Kosovar Independence

[Vandal]

I am surprised that this hasn't come up on here yet. Kosovo has declared it's freedom from Serbia. Russia has denounced the action and the US is calling for calm in the region and there are still 16,000 peacekeepers in-country. Thoughts?

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330951,00.html

Kosovo Declares Independence From Serbia

Sunday , February 17, 2008

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PRISTINA, Serbia —

Revelers fired guns into the air and fireworks lit up the skies over Kosovo on Sunday after parliament proclaimed independence, defying Serbia and Russia with a historic declaration as the world's newest nation.

A decade after a bloody separatist war with Serbian forces that claimed 10,000 lives, lawmakers pronounced the territory the Republic of Kosovo and pledged to make it a "democratic, multiethnic state." Its leaders looked for swift recognition from the U.S. and key European powers — but also braced for a bitter showdown.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said the declaration violates Serbia's sovereignty and the U.N. Charter and threatens "the escalation of tension and ethnic violence in the region, a new conflict in the Balkans." It warned other nations against "supporting separatism" by recognizing Kosovo.

Serbia also denounced the declaration as illegal, and the U.N. Security Council convened an emergency meeting at Russia's request. The European Union and NATO, mindful of the Balkans' turbulent past, appealed for restraint and warned that the international community would not tolerate violence.

Underscoring fears of renewed unrest, an explosion lightly damaged a U.N. courthouse in Kosovo's tense north, home to most of its minority Serbs. No one was injured. Another unexploded grenade was found near a motel that houses EU officials.

But in the capital, Pristina, the mood was jubilant. Thousands of ethnic Albanians braved subfreezing temperatures to ride on the roofs of their cars, singing patriotic songs and chanting: "KLA! KLA!" — the acronym for the now-disbanded rebel Kosovo Liberation Army.

Many dressed in traditional costumes and played trumpets and drums, and an ethnic Albanian couple named their newborn daughter Pavarsie — Albanian for "independence."

"This is the happiest day in my life," said Mehi Shehu, a 68-year-old ethnic Albanian. "Now we're free and we can celebrate without fear."

International officials warned their staff to stay indoors and avoid "happy fire" as some revelers shot handguns into the air.

Sunday's declaration was carefully orchestrated with the U.S. and key European powers, and Kosovo was counting on international recognition that could come as early as Monday, when EU foreign ministers meet in Brussels, Belgium.

But by sidestepping the U.N. and appealing directly to the U.S. and other nations for recognition, Kosovo set up a showdown with Serbia — outraged at the imminent loss of its territory — and Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has argued that independence without U.N. approval would set a dangerous precedent for "frozen conflicts" across the former Soviet Union and around the world.

Serbia's government ruled out a military response as part of a secret "action plan" drafted earlier this week, but warned that it would downgrade relations with any foreign government that recognizes Kosovo's independence.

Meanwhile, Serbia's government minister for Kosovo, Slobodan Samardzic, said Serbia would increase its presence in the roughly 15 percent of Kosovo that is Serb-controlled in an apparent attempt to partition the province.

Kosovo President Fatmir Sejdiu sought to allay Serbs' concerns, telling them: "I understand today is a fearful day for you all, but your rights and your property will be protected today as it will be always."

At an extraordinary session of parliament televised live nationwide, sustained applause erupted after the rest of the chamber unanimously adopted the declaration of independence, which was scripted on parchment. The session was boycotted by 10 minority Serb members.

The lawmakers also unveiled a new national crest and a flag: a bright blue banner featuring a golden map of Kosovo and six stars, one for each of its main ethnic groups.

"We, the democratically elected leaders of our people, hereby declare Kosovo to be an independent and sovereign state," the proclamation read.

"From today onwards, Kosovo is proud, independent and free," said Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, a former KLA leader. "We never lost faith in the dream that one day we would stand among the free nations of the world, and today we do."

"Our hopes have never been higher," he said. "Dreams are infinite, our challenges loom large, but nothing can deter us from moving forward to the greatness that history has reserved for us."

Like Sejdiu, Thaci reached out to ordinary Serbs, but he had stern words for the Serbian government. "Kosovo will never be ruled by Belgrade again," he warned.

Thaci also signed 192 separate letters to nations around the world — including Serbia — asking them to recognize Kosovo as a state.

Kosovo had formally remained a part of Serbia even though it has been administered by the U.N. and NATO since 1999, when NATO airstrikes ended former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic's crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists that had driven nearly a million people from their homes.

The province is still protected by 16,000 NATO-led peacekeepers, and the alliance boosted its patrols over the weekend in hopes of discouraging violence. International police, meanwhile, deployed to back up local forces in the tense north.

U.S. President George W. Bush said the United States "will continue to work with our allies to the very best we can to make sure there's no violence."

"We are heartened by the fact that the Kosovo government has clearly proclaimed its willingness and its desire to support Serbian rights in Kosovo," Bush said while on a visit to Africa. "We also believe it's in Serbia's interest to be aligned with Europe and the Serbian people can know that they have a friend in America."

Kosovo's leaders signed their names on a giant iron sculpture spelling out "NEWBORN" before heading to a sports hall for a performance of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" by the Kosovo Philharmonic Orchestra.

Ninety percent of Kosovo's 2 million people are ethnic Albanian — most of them secular Muslims — and they see no reason to stay joined to the rest of Christian Orthodox Serbia.

"I feel stronger," said Ymer Govori, 36, carrying his daughter on his shoulders to celebrations downtown.

"I have my own state and my own post code," he said, "and it won't say Serbia any longer."

[Stiffler]

SWEET. Re-open France!!!!!

[PapaJu]

Russia and Serbia will both pout about it, but they're not stupid enough to try and start crap up again.