Kosovo On Independence Eve

This next story takes place in a tiny country, but its' actions will have global repercussions:

Tiny Kosovo, poor, mostly Muslim but feverishly pro-Western, braced itself Saturday for a historic declaration of independence from Serbia, a decade after a war that killed 10,000 people and years of limbo under U.N. rule.


The province's bold bid for statehood, expected Sunday, and its quest for international recognition set up an ominous showdown with Serbia and Russia. Moscow contends the move will set a dangerous precedent for secessionist groups worldwide. Although it is formally part of Serbia, Kosovo has been administered by the U.N. since 1999, when NATO airstrikes ended the late Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic's brutal crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.

The imminent independence of the territory, roughly the size of Connecticut, threatens to touch off a diplomatic crisis and possible unrest. Russian President Vladimir Putin, arguing that independence without U.N. approval would set a dangerous precedent for "frozen conflicts" across the former Soviet Union and around the world, pressured the Security Council to intervene.

This independence, while "good" for Kosovo, will surely incite new violence, and with Russia standing against them, will surely put one more chink, in our already strained relationship with Putin, and the newly "aggressive" Russia. Dangerous times ahead for all concerned! Good Luck to the Kosovites, as they are going to need it!!



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