Talk:International recognition of Kosovo/Archive 9

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Australia

Australia has formally recognised Kosovo.[1] 203.7.140.3 (talk) 05:22, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Yup, article has been updated since the news broke out. --Ubardak (talk) 05:26, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Netherlands

The Netherlands is (as always) a Johnny come late concerning recgnition, this is in part because the Netherlands (the dominant constituent country) cannot recognize other countries, the whole Kingdom does that. So the other constituent countries , like Aruba need to have their say too in the government of the Kingdom and that takes time. Barring atrocities the government and the parliament are quite positive about recognition. As such the position of the Netherlands is more one of "no hurry, we'll do this properly", rather than one of serious doubt. ThW5 (talk) 07:26, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I agree, but what I miss here in the article is the thing Maxime Verhagen (Minister of Foreign Affairs) has told that he first will take a look on how Kosovo is going to deal with the human rights and the position of Serbs and other minorities in the new state. Can someone who may edit include this please? 87.195.12.169 (talk) 14:33, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Reuters

Reuters lists [2] Italy and Germany among those who recognize Kosovo. Contralya (talk) 07:39, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Wrong, at least about Italy: the Italian Parliament is scheduled to deliberate on the matter tomorrow, and the Foreign Minister, Massimo D'Alema, stated that Italuy won't recognize before without a parliamentary approval (which is expected to be granted anyway). See note on Italy in the article. So much for Reuters accuracy. --Piero Montesacro (talk) 12:18, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

MSNBC

According to this clip from the MSNBC news channel,[3] Germany has in fact recognized Kosovo. And the USA of course. Keep in mind that this is a number of hours old. Contralya (talk) 07:59, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Micro States????

Any news on the Mico States such as San Marino, Andorra and Liechtenstein? What is their stance with the recognition of Kosovo? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ijanderson977 (talk • contribs) 09:21, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

• Nations like that don't really matter. And it is not like every nation has an embassy in every other nation. Contralya (talk) 10:07, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

You don't need an embassy to have diplomatic relations -- but yes, many smaller nations don't have official diplomatic relations with some nations simply because they don't have the resources and money to do it. The fact that Bhutan has official relations with very few states (only a couple dozen), for instance, does not influence the fact that Bhutan is an internationally recognised independent state. (I expect many African and Caribbean states not to say anything, for instance, BTW.) —<spanstyle="font-variant:small-caps">Nightstallion 10:41, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I don't see why they don't matter. For example, most of the states that recognize the Republic of China (Taiwan) are snmall. Yet Taiwan carries out useful business through these states. Anyway, I would expect San Marino to follow Italy example and Monaco to follow France. Since both have recognized Kosov, I would expect their micro-allies to follow. Someone should check their government websites, to see if they have made any statements RE Kosovo. 141.166.230.9 (talk)

I checked the websites for Liechtenstein, San Marino, Monaco, and Andorra. Andorra and Liechtenstein have some old news on Kosovo but nothing about recognition. The others are silent. 141.166.230.9 (talk) 22:48, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

Philippines & Australia

Actually, the Philippines opposes and not neutral - it called for a negotiated status on the principle of Serbia's sovereignty & territorial integrity.

Australia just recognized. --PaxEquilibrium (talk) 11:25, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

That's not the same as saying "we don't recognise the independence declaration". —Nightstallion 11:31, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Map

There's an ongoing discussion at commons:Image_talk:Kosovo_relations.png#concern whether we should have two categories for neutral states (one for those who have "expressed concern", one for the others) or not; please make your position known there. —Nightstallion 14:00, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

There is no need for the extra category and it degrades the quality of the map I support revert to an earlier version. Hobartimus (talk) 14:04, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Austria

Can someone confirm the text written here at the austrian government about kosovo's recognition? http://www.austria.gv.at/site/cob__27888/5432/default.aspx —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.103.152.52 (talk) 16:58, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

confirm --TheFEARgod (Ч) 17:01, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I think Austria should be added to the recognized states.... btw, who manages the changes?! NewBorn08 (talk) 17:36, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

No, it shouldn't, because it will only happen tomorrow. And the changes are managed by all the users. —Nightstallion 17:53, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Can Austria be confirmed? As far as I'm concerned the political consensus to recognise it has been reached but the government hasn't officially accepted Kosovo as the Chouncellor is away in South Africa. Bardhylius (talk) 16:14, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Austria 2

Austria has recognised Kosovo, see this[4]. Should we add it?217.24.247.25 (talk) 15:00, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

No, it has not. Austria *WILL* recognise it, but has not yet done so. —Nightstallion 15:04, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

In that case Germany has NEITHER recognized Kosovo, because the Bundespresident did not send the formal letter yet. This is the case with Norway too. In all these cases the government has made the decition and is only waiting for the formal signature from the symbolic head of state. Jakro64 (talk) 15:28, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Not the way I read the news reports: The Norwegian communique does not state that the government has decided to recognise Kosovo, it just states that the government *will* decide to recognise Kosovo, whereas in the case of Germany, the federal government has already decided to do so. You're right, though, the Austrian government just decided a few minutes ago. —Nightstallion 15:50, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Finland, though, is a typical example where the decision to "recognize" was made Monday, but is still pending the President's symbolic signature. --Camptown (talk) 16:08, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Mh, you may have a point there -- I'm trying to access the Finnish foreign ministry website, but it's not responding right now. —Nightstallion 16:20, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Mh. Both Finland and Norway seem unclear to me right now, as I have not been able to find an official statement that the government has decided to recognise Kosovo and is only waiting for formalities... —Nightstallion 16:25, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

In the Norwegian case this is simply a formulation as it is the king who officially is recognizing foreign countries. The decision is done, otherwise it would not be published so broadly on the ministry's netpage! Most likely the formal statement will come on Friday after the King weekly meeting with his council (government). Jakro64 (talk) 16:38, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Exactly. Government's statement: here. And the Government would fall should the King have any objection to sign the decree. --Camptown (talk) 16:42, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Okay, fair enough. Now, what about Finland? —Nightstallion 16:48, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Not very likely. The king of Norway has during the last 102 years never had any objection to any decition of his government. Jakro64 (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 16:52, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Since the President of Finland is an elected politician with real veto power, we'd mayb better wait till she returns from her foreign trip. --Camptown (talk) 16:55, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Meh, so's the Austrian politician; I think we should have the same standards for all. So, when did Finland officially state it had begun recognising Kosovo, and where's the source? :) —Nightstallion 17:05, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

It's [5] here, but although if the Finnish president is elected she does not have any real veto power. The president of Finland is only a state symbol. Jakro64 (talk) 17:12, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Greece

Greek MFA Bakoyanni made a recent statement that Greece has no clear stance on the recongition of Kosovo. Here is the last paragraph of the statement:

"As regards the issue of recognition of the new state of affairs – which can in no way serve as a precedent – Greece will take its decisions at a coming stage, when it has examined all of the developments in depth; all of the dimensions and consequences these developments have for regional security and Greece’s interests."

As you can see, Greece will define whether it will recognise Kosovo or not at a coming stage, so I suggest Greece should be removed from the list of "States that have declared that they will not recognise Kosovo as independent".

You can find the full statement at: [6]Wikiturk (talk) 14:39, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

It seems you're right. Thanks! —Nightstallion 14:46, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

It says Greece won't take a clear stance but at a Serbian anti-Kosovo rally I saw a Greek flag being held aloft next to a Spanish and Serbian flag. Am I missing something? Zombie Hunter Smurf (talk) 14:16, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

citation

As the page is locked, can someone who can edit include the following citation regarding the claims of Serbia, backed by Russia, that the unilateral declaration of independence is illegal wrt. UN resolution 1244. http://www.b92.net/eng/news/politics-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=02&dd=19&nav_id=47824 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.156.12.12 (talk) 15:33, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Alphabetical and Chronological order

Can the the countries, which recognised Kosovo on the 18th February in Alphabetical order as it seems more professional and neat that way? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ijanderson977 (talk • contribs) 16:14, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

No, they can't. They're in the order in which they recognised Kosovo, by date and time. —Nightstallion 16:16, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

The tables that we have at the moment mean that, with a click of a mouse, you can rearrange them to be in alphabetical order, if you so wish. J Milburn (talk) 16:58, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey are Candidate counrties to the EU

Please add "EU Candidate" to end of Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey Izmir lee (talk) 16:45, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

a note about Macedonia; the new article here indicates that they are in favor of recognizing Kosovo NewBorn08 (talk) 18:42, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Add the statement, but remove the flag from candidates. They are under no obligations of the EU, nor do they hold any influence over EU policy. It should be noted they are candidates, as they will most likely take some influence from the EU. There is no basis for keeping the flag alongside candidates however. 86.111.162.127 (talk) 00:40, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

I agree that the statement should be mentioned, but the flag suggests EU legitimacy, which candidates do not have. They are not involved in EU discussions or decision making, and candidate countries may never in fact become EU members. If we are doing this we need to note that Norway, Iceland, Leichtenstein, Switzerland are EEA countries, and maybe SAA signatories as well. I am remiving the EU flags from Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey for this reason. Knjizevnost (talk) 12:56, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Macedonia has "" in the article but Turkey and Croatia don't have... Izmir lee (talk) 15:10, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

In the article there is no "" in Croatia and Turkey but Macedonia has it. Turkey also doesn't have " European Union candidate country"!.. Izmir lee (talk) 15:32, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

Well, the conventions seem to constantly erode. It should be fixed now, but I wonder how long it will last. -- EJ (talk) 15:45, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

There's a dispute about putting the flag next to candidate countries (just realized - the topic is somewhere down there). The flags has been removed by EJ - I shall not attempt to change it back it until the issue is clear. (It's a minor detail anyway). Quastar Vaan (talk) 15:54, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

I am not aware of any dispute, as far as I can see nobody voiced opposition to Knjizevnost's suggestion above, and most of the time it is followed in the article. I do not particularly care whether candidate countries will get a flag or not, but I do care about consistency. Before my last edit, Macedonia had a flag and a "European Union cadidate country" comment, Croatia had only the the comment but no flag, and Turkey had neither. Now at least all three are treated the same way. -- EJ (talk) 16:07, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

Noted, thanks for the clarification. It should have been 'discussion', not 'dispute'. For now I'll stick to 'no flag' until someone changes the whole page - I am for consistency as well. Quastar Vaan (talk) 16:11, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

Northern Cyprus

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is not a recognised state

Why do you include it? Should we include Transvaal too? No country but Turkey has recognized the so-called "TRNC", an offspring of a violent military invasion —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.72.121.130 (talk) 09:15, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Well, it is just a matter of time for greek side in cyprus to realize game is over for them. Their tyrany over turks will be ended soon as well. Too much nationalism kills the states like it did in serbia. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.215.236.240 (talk) 16:28, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Ditto, but still I believe we should stick to Kosovo not Cyprus. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.108.145.11 (talk) 17:05, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Norther Cypurs et al.

WHERE IS NORTHERN CYPRUS ???????

WHY NORTHERN CYPRUS WAS REMOVE ???? I'M FROM POLAND AND POLAND WILL BE recognize KOSOWO 25 FEBRUARY 2008 MONDAY 100%

this page is not exist !!! but the polish goverment will be meet in monday and they will be voting about recognise Kosovo and 3 parties gonna say yes (PO, PIS, LID) is enough 2 green light for Kosowo. i know that you need 2 prove it but sorry i not found this web site !! sorry about my written english !!! :) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.158.196.111 (talk) 04:32, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

can you give me the web site thats says Poland will recognise Kosovo on 25th February please? Ijanderson977 (talk) 23:14, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Its is ok. We should have proof on Monday. Your English is pretty good. Ijanderson977 (talk) 16:17, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Mexico

Mexico's possible reaction (or lack thereof) is, in my humble opinion, as good as any other based on the fact that the Estrada Doctrine is well documented. (Jmrepetto (talk) 16:52, 19 February 2008 (UTC))

If you find a news source which says so, no problem -- but we can't claim something like this without a reference. —Nightstallion 17:25, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

The precedent of the Estrada Doctrine should suffice as a reference. If you read the article you'll see why. (Jmrepetto (talk) 17:40, 19 February 2008 (UTC))

I know what the article says, but that's not how Wikipedia works. We need a reference in THIS ARTICLE. —Nightstallion 17:42, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Wikipedia doesn't take precedent and well-stablished policies as reference? Whatever makes you happy, I found your news source and I'm adding it. (Jmrepetto (talk) 02:19, 20 February 2008 (UTC))

Someone beat me to it. I guess you won this little piss-war, congrats (Jmrepetto (talk) 02:21, 20 February 2008 (UTC))

Senegal

I heard on the news that Senegal alredy recognizes kosovo but I cant find any sources , please help --Cradel 17:02, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

There's a source now. —Nightstallion 17:25, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

And what happened to Saudi-Arabia, which was generally expected to be among the first nations to "recognize" Kosovo.--Camptown (talk) 17:23, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

No idea, but we've had no official statement on the issue up to now -- and the B92 source that some people keep adding is no good, as it's just a conjecture. —Nightstallion 17:25, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Senegal, the accuracy of its notation.

Senegal hasn't been a Security Council Member since 1989.[7] They recognized the Republic of Kosovo largely because of the OIC resolution in support of such recognition (Dakar is the host of the OICs Summit this year). [8] Sorry, the source about the recognition isn't in English. The best information isn't always in English. Translations are often poor substitutes for original sources. Nevermind the fact that plenty of Anglophone people speak plenty of other languages. "Le Soleil" is the government-owned, national newspaper of Senegal and the newspaper of record. I used to write for them but I had to come back home to America to finish my degree. --Madahlen (talk) 19:27, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Flag icons

Okay, the EU icons make sense, seeing as how this issue is considered an important point in the development of the Common Foreign and Security Policy -- but I'm fairly certain we shouldn't include the AU here, as the AU has no common foreign position. I'm not sure about EU candidate countries. —Nightstallion 17:54, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes i can see your point as Kosovo will not have many relations with Africa. But if the AU does decided to recognise Kosovo, this may put pressure on other African states to recognise Kosovo. Ijanderson977 (talk) 17:59, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Nightstallion. There is no need to put flag icons of each and every international organization. EU is obviously more concerned with Kosovo than other organizations, i.e. AU... And I don't think AU issues official recognitions for states.Wikiturk (talk) 18:02, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Okay, let's do it like this: We'll remove the African Union flags for now; if the AU does recognise Kosovo officially (I doubt they will, but what do I know), we'll put them in again, as it does then gain relevance. Good? —Nightstallion 18:06, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Now, what about the candidate countries? —Nightstallion 18:06, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I think Turkey is an Interesting case as it has recognised Kosovo. But is this because it wishes other countries to recognise TRNC or because it is trying to please the majority of EU countries? Ijanderson977 (talk) 18:08, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

No, neither current Turkish Government nor the Turkish Cypriot government demand international recognition for TRNC. Both had expressed their desire for unification in Cyprus. Nevertheless, Turkish public opinion was in doubt whether the Kosova case could be a precedent for a unilateral declaration of Kurdistan from Iraq, which could affect the seperatist sentiments in the Eastern part of Turkey. (I am not saying that Turkey and TRNC discard the option of recognition by using Kosovo as an example). Why Turkey recognized Kosovo is, on the other hand, a result of historical importance of the region to Turks. Kosovo stayed under Ottoman rule for 500 years, and there are many Turks living in the country. Additionally, Turkey is pretty much concerned about the welfare of Albanians in Kosovo and during the war former has provided considerable help to the latter. Wikiturk (talk) 18:55, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

In addition to the historical reasons stated above by Wikiturk, there is also a considerable community of Kosovans living in Turkey that seems to have been influential to the recognition of Kosovo by Turkey. In Turkey lives an extremely large community of Albanians and their descendants. These are the people that have been forced to flee to Turkey more recently, since 1878 and on, following the expansion of Serbia, Montenegro and Greece that took place since then. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.163.118.1 (talk) 00:13, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Belgium

I know that Belgium will recognise Kosovo later this week as it it says on this web page. But does anyone know what date?

http://www.kosovothanksyou.com/files/Belgium_recognizes_Kosovo.pdf

Ijanderson977 (talk) 18:54, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I don't quite know when the procedure is said to be finalised.

What I do know, is that the Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht (Open VLD) said in the Commission Foreign Affairs of Parliament on Wednesday morning 20 February 2008 a bit after 10:05 am CET:

Bij wijze van verklaring wil ik zeggen dat België Kosovo inderdaad heeft erkend. Dat is gebeurd bij koninklijk besluit, dat een dezer dagen bij wijze van brief aan Pristina zal worden meegedeeld.

Source: Complete Report of the activities of the Commission Foreign Affairs (provisional version) on the website of Parliament

Translation:

As a statement, I want to say that Belgium has indeed recognised (perfect tense) Kosovo. That has happened (perfect tense) by means of a royal order, which will be communicated (future tense) to Pristina one of these days in a letter.

— Adhemar (talk) 09:39, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

Kingdom of Belgium

The Kingdom of Belgium already on Fevruary 18th recognized the independents of Kosovo

http://www.kosovothanksyou.com/files/Belgium_recognizes_Kosovo.pdf —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.70.66.34 (talk) 16:40, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Belgium was removed by someone who probably anticipated restistance by the King of Belgians. Returned. --Camptown (talk) 16:51, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

If you would actually read the whole of the source you would have read

"This week, the Government will propose His Majesty the King Albert II to sign a Royal Decree recognizing the Republic of Kosovo as an independent and sovereign state, after which Belgium and Kosovo can establish diplomatic relations."

So Belgium has actually officially recognised Kosovo yet. Ijanderson977 (talk) 17:20, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

See below, we take the starting date of the official process as the date. —Nightstallion 17:28, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Ok then, someone once had a go at me for saying what you have just said. Ijanderson977 (talk) 17:29, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

References

added references NewBorn08 (talk) 18:45, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Update the list

According to this [9] source, "United States, France, Britain, Germany and Italy had all officially declared they recognized Kosovo as an independent state."

The article should be amended appropriately. Contralya (talk) 18:49, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes, but Germany and Italy are tomorrow to officially recognise Kosovo. They haven't officially done so yet. Ijanderson977 (talk) 18:51, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Jordan?

For some reason, on the Foreign relations of Serbia page, the map shows that Serbia has closed it's embassy in Jordan due to Kosovo. Am I missing something here? Anybody know the position of Jordan?--RobNS 19:10, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Libya and Burkina Faso

Why aren't they noted? --PaxEquilibrium (talk) 19:12, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Why should they be noted? What are their views on Kosovo? Ijanderson977 (talk) 19:24, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I can't find views on their sites even mentioning Kosovo.--RobNS 19:25, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I've seen no sources for this, either. —Nightstallion 19:30, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

If there is nothing is mentioned, then they fall into the "States with no reported position at present" category. Then we should wait until they express their views on Kosovo. Ijanderson977 (talk) 19:30, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Recognized State Groupings

22/27 EU member states have indicated that they will accept kosovo but all in different times. Theirfore, in the future i suggest we make a table of what EU states recognize and a table for Other Nations that Recognize. What do you think? NewBorn08 19:22, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Not a good idea. —Nightstallion 19:30, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I second that! Wikiturk (talk) 19:39, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

there has to be some sort of cleanup then!!! it's too messy —Preceding unsigned comment added by NewBorn08 (talk • contribs) 19:39, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

This isn't a good idea as Cyprus, Romania, Slovakia and Spain have not confirmed that they will eventually recognise Kosovo. And well done to whoever put the lists into tables, it looks neater and more professional. Ijanderson977 (talk) 19:42, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

NEWS about Libya and Burkina, also South Africa, Indonesia,...

Here is the official communicate of the 18 February about the Kosovas' question in UN: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2008/sc9252.doc.htm

There is the declaration of Libya and Burkina. I quote

Libya: GIADALLA A. ETTALHI ( Libya) said he hoped that Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence would not signal a return to the 1990s, when the former Republic of Yugoslavia dissolved in violence. Both parties had reiterated their determination to follow a path of peace and negotiated settlement. He reiterated his call to both parties to refrain from any provocative actions and to remain committed to their pledge to renounce violence. He welcomed the pledge by Kosovo authorities to implement the Ahtisaari plans regarding, among other things, minority rights, to create the conditions for the returns of internally displaced persons and regarding property rights. He called upon Serbia to refrain from any actions that would have a negative impact on the already poor living conditions of the people living in Kosovo.

He said his country would be supportive of the principles of justice and international law that stipulated sovereignty of all States and their territorial integrity. How would the world look like if those principles were forfeited? he asked. It must, however, be recognized that there was an exceptional situation in an exceptional region. His country could not accept that yesterday’s events constituted a precedent that could undermine the territorial integrity of States. The Council must state its respect for the territorial integrity of States and must make clear that the situation could not be used as a precedent.

Burkina: ICHEL KAFANDO ( Burkina Faso) said that the fact that, once again, the Council had been called upon to hold a debate on Kosovo demonstrated the great importance and complexity of the problem and the urgency, because of the events that had been happening since yesterday. His delegation had hoped that, after lengthy talks on all fronts, the management of the issue would lead to a satisfactory outcome and promote understanding among the parties. That would have maintained unity of Serbia and sealed peaceful coexistence of the parties. Such an outcome would have been a victory for the international community and the cause of peace.

That was what his country had advocated, convinced that everything must be attempted to make the dialogue prevail, he said. Unfortunately, that was not what had happened, because of the unilateral decision by Kosovo. Serbs and Kosovars, who had existed together for many years, had been unable to overcome their contradictions and preserve the tolerance, on which they might have built a strong and viable State. He regretted that all United Nations efforts, including those through UNMIK, had not been crowned with success. Burkina Faso could only take note of the new situation. He still felt that there was reason to fear the consequences and called upon the parties concerned to avoid any violence in order to preserve peace and security and secure the basic rights of all the communities. There had already been some violent actions, and he hoped they would not spread.

See the security council report here: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2008/sc9252.doc.htm for more informations.

Kormin (talk) 20:28, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Mh. That doesn't really sound like anything definite to me. At best, that makes them tan. —Nightstallion 21:32, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Added both as "undetermined". —Nightstallion 21:55, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Macedonia

Macedonia is in the favorable camp, "Macedonia's position regarding Kosovo's independence is clear. For us, the independence is acceptable and should be implemented on the basis of the Ahtisaari's plan." [10]. NN 20:50, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Macedonia should therefore be put in the "States planning to recognise the independent Republic of Kosovo" section. Ijanderson977 (talk) 20:48, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Really? That kind of sounds like a full recognition to me worded really badly. Mikebloke (talk) 20:54, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I know, but has Macedonia officially as a state recognised Kosovo yet? Ijanderson977 (talk) 20:56, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Not yet —Preceding unsigned comment added by Piasoft (talk • contribs) 23:02, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

EU flag

Hello, in my opinion it is totally exaggerated to list Turkey, Croatia and Macedonia with a EU-flag. They are only candidates (and Turkey and Macedonia will not become an EU-member in the next 10 to 30 years). Please remove that!

Why? They are Candidates of the EU therefore have the word candidate next to the flag. Its not making out that them countries are full EU members. Just candidates of the EU and it quite clearly states that. Ijanderson977 (talk) 20:58, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

completely silly. Croatia, for example has no clear date of entry.--TheFEARgod (Ч) 21:16, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

So what? Its still a candidate of the EU. Ijanderson977 (talk) 21:17, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

and that is irrelevant to this topic. It gives no weight to their decision. --TheFEARgod (Ч) 21:19, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes it does. The fact it is a Candidate country means its pro European, like Kosovo. Ijanderson977 (talk) 21:28, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

being pro-European doesnt make their vote more or less important. --TheFEARgod (Ч) 22:04, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

also, example, Croatia could be taken from the candidates list in the next days because of the ZERP. So candidate status is relative and can be subject of change. I will, however agree if other users support your stance.--TheFEARgod (Ч) 22:12, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

No, Croatia will certainly not be taken from the candidates list because of a single issue -- the most serious thing that could happen would be a freezing of negotiations, and even that won't happen. I think it should be mentioned that they're candidate countries, but we needn't have the EU flag there for them, as well. —Nightstallion 22:16, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

yes i agree with Nightstallation. What i meant was that EU candidates are generally pro European, thats why the are a candidate in the fist place. So there pro European as opposed to pro Russian like Belarus and Serbia. So it is important as Kosovo is pro European too, so that is one of the reasons why EU candidates support Kosovo, so its important that we mention the fact that the they are candidate countries. Ijanderson977 (talk) 23:32, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Must agree with the original point, EU candidates should be mentioned (since it will likely be influenced to go along with the EU) however they are not under any obligation to the EU nor have any say in the EU's stance. The flag should not be displayed alongside candidate countries. It should however be noted. 86.111.162.127 (talk) 23:56, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

But also it is not the EU flag. As you can read under flag of Europe, the Council of Europe which is a separate international organisation with 47 member states including Turkey and others own the flag of Europe. The flag was adopted in 1955 and in 1980s the EU got "right to use it". That's why currently the European Union is trying to find another flag for itself; to stop using the flag of another international organisation. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.106.171.190 (talk) 21:25, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

(This comment is a bit off-topic.) SineBot, you’re right that the flag was originally the flag of the Council of Europe. Yes, the CoE has “intellectual property” of the flag, to the extent IP is possible on a flag (which is not clear in all jurisdictions). However, the Council of Europe then encouraged other European institutions to adopt the same flag. The EU does extensively, to the extent the flag is now most commonly associated with the EU. I don’t know where you get the idea the EU is actively trying to find another flag for itself. In the proposed, but never ratified, Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, Article I-8 would have said “The flag of the Union shall be a circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background.” The flag is now most commonly associated with the EU, whether you like it or not. — Adhemar (talk) 10:34, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

It is not about "liking it or not". I like the EU to use the flag of Europe, and it is not a problem for me. :) Yes, the Council of Europe holds its intellectual property and it has right to extend IP on this flag, because it is not the flag of a nation; but like a kind of logo. On the other hand, even though it encourages all other European institutions to use this flag, it can only be within the consent of the Council of Europe. For example, the right to use the flag was granted to the EU by the CoE. After that the European Central Bank used the flag on EUR banknotes and it caused a real problem. Because the European Central Bank has another international legal personality. It does not share the legal personality of the EU. That's why it was a real crisis between the CoE and the ECB, until the payment of a royalty fee. That's why, even if the EU Constitution includes such a provision, (and even though this is not possible in practice) if he/she prefers, a secretary-general of the Council of Europe may ban prevent all others to use the flag by a decleration addressed to those who had right to use the flag previously. In brief, I had just mentioned that the flag is the flag of the CoE which represents 47 member states. Since it is the flag of the Europe, not the flag of the EU only, the flag also represents Turkey, Russia, Serbia, Bosnia, even Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and all others... currently except Belarus and Kosovo, which are not member states of CoE. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.254.82.145 (talk) 23:24, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

States that recognise Kosovo section

Why is it split in two? How many states that recognize Taiwan has nothing to do with Kosovo. And I notice the same thing isn't done (nor should it) for the section about states that won't recognize, i.e China and Cyprus. Narayanese (talk) 22:01, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

PRC and Cyprus are nearly universally recognised and UN members, so their status is not questioned; ROC and TRNC have questionable international status, so they have to be differentiated from fully recognised UN member states. —Nightstallion 22:15, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

I fully agree with Nightstallion. Yes ROC and TRNC are technically states but are not fully recognised, so do not have the same influence as UN members. Ijanderson977 (talk) 22:20, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Romania

"In a conference Constantin Degeratu presidential adviser on defence affairs said that Romania "will have to change its point of view according to the evolution of the things in Europe, but especially according to national interest." [11]

Basically, it means "no recognition for now, but this might change in the future". 22:18, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Have you got an English source for that? I'd like to see the rest of the text so that we can decide whether this amounts to a change in position or not. —Nightstallion 09:37, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

All I could find was this:

"Romania introduces lights and shades in its position towards Kosovo" is the title in Evenimentul Zilei. The presidential Defense counselor, general Constantin Degeratu, declared that Romania may have to change its point of view accordingly to the European position. Even president Basescu, who firmly declared that Romania will not recognize Kosovo, had previously accepted that Romania will obey any decision of the UN Security Council. Degeratu added that a good time to find a viable and peaceful solution to the Kosovo problem may be the NATO summit in Bucharest (April 2-4). hotnews.ro

bogdan (talk) 10:26, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

I'm afraid I have trouble accessing that site... —Nightstallion 11:59, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Ah, now I can see it. Mh, that doesn't really sound like it's a change of position for now, though. Maybe they'll change their mind at the NATO summit. —Nightstallion 12:00, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Poland

Poland's parliament has delayed the recognition of Kosovo at the request of the President, Lech Kaczynski. As a result, despite the earlier declarations of the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Radoslaw Sikorski, that Kosovo will be recognized as independant by Poland, Poland's stance is now not that certain. As a result, I would propose that someone with more Wikipedia skills than me to remove Poland from the list of countries that claimed they will recognize Kosovo and added it to the list of countries that has delayed taking a stance on the issue. Relevant sources can be found at all Polish news and media outlets, such as the credible Polish-language daily Gazeta Wyborcza (gazeta.pl). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.234.243.102 (talk) 22:34, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

If i can see your source to prove it, i will do it for you. Ijanderson977 (talk) 22:37, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Poland should be added in the list that are going to recognize Republic of Kosova here is my source http://en.rian.ru/world/20080217/99433876.html —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.187.143.85 (talk) 00:12, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

POland

" Rząd wstrzymał się z decyzją w sprawie niepodległości Kosowa na prośbę prezydenta Lecha Kaczyńskiego" "The government temporarily suspended the decision of recognising Kosovo independence after the request from president Lech Kaczyński" Source: http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/Wiadomosci/1,80271,4944023.html

Seems that at least for the moment POland is not (yet) taking part in this new Munich. Szopen (talk) 08:59, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes, but it doesn't really sound like its a new position. Once there's an official statement with a chance of position, we can update. (Temporary suspension doesn't mean too much, it means that the recognition will take place at a later time...) —Nightstallion 09:37, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

"This new Munich"? What does that mean? No negotiations took place in Munich. I'm sorry to hear that Poland does not (yet) support the freedom and self determination of the people of Kosovo. I think it is unacceptable for member of the European Union not to support Kosovo after the Serb genocides. Obrighten (talk) 11:42, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

There were no Serbian genocides in Kosovo. There was however ethnic cleansing of Serbs in Kosovo. This is a new Munich, because there are direct parallels to situation in 1938. As a note, please remember that Serbs in Krajina were refused independency and were cleansed from their regions, and Serbs in Bosnia were also refused the independency. I have no idea why member of UE would want to support breaking of international law and of division of European nations into those, who have right to states, and those, who have not.

Please also note, that I am not going to continue this discussion because this is not discussion board. I have already expressed my opinion and let's finish at that. Szopen (talk) 09:51, 22 February 2008 (UTC)

NATO

Could someone re-word "Business as usual" in the NATO section? That doesn't make any sense to anyone unaware of the previous situation. BalkanFever 02:44, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Montenegro

You'll find that what is shaded in black and labeled 'Kosovo' is actually Montenegro! What a fundamental error! Has no one noticed this previously? Kosovo is not shown on this map, a new map must be used showing Kosovo.

(Umbongo91 (talk) 08:19, 20 February 2008 (UTC))

You, sir, are a genius. BalkanFever 08:26, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

How did that ever happen? ·ΚέκρωΨ· (talk) 08:32, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

It seems it was fixed on the .png version, but not the .svg used in this article. Weird. BalkanFever 08:36, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

It could be worse, I suppose. At least they haven't marked the Republic of Tetovë in black. ·ΚέκρωΨ· (talk) 08:40, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

I've reverted back to the PNG for two reasons: 1) The SVG is wrong, hasn't got Kosovo on it, and labels Montenegro as Kosovo. 2) Many people, including me, have no easy way of updating SVGs -- and while the situations is as unstable as it currently is, we need as many people as possible to be able to update. We can use the SVG once the situation has stabilised. Okay? —Nightstallion 08:42, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

This should be fixed as soon as possible. It's an essential problem. We're talking about Kosovo here and yet there is Montenegro marked in the map! Bardhylius (talk) 13:23, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Official press releases

This site links to official press releases from governments around the world. I already added some of them to the article. F (talk) 10:32, 20 February 2008 (UTC)