugoslavia war (in fact their territory had once been part of Serbia proper and was transferred to Kosovo by Tito in order to increase the Serbian population there). The fact that no important Serbian Orthodox monuments or churches are located in the north would not have bothered Djindjic, who was much more interested in the notorious Trepca mine, once Kosovo's largest employer.

Of course it is impossible to know precisely how the international community or the Kosovo Albanians would have reacted to Djindjic's interest in a quick deal. Hashim Thaci and other Albanian leaders were convinced at the time that they could negotiate with Djindjic, but they would likely have refused to give Serbia the half of Mitrovica municipality that lies north of the Ibar, as Mitrovica municipality had an Albanian majority before the war. They would have wanted in compensation for the northern three municipalities the Albanian-majority municipalities that lie in the Presevo valley of southern Serbia. Serbia would have resisted. Presevo lies adjacent to Serbia's main north/south route to its primary access to the sea at Thessaloniki.

The assassination of Djindjic in March 2003 abruptly terminated the possibility of a quick territorial settlement. In due course inheriting the Serbian prime ministry, Vojislav Kostunica—the nationalist who had beaten Milosevic at the polls—ended any thought of a quick territorial settlement and instead laid claim to sovereignty over all of Kosovo. Kostunica also abandoned Milosevic's two preferred solutions to the Kosovo problem: repression and expulsion of the Albanians by force of arms. Laying claim to Djindjic's mantle as leader of "democratic" forces in Serbia, Kostunica dug in for a long-haul but non-violent effort to re-establish what he regards as Serbia's rightful place as the sovereign power in Kosovo.

In the meanwhile, the international community—prompted in part by Milosevic's behavior in Kosovo—had moved in the direction of recognizing what is termed "the responsibility to protect," a doctrine that includes the notion that a state can lose its sovereign right to non-intervention by severely mistreating its own population. While there are those in Washington still resisting specific applications of the responsibility to protect—and worried about its implications for American military and humanitarian capacity—there are relatively few knowledgeable people who would contest the notion that Milosevic's murderous behavior towards the Kosovars in the late 1990s, when they were expelled in large numbers from Kosovo and forced to take refuge in Macedonia, Albania and elsewhere, has as a practical matter made it impossible to return Kosovo to Serbian sovereignty.

On top of this, UN efforts in Kosovo—in particular the "standards before status" effort that the UN made its byword in recent years—have more or less clearly implied to the Kosovars that if they behave themselves—in particular in their treatment of minorities, especially the Kosovo Serbs—they would get "status," which has increasingly become synonymous with "independence." This is as much Belgrade's doing as Pristina's: until very recently, Belgrade made no effort to discuss possible models for Kosovo status other than independence, insisting instead that it be returned to Serbian sovereignty while offering a vaguely defined "more than autonomy, less than indepence." Under that neo-colonialist formula, it appears that the Kosovar Albanians would be expected to govern themselves without financing from Belgrade, without representation in Belgrade's institutions and without sovereignty, meaning that at least in principle they would be at the mercy of Serbia's security forces.

The moral argument does not, however, lead immediately to the conclusion that Kosovo must become independent, or that it must become independent now. After all, it could be kept in its current UN protectorate status for some time more—Belgrade has proposed 20 years. Certainly the moment does not seem propitious for deciding Kosovo's status: US/Russian relations are at a post-Cold War nadir, Belgrade argues that giving Kosovo independence now will bring extreme nationalists to power in Serbia and inspire separatist movements elsewhere, and the Kosovo Albanians have still not met all the standards the UN said it would insist upon. Would we do better to wait? And is independence really the only answer?

Why independence? Why not partition? Why now?

Once upon a time, not very long ago, Serb journalists would ask why Serbia couldn't get with Kosovo the same deal Iraq has with the Kurds: in principle, Iraq is a sovereign state but the Kurds govern themselves. This is a reasonable question: in fact, not all that many years ago I wrote with my colleagues a paper laying out eight possible "status" options for Kosovo (Kosovo Final Status: Options and Cross-Border Requirements, USIP Special Report No. 91, July 2002).

The answer is telling: the Kurds not only occupy the presidency of Iraq, but also several other high positions (the Foreign Minister, a deputy Prime Minister and several ministries). They not only govern themselves but also receive a guaranteed percentage of Iraq's oil revenue and their laws in most areas prevail over any made in Baghdad. Moreover, no Iraqi government would try to send either police or army units to Kurdistan without the Kurds' permission. Kurdistan has its own army and police. Serbia has not even considered offering to Kosovo any of these provisions; none of them would survive 60 seconds as a proposition in the Serbian parliament.

Serbia has done nothing whatsoever to make it attractive for Kosovo to remain under Serbian sovereignty. Since the Kurdish case may be regarded as extreme, consider Sudan, where a war at least as brutal as the one Serbia conducted in Kosovo ended with an agreement that makes a former insurgent from the South not only president of Southern Sudan but also First Vice President of the entire country, with Southerners integrated in key government positions, the national army and the national parliament. North and South share the country's main source of revenue (oil). Again, Serbia has offered none of these propositions to Kosovo. They are unthinkable in Belgrade.

They are also unthinkable in Pristina. While a Kurdish tribal chieftain will happily send a first son to serve in parliament in Baghdad, if only to ensure that Kurdish interests are well protected, no head of family in Kosovo would even consider sending anyone to serve in parliament in Belgrade. Kosovo Albanians have not participated in Serbian elections since their constitutionally guaranteed autonomy was abolished in the late 1980s, and they abandoned all Serbian institutions (schools, social and health services, pensions) in the early 1990s. This was well in advance of the Serbian effort to chase the Albanians from Kosovo, when the Albanians were still pursuing a policy of non-violence.

Serbs and Kosovo Albanians have chosen separation over integration. Few Kosovo Serbs speak more than a few words of Albanian; Kosovo Albanians, most of whom are under 20 years old, no longer learn Serbian, though older and more educated people may well speak it. While in Albania, there are Albanians who are Orthodox Christians, in Kosovo an Albanian who is an Orthodox Christian would be considered serbianized. There are certainly Albanians and Serbs who know each other well and engage in normal discourse—especially at the local level—but intermarriage is rare and there is no sense of common national or cultural identity; this has been increasingly the case for the better part of two decades.

The simple fact is that virtually 100 per cent of the Albanian population of Kosovo wants what it calls "independence," which in the Kosovar lexicon means separation from Serbia and freedom from ever again having to worry about its police, paramilitaries and army. The Serbian state has no interest in Albanian views; it today claims the territory on historical and religious grounds and disowns the people. Kosovo, some Serbs say, is the Serb Jerusalem, meaning that it belongs forever to Serbia no matter how few Serbs live or visit there.

This is not something Americans understand. Sovereignty in the American context comes from the people; the state is their creation and has authority only so long as the people consent. You will of course find instances in which the United States is less than strict in adhering to this notion—the Saudi state can hardly be described as deriving authority from the consent of the governed. But in Kosovo, where no other American interests are at stake, it is hard for Americans to sympathize with a state that has so obviously lost consent. It is just as hard for Serbs, who view their church as the progenitor of the Serbian state, to understand what difference Albanian consent makes.

Why not partition Kosovo? I've discussed above some of the difficulties that would have arisen in any negotiation over partition, but these are not the reasons the Contact Group ruled it out of bounds at the beginning of the Ahtisaari-led negotiations. From an international perspective, the main reason for ruling out partition was the likelihood—many would say the certainty—that partition would lead to more efforts to move borders in the Balkans to accommodate ethnic differences. If the northern municipalities of Kosovo were to be partitioned and given back to Serbia, Albanian demands would likely not stop at Presevo but would include municipalities in northwestern Macedonia, a number of which have Albanian majorities. That in turn would reignite Bosnia's Republika Srpska's interest in joining Serbia.

This "partition domino" scenario looks unattractive from the American perspective, especially as it would result in a rump Muslim state in Bosnia and potential conflict among Greece, Bulgaria and Albania over Macedonia. There have long been Washington-based advocates of a generalized partition along ethnic lines in the Balkans, but they have clearly been in the minority, having failed to demonstrate that the results would not be inimical to US interests. A generalized partition scenario would also be inconsistent with American support for multiethnic societies. Here, again, American concepts of democracy are fundamental: it is the individual and her rights who counts, not the group. A true democracy should not need to rid itself of people who are culturally or linguistically distinct.

But is partition avoidable? The northern three and one half municipalities in Kosovo have de facto been under Belgrade's authority for the past eight years. Serbs in those municipalities receive their education and social services from Serbia, they drive cars with Serbian license plates, and for most practical purposes the area is part of Serbia. The UN police and NATO patrol there, but they have little real authority. What would make the north any more a part of Kosovo than it has been since the UN took over?

The most immediate answer is "nothing." No matter what is done on the status issue, the north will remain a de facto appendage of Serbia proper for a long time to come. If the years of UN protectorate have not undone Belgrade's hold on the north, it is unlikely that the EU-led mission envisaged for the post-status period will quickly do better. The best that can be hoped for is no de jure partition, followed by a lengthy process of reintegration, not only of the north with the rest of Kosovo but also of Kosovo with Serbia, which is Kosovo's largest market, likely largest supplier and investor, and greatest security threat. The ultimate solution for northern Kosovo is EU integration, when the borders will disappear in any event.

If partition can be ruled out, there is still a question of why the international community should proceed with Kosovo independence now and not wait. The answer is that the consequences of waiting are likely to be worse than the consequences of proceeding, though admittedly neither is an attractive proposition.

Let us assume, as a thought experiment, that a decision is taken at the Security Council to postpone final status for twenty years. What would be the consequences? The current crop of Albanian politicians in Pristina, who have promised independence sooner rather than later, would quickly be swept away, to be replaced by far more radical figures advocating Greater Albania, many of them Kosovo Liberation Army veterans and some likely still involved in clandestine activity. In Belgrade, something similar would happen: nationalists would be enormously strengthened. Leaders like Djindjic's heir, Serbian President Boris Tadic, who have wanted to put the national question behind them, would be enormously weakened. The national question, which has plagued Serbia since the early 1990s, would remain open. Serbia would align itself with its savior, Russia, and continue to resist NATO membership.

While it is always difficult—and never edifying—to predict violence, it is difficult to see how a Serbia run by extremists and a Kosovo run by extremists would not clash. If they do not, Serbia, which has many Albanians still on its secret service payroll, might still provoke violence. The most likely victims would be the Kosovo Serbs, the majority of whom live more or less integrated with Albanians in enclaves and villages south of the Ibar river. The March 2004 riots—which involved both Serbs and Albanian, but with the Serbs getting the shorter end of the stick—are a clear warning of what the violence might look like.

It is unlikely, however, that the Albanians would attack NATO—which shoots back (more Albanians were killed in the 2004 riots than Serbs because of this, and NATO has toughened its rules of engagement since)—and much more likely that they would attack the UN, which is the institution that stands in the way of independence. It would take little violence against UNMIK, the UN Mission in Kosovo, to cause the Secretary General to remove it, thus ending the 20-year experiment in postponing a decision soon after it had begun. Delay—even a short one—is at least as risky to regional peace and stability as moving ahead with a status decision.

In fact, one of the compelling reasons for moving now is that UNMIK is near the end of its natural life. This was a very ambitious UN mission that took on the task of governing a territory containing close to 2 million people after a ferocious bout of ethnic cleansing. It was never easy, but mistakes accumulate over time and make it harder. Scandal, incompetence and local resistance have combined to make it clear to all concerned that UNMIK cannot continue—a fresh effort is needed. That is what the EU offers, but the task will be infinitely more difficult if the EU does not get there in time for an orderly transition from UNMIK.

How can the consequences be contained?

If, as seems likely, Kosovo will declare independence within the next few months, is it possible to contain the consequences? How should the international community act to prevent threats to peace and stability and increase the likelihood of a successful transition?

The best approach appears to have been ruled out by the failure of the Ahtisaari plan to find acceptance in Belgrade and Moscow. Deciding Kosovo's status in a Security Council resolution would have meant that Kosovo could set no precedent (except that such things should be decided in the Security Council), it would have meant the full weight of the Council behind the extensive protections for Serbs provided by the plan, it would have meant clarity over the territorial extent of Kosovo, it would have meant a clear mandate for the EU mission to follow on after UNMIK, and it would have meant Kosovo would start its life as a sovereign state with recognition by its biggest and most important neighbor.

Unfortunately, that is not to be, because Belgrade has blocked, using the threat of a Russian veto, adoption of the Ahtisaari plan. While I can only admire the diplomatic skill with which Belgrade has taken advantage of Moscow's interest in "containing" Washington and thereby helping Putin's reelection, the result is an own-goal from the point of view of democratic transition in Serbia and the welfare of the Kosovo Serbs. Frustrating Kosovo's independence ambition, even temporarily, will strengthen nationalist political forces in Serbia and heighten the risks of violence against the Kosovo Serbs.

The likely scenario now appears to be this: the Contact Group having reported to the Secretary General that the additional round of negotiations has failed to find a solution to which Pristina and Belgrade can agree, the Secretary General will take the matter up, likely on December 19, with the Security Council but not take any decision immediately. In the meanwhile, the Kosovo assembly will pass a declaration of independence and at some point other states will recognize Kosovo as a sovereign state. The EU at some point in this process will announce that it will deploy its civilian presence and a rule of law mission, as much as feasible in response to a statement by the UN Secretary General.

The devil here is in the details. Delay at any stage risks instability. What is needed is a carefully orchestrated and quick scenario, one that is visibly the result of coordination and cooperation among Pristina, Brussels and Washington, and as many other countries as possible. Too many European and American diplomats have referred too often to UDI, a "Unilateral Declaration of Independence." That would be a mistake. As my RAND colleague James Dobbins points out, what is needed is CDI, a coordinated or cooperative declaration of independence followed instantaneously by recognition conditional on implementation of the Ahtisaari plan.

This is asking a lot of the Albanians. Ahtisaari leaned over backwards in developing his plan to accommodate Serb requirements, in hopes of buying their approval. In addition to extensive protection for Serb monuments and religious cites, the plan gives Serb communities in Kosovo a wide degree of autonomy and Belgrade the right to support them directly. While there may be merit in these concepts, it was a serious negotiating mistake to make such a handsome offer up front, with any quid pro quo. The Serbs had made clear that they could not be bought and that Kosovo independence would have to occur over their objections. The result is that we are now asking the Albanians to implement the Ahtisaari plan without Serbian acceptance and recognition of the new state. The Albanians have nevertheless accepted, and the Kosovo Assembly has committed itself to the Ahtisaari plan. We need to make the recognition process as smooth as possible; otherwise, the tenure of the current crop of relatively moderate Kosovar leaders is likely to be short.

The way to do this is to leave as little time as possible for troublemaking between the Contact Group's report to the Secretary General and as broad international recognition as possible. The EU would like to reach consensus on recognition; waiting for that would be like waiting for Godot. Cyprus and perhaps Greece and one or two other countries could hold matters up long enough to allow troublemakers to intervene. If everyone is left to their own devices, Pristina would declare independence one day, capitals thinking about recognition would each start their own processes, the EU would have a discussion at foreign ministers level and within a few months Kosovo would have a critical mass of countries joining in recognizing it. By that time, troublemakers in Kosovo, Belgrade and Moscow will be having a field day.

Timing is not everything. Optics are important as well. CDI would ideally mean that recognition of Kosovo's sovereignty is visibly part of a broader deal: Pristina gets recognition, but it in turn must protect the Serbs in Kosovo in accordance with the Ahtisaari plan and accept NATO and EU supervision for an indefinite period into the future. Something like this might work: a meeting in Brussels or New York shortly after December 19 at which as many countries as possible deliver acts of recognition in exchange for Pristina's commitments, in writing, to the Ahtisaari plan as well as careful NATO/EU supervision. This scenario would at least serve to illustrate that those recognizing Kosovo are doing so as part of a bargain, not unilaterally, and that Kosovo's independence offers no precedent for unilateral acts elsewhere. The UN Secretary General's blessing for the NATO/EU effort would also be very helpful.

That will be little comfort to Belgrade, where the consequences of Kosovo independence are all too predictable: nationalists will gain, including at the elections likely to held early next year. The Radical Party, already the largest vote-getter in Serbia will increase its representation in Parliament, but will still likely be unable to govern without the cooperation of one of the more moderate parties, likely as usual Prime Minister Kostunica's Democratic Party of Serbia. The Radicals have in fact been part of Kostunica's majority in Parliament for several years already, and they govern a number of Serbian cities. While their ideological roots are clearly unacceptable in the European context—they were both the originators and perpetrators of many crimes in both Bosnia and Kosovo during the 1990s—their behavior in government and out since the fall of Milosevic has been generally "democratic," in the sense that they play by the rules of the game.

There is no point in Washington or Brussels worrying about whether the Radicals come to power in Belgrade—if that is Serbia's democratic choice, so be it. It would arguably be better to have them openly in power than their current stealth mode, in which they vote with the government and partake of its patronage but are never held accountable, because they have no ministers. No Balkans country has been able to continue its democratic transition without alternation in power, which effectively has been blocked in Serbia in order to keep the Radicals out of government. In Croatia, Macedonia and even Bosnia, it is arguable that bringing extreme nationalists into power in a situation where democratic institutions are reasonably consolidated, which they are in Serbia, is a vital step in making them more responsible and converting former warmongers into viable democratic, generally right-wing, political parties.

Belgrade has been openly talking of expelling ambassadors from countries that recognize Kosovo and even breaking diplomatic relations. This should not be a serious concern to Washington or to most European countries. Serbia needs the US and Europe a good deal more than the US and Europe need Serbia—any break in diplomatic relations is not likely to last long, and in one important respect it might be a relief to the EU, which could then stop worrying about how it will fit Serbia into the queue for membership. The US ambassador in Belgrade should keep his bag packed.

Despite these immediate problems, the longer-term impact on Belgrade is likely to be salutary. The Kosovo issue has strengthened nationalists in Serbia since the fall of Milosevic. Once it is removed from the Serbian political scene, there is really little for the nationalist parties to talk about, and less for them to deliver. They will need to turn their attention to bread and butter issues. Serbia has been highly constrained by Kosovo for many years; it is time to remove the ball and chain, allowing Belgrade to pursue a truly democratic course and a European vocation.

What about the broader impact? In Macedonia, a lot depends—as it always has—on the relative sagacity of both its Macedonian and Albanian citizens, who have repeatedly stepped back from the brink. The Macedonian government for some years has supported an early decision on Kosovo's status, provided it does not include partition. Skopje prefers independence to continuation of uncertainty, which not only unsettles the almost one-quarter of the population that is Albanian but also makes Macedonia an attractive target for Albanian extremists crossing the border from Kosovo.

Macedonia has been riled recently by Supreme Court decisions that limit rights Albanians thought guaranteed in the 2001 Ohrid agreement, which ended an Albanian insurgency. The EU and US should be doing everything they can to shore up Macedonia against any consequences of Kosovo's independence, but it should be clear that the consequences of Kosovo's failing to gain independence would be much worse. In that event, the implicit bargain Macedonia's Albanians have made with the international community—we stay in Macedonia if Kosovo gets what it wants—would be off. Pan-Albanianism, which has lost its appeal in all but the most obscure corners of the Albanian political sphere, would then rear its head and give Europe and the US real problems.

In Bosnia, problems could arise because some in Republika Srpska would claim that it, like Kosovo, should declare independence as well. The recent agreement negotiated by the international High Representative on improved functioning Council of Ministers, streamlined procedures for the Parliament and an agreed Action Plan on Police Reform is precisely what is needed to ward off such spirits. The issue of Republika Srpska's status, which some regard as parallel to that of Kosovo, is not: Republika Srpska is a result of ethnic cleansing, carried out against its Muslim and Croat populations. Moreover, Serb secession from Bosnia, likely followed by Croat secession, would create a rump Islamic Republic dependent on the Muslim world, something neither Washington nor Brussels (nor Belgrade nor Zagreb when they think about it) wants.

Looking farther afield, Kosovo's independence could be read in Chechnya, Tibet, Abkhazia, Transdnestria and Kurdistan—to mention but a few places—as setting a precedent. Kosovo is not unique, despite the many claims to that effect by European and American diplomats. There are other culturally and linguistically distinct places where people have been mistreated by their own government, chased from their homes and even from the country and as a consequence withdrawn their consent to be governed. Kosovo is however different: none of these places have been under UN administration for a lengthy period and promised by the Security Council a process by which their status will be decided, at least in part in accordance with the will of its people. Anyone who is truly worried about the precedent Kosovo's independence will set should make sure the decision is taken in the Security Council, something the Russians have definitely not done.

It is in fact hard to understand both Moscow's and Belgrade's recalcitrance. The advantages to both of a decision in the Security Council are so apparent that one has to wonder why they have not been willing to compromise—Washington and Brussels would have been content with a decision that ended the UN protectorate and welcomed the new international presence and NATO, without mentioning status (though they would have still proceeded to recognize an independent Kosovo).

The obvious conclusion is that they are trying to excite conflict and instability. For Moscow, giving the Americans things to worry about seems to have become a reward in and of itself. For Belgrade, which knows that failure of Kosovo to gain independence will re-ignite pan-Albanianism, the benefit lies in re-igniting pan-Serbianism and thus opening the door to greater Serbia, albeit a smaller one than Milosevic envisaged. Belgrade has made no secret of its interest in grabbing part of Kosovo and Bosnia. Delay and the violence it will cause are likely to give it the opportunity. So, too, would provocation, which could be arranged either through the Kosovo Serbs (especially those in the north) or through Albanians on the Belgrade payroll, of which there are still sufficient numbers. Washington and Brussels need to make it absolutely clear to Belgrade that provocation will lead to serious consequences.

Conclusions

The time is near for quick and agile diplomacy. The dissolution of Yugoslavia, which started with wars in Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia, could lead once again in Kosovo to violence and instability. European and American diplomats agree that "Kosovo independence is inevitable." The trouble is that when a European diplomat says something is inevitable, he means you only need to wait for it to happen. When an American diplomat says something is inevitable, he means it is time to make it happen.

This gap can and should be closed: the Americans have gone along with a lengthy negotiating process, one that started later and dragged on a year longer that it should have. They are now going along with further delay while the EU and the Security Council discuss the matter yet again.

Pristina and Belgrade in the meanwhile need to be doing what is needed to preserve peace and stability. A patriotic Kosovar today should be doing everything he can to reach out to the Kosovo Serb community and ensure its protection. If there is violence against Serbs, recognition will be impossible. A patriotic Serb today should be preparing for what is—as both Americans and Europeans call it—inevitable, and doing everything he can to ensure that Serbia does not make the mistake of provoking violence or cutting its ties with Europe and the US.

The boundary between Kosovo and Serbia proper has been established in the same place for more than 30 years. All that is being done is to change the status of that boundary, from the boundary of a province to the border of a country. We cannot and should not redraw that boundary to accommodate ethnic differences, since doing so would unquestionably lead to continuing disputes. Serbia endured a similar change a year and a half ago, when Montenegro gained independence. It got over the hurt quickly, and is now busily reestablishing through economic means the close ties that are natural between the two independent states. That should be the model for Kosovo.

Unfortunately, Belgrade has instead been threatening an economic embargo against Kosovo, and there is a possibility as well of using agents provocateurs to stir up trouble. The Serbian security services have representatives in all Serbian enclaves in Kosovo, and there are surely Albanians still on their payroll. Kosovo needs electricity from Serbia as well as many staples; an embargo could be a serious problem to a community already under severe economic stress. It is difficult to see however how Serbia would benefit from destabilizing newly independent Kosovo, unless is wants to frighten the Serbs south of the Ibar river into leaving and encourage the Northern Serbian communities to declare their own "independence," as a prelude to annexation by Serbia.

Won't Kosovo independence also lead to continuing disputes? Perhaps. But the more definitively the issue is resolved, the less likely Belgrade will want to reopen it, especially once it signs a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU. This argues for decisive action, taken quickly after the next Security Council discussion, on a demonstrably cooperative basis, including clear guarantees for Kosovo's Serbs. If that can be done, the worst may be avoided.

American officials are fond of pointing out that the US has repeatedly intervened to protect Muslims from war and dictatorship. This eminently valid claim will be devalued if the so far successful international intervention in Kosovo ends in tragedy. A satisfactory outcome is within reach. As President Bush said in June: "at some point in time, sooner rather than later, you've got to say enough is enough."

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Kosovo Catholics call for independence

2007-12-26T03:56:00.001-05:00

World Press Review

Serb parliament threatens cutting ties over Kosovo independence
AFP - 11 hours ago
BELGRADE (AFP) - Serbian lawmakers will discuss this week re-evaluating Belgrade's diplomatic ties with any country that recognises an independent Kosovo, according to a draft resolution seen by AFP Tuesday. The resolution also rejects a European Union ...
Serbia to take retaliatory steps against the West if Kosovo ... International Herald Tribune

RussiaToday

Kosovo Catholics call for independence
Euronews.net - 19 hours ago
The head of the Catholic Church in Kosovo has added his voice to calls for independence. In the wake of inconclusive talks at the UN Security Council over the province's political future, the stage is set for the majority Albanian community to go ahead ...

Two Kosovo Parties To Form Government
BalkanInsight.com - 17 hours ago
25 December 2007 Pristina _ Kosovo's new government will be formed by the two parties that won most votes in the 17 November elections.
Kosovo Minorities To Head Three Ministries

KOSOVO'S NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION: INDEPENDENCE

2007-12-24T05:47:00.001-05:00

KOSOVO'S NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION: INDEPENDENCE

Sun Dec 23, 7:56 PM ET

WASHINGTON -- If you're pausing to consider what 2008's biggest trouble spots might be, take your finger and travel on the map to the belly of the Balkans, and stop at Kosovo, the enduring trouble spot.

Actually, Kosovo is not yet a country in and of itself, although that is what it wants to be. Serbia claims it as a province, which is exactly what Kosovo does NOT want to be. The United Nations has been administering the 2 million Kosovars, 90 percent of whom are ethnically Albanians. But the Kosovars do not have the faintest taste for joining Albania and are not interested in staying under the control of the U.N., either.

When you add the fact that the United States and the European Union support independence for Kosovo, while Russia supports Serbian nationalist intentions, you begin to understand that this is a problem that cannot be easily worked out.

Personally, I gave up the notion that these two peoples could live together as early as September 1992, when the Balkan wars were raging and Serb Gauleiters had taken over Kosovo.

Because journalists were forbidden from seeing what a wonderfully progressive "occupation" the Serbs were imposing upon the innocent Kosovars, I found myself in neighboring independent Macedonia, utterly determined to get in. Well, just try it, I thought -- so I got the wiliest Kosovar cab driver I could find, and we "attacked" the always crowded and dangerous border crossing.

My choice was a good one. Sam (for such, strangely enough, was his name) saw no reason for waiting in line. No, at the border he simply swerved around long, snaking lines of cars, waved our two passports at his "friends," the border guards, and whisked me into the capital of Pristina, one of the most run-down cities I have ever seen. He also managed to get me nearly shot by machine gun-bearing Serb soldiers when I innocently tried to stroll about the university.

In a run-down shack by the river, I spoke at some length with the melodramatic Ibrahim Rugova, head of the anti-Serb Kosovars whose Democratic League of Kosovo had set up a parallel state -- their own schools, banks, hospitals, universities, underground police, etc. A truly original 21st-century independence movement at its birth!

This man, who would have seemed more at ease in a great dramatic work, at one point mused with me: "Kosovo ... It would be a tiny state, but we could do it ... It would be a good solution, sometime."

By 2001, all of this had miraculously changed. By then he was the elected president of the parliament of Kosovo. They were freed from the Serbs' oppression, even though Kosovo still was officially a province of Serbia. Everything had changed because, after four years of NATO and the Europeans doing nothing to stop the Serb repression, in 1999 the United States bravely led NATO bombardments of Kosovo and drove the Serbs out.

But something strange had happened during the Balkan war of the '90s with Serbia invading Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia, all of whom became independent, as well as Kosovo, which did not.

The Europeans sent peacekeepers to the region under the U.N., ostensibly to impose a United Nations brand of neutralism. But they insisted, in one of the most curious operations of modern times, that the U.N. could not take action, even when it was clear that the Serbs were the aggressors, having massacred tens of thousands of Kosovars. In effect, they declared that no one was innocent or really guilty, and so they would never have to take action -- and they never did.

While the larger and more important parts of Serbia were going their independent ways, Kosovo, from 1999 until today, has been imperfectly run by the U.N. Now, as Serbian elections loom on Jan. 20, Serbia is demanding its solution -- keep Kosovo as an integral part of Serbia.

Yet, in preparation for the independence that the vast majority of Kosovars want and the Europeans support, the European Union this fall pledged 1,800 police and administrative officials to Kosovo as part of a package of aid and diplomacy intended to move Kosovo quickly toward independence, while offering Serbia a "fast track" to membership in the E.U.

The words of Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica recently revealed the attitudes of the Serbs. "It is unacceptable to speak of Kosovo, a province of Serbia, as a future state," he said. "It is especially insulting to offer to a crippled Serbia a reward of fast track to the E.U. in exchange for its consent to violence."

Others might think that it is insulting to the world to pretend that the Serb violence against Kosovo never happened, and that it is deeply immoral to ask the Kosovars now to live with their oppressors.

Moreover, a new Kosovar identity is emerging in the region. Kosovars are designing a new national flag, one, it is hoped, that would reflect a multi-ethnic identity and include the 10 percent of Kosovars who are ethnically Serbs. And President Rugova, before he died, even tried to rename Kosovo's indigenous dog the "Kosovo shepherd."

What is clear here is that both Europe and the United States have every reason to stand by Kosovo in its natural desire and demand for independence. Indeed, what is the alternative? Stand by the Serbs who slaughtered some 250,000 of their "neighbors" during the '90s? There is a chance here for Europe, as well, to make up for its moral casualness in the Balkans during the '90s, and for the U.S. to embrace a truly righteous cause.

As Charles A. Kupchan, professor of international affairs at Georgetown University, wrote recently in Foreign Affairs: "Kosovo's independence ... should not be held hostage to Serbia's inability to trust itself to behave responsibly. The United States and its European partners were too timid in confronting Serbian nationalism throughout most of the 1990s, and much blood was shed as a result. The international community should not make the same mistake today. Serbia's darker instincts need to be extinguished, not accommodated."

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50 Cent plays concert in Kosovo

2007-12-18T08:31:00.001-05:00

50 Cent plays concert in Kosovo

50 Cent is currently promoting his latest album Curtis

US rapper 50 Cent has performed a concert in Kosovo to a sell-out crowd of 25,000 people, becoming the most high-profile artist to play there.

Some fans thought he would not show up as the threat of violence has escalated with Kosovo set to declare independence from Serbia.

Speaking to Reuters before performing, the 32-year-old said: "I haven't missed a show date in my career."

Riot police were on guard during the gig at a stadium in Pristina.

'Language barriers'

I hope that we will have more opportunities to have more people like him coming and performing in Kosovo

Elza Januzi, 50 Cent fan

50 Cent - real name Curtis Jackson - said: "I've been to Iraq. I performed for the soldiers. I've been to Israel. I've been to Beirut. They actually bombed the week after I left."

He is currently in the middle of a European tour promoting his latest album, Curtis.

"I won't get a chance to see the world, like the entire world, unless I go everywhere. I see my music break through language barriers," he said.

The football stadium is situated between the ruins of a Serb police station and a railway yard where thousands of Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians were deported by Serb troops.

Cent, who grew up in New York and has been shot nine times, added: "I know exactly what happens when the guns come out. Maybe that's why they (identify) with me."

One fan at the concert, Elza Januzi, said: "I hope that we will have more opportunities to have more people like him coming and performing in Kosovo. It's a great, great feeling tonight."

Kosovo deserves its independence

2007-12-12T11:27:00.000-05:00

From The Times

December 12, 2007

Kosovo deserves its independence

I saw the terrible things the Serbians did; they proved themselves a cruel and unjust power

Anthony Loyd

Far beyond the borders of Serbia a sickening form of revisionism has prevailed across the years among critics of Kosovo's desire for independence. Some of it is born from a smug desire for controversy. Much of it comes from ignorance. A part of it derives from racism: inscrutable, impoverished, Muslim, their language and culture unlike any other in Europe, Kosovo Albanians are an easy "white nigger" target for the self-satisfied elements of Western Europe's pseudo-political classes.

The argument of the critics of Kosovan independence rests on two bogus tenets of denial. First, they state that Serbia was not responsible for the widescale massacre of Albanian civilians between 1998 and 1999, and propose instead that Serb security fores were somehow tricked into killing thousands of innocents by the provocation of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Secondly, they advance the theory that the 800,000 Albanian refugees who fled their homes during Nato's 79-day air campaign did so as they were frightened of the bombing rather than Serb military units.

Were these claims true then the fundamental case for Kosovo's independence, in the spotlight since the expiry on Monday of a UN deadline for Pristina and Belgrade to reach agreement on the province's future status, would be fatally flawed.

But they are untrue. I know this not as an assumption, but as a fact. I have many memories of Kosovo acquired during the time I spent reporting there between 1998 and 2000. Among the images of mass graves, burnt villages and swelling bodies that spring to mind is one of particular significance. In the fields outside the town of Istinic in southwestern Kosovo one summer day I watched some 40,000 Kosovans corralled together by rings of Serb police. The young, the old; man, woman, child, they stared in abject fear to the horizon where smoke from their villages, torched in a Serb purge from which they fled, gathered thickly in the skies. "Where is Europe? Where is America?" one refugee beseeched me.

After a day or two the Serb police pushed them back into the hinterland, driving them with stinging switches and robotic threats broadcast from tannoys mounted on the sides of armoured personnel carriers. These people had not fled from fear of Nato bombing.

The first Nato bomb was seven months away from falling. This was the summer of 1998. The world little cared for Kosovo then and in a dry run for their larger purge operations a year later the Serbs were already driving thousands of people from their homes.

The memory is pertinent to Kosovo's case for independence now as it revealed the absolute complicity of the Serbian authorities in human rights abuses in Kosovo and proved them then, as later, a cruel and unjust power from which the oppressed Kosovo Albanian majority thoroughly deserved to be independent.

The KLA were no angels. An everyman insurgent force (rather than a simple mafia entity as suggested by revisionists) comprising freedom fighters, intellectuals, peasants, nationalists, they also had a criminal element and their own human rights record was abysmal. But they reflected the majority population's desire for independence, a wish made credible, more than anything else, by the behaviour of the Serbian Government towards the civilian population.

As the international community wrings its hands over what to do with Kosovo now, it would do well to remember those facts. For time is no longer on anyone's side. Too much of it has already been wasted in vaccilation since 1999.

Earlier this year a resurgent Russia, keen to reinvigorate its influence on the region, torpedoed the UN's reasonable plan for supervised independence for Kosovo. A further five months of fruitless negotiation between Serbs and Kosovans followed before the December 10 deadline passed without result.

The current impasse seems solid. On one side Kosovo's newly elected Prime Minister, Hashim Thaci, a former KLA member, is readying himself for a unilateral declaration of independence, backed by the US, Britain, France and most of the EU.

On the other Serbia's nationalist Prime Minister, Vojislav Kostunica, backed by Russia, has made Kosovo's status as part of Serbia a lead issue in Serb politics and has given warning of dire consequences should the EU recognise Kosovan independence.

Doom merchants paint a grim picture in which Kosovo declares independence only to have it challenged by Serbia as being illegal without the imprimatur of the UN Security Council, in turn blocked by Russia. Violence subsequently flares in the province, then across the Balkans as Serbs in Bosnia and Albanians in Macedonia also demand independence. Presto: a new Balkan war made worse by a new cold war.

But the realities suggest otherwise. Mr Thaci knows he needs international recognition for independence and has already said that a declaration will be made in collaboration with the EU and US. He understands that a rash unilateral declaration would only deepen the economic malaise of a province totally reliant on outside financial assistance for survival.

Furthermore, for all the Kostunica hype in Serbia, most Serbs are far more concerned with their own economic woes than Kosovo's status, and may be reluctant to seek Russian patronage if it means worsening relations with the EU. Having fought and lost four wars in 16 years they are in no particular hurry for another conflict, and despite the sabre-rattling there has been no mobilisation of Yugoslav army units.

In Kosovo itself, due to the absence of any reconciliation between the two ethnic groups since 1999, the minority Serb population exists in enclaves largely removed from the Albanians. Low-level civil unrest, rioting and murder are possibilities, but with 16,000 Nato troops in the province it is unlikely that there can be any widescale clash of opposing paramilitaries.

So the road ahead may not be as perilous as it is feared. Wriggle room exists. However, in the meantime the EU should bolster its civilian and military missions in Kosovo, ensuring that the Serb minority is well protected. Though it would be ideal if a way forward could be found with Russian and Serb agreement, the EU should also accept that this is now unlikely to happen.

And when considering how to respond to the inevitable declaration of independence, the EU should also divest itself as best possible from the emotive language of regional players and revisionists alike and remember three simple facts. The Serbs effectively and irreversibly lost control of Kosovo in 1999. The majority of Kosovars want independence. And, above all, they deserve independence.

South East Europe Online

Summer Universities in Mitrovica & Ohrid

Summer Universities in Mitrovica & Ohrid

Will the Real Serbia Please Stand Up?

International law experts debate Kosovo independence legality

Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too | FP Passport

Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too

Abandoned house

Lubinje e Poshtme

Albania - Yours to discover!

NATO, UN and Serbia Engage in High Stakes Game Over Kosovo

NATO, UN and Serbia Engage in High Stakes Game Over Kosovo

Tensions continue on the streets of Mitrovica a week after rioting Serbs clashed with police and NATO troops in the town on Kosovo's northern border. DW-WORLD.DE talked to a Balkans expert about the latest developments.

The Israel of the Balkans

The Israel of the Balkans

About the Author

Reassuring Kosovo's Serbs

Reassuring Kosovo's Serbs

Sabine Freizer

March 20, 2008 7:00 AM | Printable version

Albania: once and future glories

Albania: once and future glories

Albania is rich in ancient ruins that could pave the way to prosperity for the country's burgeoning tourist industry, writes Jeremy Seal.

Essentials

Bear convicted for theft of honey

Bulgarian Music Idol 2 - Mariah Carey - Without You (Funny)

Massive Tree Planting in Macedonia

Massive Tree Planting in Macedonia

Kosovo Isn’t the Problem, Serbia Is

Kosovo Isn't the Problem, Serbia IsTestimony of Vice President for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations Daniel Serwer before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Kosovars celebrate but have not misbehaved

Belgrade is trying to turn back the clock

Serbia is the problem

We need better policy

Collateral damage

Conclusion

Newborn

The limits of analogy in Kosovo's independence bid

Zabrane vode u lager

False Fears and False Hopes - Kosovo as "Muslim State in Europe"

Kosovo: Time For Serbia To Wake Up

What happened to Kosovo could never happen here

Thank you Russia - For what?

RUSSIA'S SUPPORT OF SERBIA IS MORE ABOUT OIL THAN KOSOVO

Unrest hurts Serbian economy

Belgrade smash 'n' grab becomes YouTube smash hit

Belgrade smash 'n' grab becomes YouTube smash hit

<a href="http://ad.doubleclick.net/jump/reuters.com.dart/news/odd/article;seg1=10033;type=featured_broker;sz=170x40;articleID=USN2259975320080222;ord=5299?" target="_blank"> </a>

Is Kosovo Serbia? We ask a historian

Is Kosovo Serbia? We ask a historian

JUSTICE FOR KOSOVO - CHANCE FOR SERBIA

Serbia's choice

Serbia's choice

RIP Janez Drnovsek

Slovenia's former president Drnovsek dies

Kosovo for sneakers

Kosovo Assigned 'KV' Code

Kosovo Assigned 'KV' Code

It's a Kosovo!

New country, new flag

BBC NEWS | Europe | Kosovo celebrates 'dream come true'

Serbia makes fresh Kosovo threat

BALKANS: Promises of EU More Sweet than Serious

Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

Albania honors resistance efforts that helped save Jews from Holocaust - Haaretz - Israel News

Book Review: German Diplomats Remember Kosovo

Book Review: German Diplomats Remember Kosovo

Nationalism Rising in Serbia? - TIME

Kosovo's Thaci seeks independence timetable at EU

Who will he vote for?

Rallying with the Serbian nationalists

'The Date for Kosovo Independence Is Set'

Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

Albania Investment Property: The Next Big Thing

A Union of the West? Balladur says it's time

Today in Americas

U.S. and Germany Plan to Recognize Kosovo

Huge Oil & Gas Reserve Found in Albania

Huge Oil & Gas Reserve Found in Albania

Battle of Kosovo

Kosovo Isn't the Problem, Serbia Is
Testimony of Vice President for Post-Conflict Peace and Stability Operations Daniel Serwer before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.