Post by Bozur on Oct 6, 2010 22:24:09 GMT -5
OCTOBER 6, 2010
Self-Determination Must Also Apply To Kosovo's Serbs
With regard to the Sept. 27 op-ed "Europe Needs Kosovo" by Madeleine K. Albright and James C. O'Brien I'd like to point out that it was not the United Nations General Assembly but Serbia that sought an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence.
Although the ICJ ruled that the Kosovo declaration of independence did not contravene international law, the ruling only addressed this narrow and specific political act and not the wider and much more significant issue regarding the rights of secession and the international status of contested states. Thus, the suggestion by Ms. Albright and Mr. O'Brien that the ICJ ruling supports the independence of Kosovo and that it provides the legal justification for other nations to follow the U.S. in recognizing Kosovo is misleading.
Furthermore, the authors argue that status should be excluded in the bilateral talks between Serbia and Kosovo and the focus be only on trade, utilities and border crossings between two independent countries. The question of status is not only relevant, but should be central to the bilateral talks, as it is not resolved by any measure. It is shocking that these esteemed authors fail to mention U.N. Resolution 1244, the agreement that halted hostilities between NATO and Serbia and affirmed the territorial integrity of Serbia, which includes its southern province of Kosovo. That the U.S. and its diplomats continue to ignore this document is a form of geopolitical legerdemain.
Moreover, to claim that granting Kosovo independence without proper negotiations and compromise with its mother country will not set a precedent for other secessionist movements is astonishingly naive. The nature of Kosovo's granted independence not only contravenes U.N. Resolution 1244, but also the Helsinki Accords and the U.N. Charter of Rights.
The authors' claim that the situation surrounding the demise of Yugoslavia and the ethnic conflict in Kosovo is "unique" and thus only applicable to Kosovo is laughable. There are countless secessionist movements and ethnic conflicts around the world, each with their own so-called unique historical circumstances, but all sharing the same overarching characteristics that define secessionist struggles. Grant Kosovo independence without proper negotiations with Belgrade today and you light the fires of other secessionist hotspots around the world, undermining our international system.
If Ms. Albright and Mr. O'Brien want to be agents for a peaceful solution to the Serbia-Kosovo dilemma, they should start by advocating the right of self-determination to all the sectarian groups that once made up the former Yugoslavia. In other words, if Kosovar Albanians are granted the right of self-determination, so should the Serbian communities of northern Kosovo that wish to remain a part of Serbia, as well as the Srpski Republic who desperately want to free themselves from a dysfunctional Bosnian state. Otherwise, the frozen conflicts that are impeding the freedom and progress of the western Balkans will remain unresolved and serve as potential tinderbox in Europe's backyard.
Mark Zlojutro
San Antonio, Texas
online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703726404575533710080253570.html