Kosovo independence reverberates worldwide
The U.S. and most major European powers have stated their approval, but other countries are hesitant to give their assent to a breakaway state.
PARIS — The first official recognition of the infant country of Kosovo came today not from predictable friends in the West, but rather from the East's Afghanistan, a small country struggling to remain independent in the face of regional challenges.
In fact, how countries around the world reacted to Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence this weekend often had less to do with the tiny Balkan state than with their views of secessionist struggles in the region and in their own backyards.
Kosovo was hoping for a "yes" from as many as 100 states. But today, while diplomats from the United States and the major European powers lined up to back the newly declared state, it was still far from that goal.
After the early-morning declaration by the Afghan Foreign Ministry that spoke of the need to respect the "will of the people," French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told journalists that Paris was on board, and that others would follow
"I read headlines about 'Division in Europe.' What division? Things are going better than we expected," Kouchner said as he entered a meeting of European Union's foreign ministers.
Shortly after, President Bush, traveling in Africa, declared that "the Kosovars are now independent." His positive words immediately flashed around Kosovo, but apparently he had jumped the gun ahead of his own State Department, which quickly followed with a statement from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, confirming her boss' view.
"As Kosovo today begins its life as an independent state, the United States pledges to continue to be its close friend and partner," she said, according to Agence France-Presse. She also confirmed "our friendship with Serbia, an ally during two world wars."
The earliest reactions were scripted to come from Europeans who were supposed to have precedence on what the West is adamant is a "European issue" that Russia should not be involved in.
Spain, facing its own separatist struggles by the Basques, led a minority of countries including Cyprus and Romania, that were apparently determined to say "no" to Kosovo's independence from Serbia. Other countries such as Slovakia, the Netherlands and Portugal said they were not ready to declare their position, with some indicating they are anxious about setting a precedent by recognizing a breakaway state.
At that meeting in Brussels, Spain's foreign minister complained that the Kosovars were "violating international law by breaking away from Serbia." But he had agreed to sign off on the EU foreign ministers' statement that said it would be up to individual nations to announce their decision.
Slovenia's Dimitri Rupel explained during a news conference today that the purpose of the statement was to show that Europe was ready "to cope with a new reality that has arisen in Kosovo. This is a unanimous, common reaction to the events in time, in reality. Of course, there are differences among ourselves. We never said there would be none."
geraldine.baum@latimes.com
