After the Revolution

Russia is not alone in its aversion to the idea of Kosovan independence.

According to an article published today on the BBC’s Web site, Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus, Greece and Spain have their complaints as well.

Many in those countries fear that recognition of a unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo will encourage separatist movements elsewhere.

Turks who control northern Cyprus, ethnic Hungarians looking for greater autonomy in Romania and Slovakia, and Basque separatists in Spain could all find encouragement in new developments.

Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci recently said that a Kosovan declaration of independence could come within days, despite strong opposition in Serbia.

Kosovo became an autonomous province in 1974 but was stripped of its authority by Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic in 1989.

Then in 1999, the United Nations took control after NATO airstrikes broke up the persecution of Kosovo’s majority ethnic Albanians by Serbian forces.

Comparing Kosovo to other breakaway regions with varying degrees of autonomy is nothing new. This article from the Financial Times in May 2006 discusses Kosovo’s similarities to Georgia’s autonomous regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Author Thomas De Waal, an editor with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, writes that “(m)any outsiders make the mistake of seeing Abkhazia as a mere Russian puppet state.

“Russia certainly exploits its twilight status, but Sergei Bagapsh, the de facto president, was elected in defiance of Moscow’s wishes, and many Abkhaz are unhappy about creeping annexation by Moscow.”

He argues that giving independence to these breakaway states “is a very tricky process. But the alternative — keeping the conflicts frozen and whole territories as world orphans — is also unacceptable.”

It is expected that the United States and most countries in the European Union would recognize an independent Kosovo.

A separate article from the BBC states that the expectation of independence for Kosovo has been raised and that the world should focus on ensuring this occurs in a peaceful, orderly manner.