Post by Fender on Feb 8, 2008 19:36:30 GMT -5
Officials: EU Nations Lack Unity On Kosovo Independence - AFP
BRUSSELS (AFP)--European Union nations remain split on Kosovo's impending declaration of independence, and recognition is set to be disjointed with a significant minority opposing the move, according to officials.
For several months, European leaders have sought to forge a common position ahead of the independence declaration of the tiny breakaway Serbian province, now expected Feb. 17.
The issue, set to top the agenda at an E.U. foreign ministers' meeting Feb. 18, gained extra urgency Friday when Serbia said it expected the "illegal" declaration on the day before the meeting.
The hunt is on for a unified E.U. response to a declaration of independence from the largely ethnic Albanian Kosovo, which would be acceptable to everyone, diplomats said.
"There is no magic formula," one diplomat told Agence France-Presse.
The E.U. itself has no competence to recognize a new state, which will have to be done on a country to country basis.
"Things remain fluid but one thing is sure - not all the countries will recognize the independence," another diplomat said.
Six member states, some with territorial issues of their own, are openly hostile to the idea.
One of the most implacably opposed is Cyprus, itself a split nation due to a declaration of independence by the largely Turkish north of the island in the 1970s.
The authorities in Spain, with its Basque and Catalan separatists, reiterated Wednesday that it would not recognize Kosovo.
Greece, Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia are also opposed - either due to their own minority problems or because of good relations with the Serbs.
Romanian President Traian Basescu said Thursday that the E.U. foreign ministers meeting would "establish the principle that each member state is free to recognize the independence of Kosovo or not."
The Serbs themselves won't agree to losing Kosovo, which they consider the cradle of their history, culture and Orthodox Christianity.
They contest the legality of such a move by Kosovo, which has been run by the U.N. since 1999, and are supported by Moscow, which has promised to block U.N. recognition for a new state.
In stark contrast stand the champions of Kosovan independence, E.U. heavy-hitters the U.K., France, Germany and Italy, all members - along with the U.S. and Russia - of the international Contact Group which sought, unsuccessfully, a negotiated deal between Belgrade and Pristina.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 08, 2008 11:50 ET (16:50 GMT)
BRUSSELS (AFP)--European Union nations remain split on Kosovo's impending declaration of independence, and recognition is set to be disjointed with a significant minority opposing the move, according to officials.
For several months, European leaders have sought to forge a common position ahead of the independence declaration of the tiny breakaway Serbian province, now expected Feb. 17.
The issue, set to top the agenda at an E.U. foreign ministers' meeting Feb. 18, gained extra urgency Friday when Serbia said it expected the "illegal" declaration on the day before the meeting.
The hunt is on for a unified E.U. response to a declaration of independence from the largely ethnic Albanian Kosovo, which would be acceptable to everyone, diplomats said.
"There is no magic formula," one diplomat told Agence France-Presse.
The E.U. itself has no competence to recognize a new state, which will have to be done on a country to country basis.
"Things remain fluid but one thing is sure - not all the countries will recognize the independence," another diplomat said.
Six member states, some with territorial issues of their own, are openly hostile to the idea.
One of the most implacably opposed is Cyprus, itself a split nation due to a declaration of independence by the largely Turkish north of the island in the 1970s.
The authorities in Spain, with its Basque and Catalan separatists, reiterated Wednesday that it would not recognize Kosovo.
Greece, Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia are also opposed - either due to their own minority problems or because of good relations with the Serbs.
Romanian President Traian Basescu said Thursday that the E.U. foreign ministers meeting would "establish the principle that each member state is free to recognize the independence of Kosovo or not."
The Serbs themselves won't agree to losing Kosovo, which they consider the cradle of their history, culture and Orthodox Christianity.
They contest the legality of such a move by Kosovo, which has been run by the U.N. since 1999, and are supported by Moscow, which has promised to block U.N. recognition for a new state.
In stark contrast stand the champions of Kosovan independence, E.U. heavy-hitters the U.K., France, Germany and Italy, all members - along with the U.S. and Russia - of the international Contact Group which sought, unsuccessfully, a negotiated deal between Belgrade and Pristina.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 08, 2008 11:50 ET (16:50 GMT)