KOSOVO DECLARES INDEPENDENCE

MSNBC News Services

PRISTINA, Kosovo - Kosovo's parliament declared the disputed territory a nation on Sunday, mounting a historic bid to become an "independent and democratic state" backed by the U.S. and European allies but bitterly contested by Serbia and Russia.
Serbia immediately denounced the declaration as illegal, and Russia tried to block Kosovo's independence Sunday during an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council, saying it is deeply concerned about the fate of Serbs in the province.
The council began meeting in emergency session early Sunday afternoon at the request of Russia, which argues that the declaration by Kosovo's parliament in Pristina earlier Sunday that it is an independent nation violates the council's orders and other U.N. rules.

Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Moscow was "highly concerned" about Kosovo's efforts to seek international recognition as an independent nation. He said the Security Council would consider "the situation which has been created by an attempt by Pristina to declare unilateral independence of Kosovo.”
President Bush said the U.S. would work to prevent violence after the declaration and the European Union appealed for calm, mindful of the risk that the declaration could plunge the turbulent Balkans back into instability.
In the Kosovo Serb stronghold city of Mitrovica, hand grenades were thrown at buildings of the European Union and United Nations following the declaration.
One grenade exploded at the U.N. mission causing no significant damage, a Western source in the city said. EU officials evacuated their building, which houses the team preparing a mission to supervise Kosovo's independence.
"Officials abandoned the (EU) building. Security guards said two hand grenades had been thrown. One had exploded," the source told Reuters.
"Kosovo is a republic — an independent, democratic and sovereign state," Kosovo's parliament speaker Jakup Krasniqi said as the chamber burst into applause. Across the capital, Pristina, revelers danced in the streets, fired guns into the air and waved red and black Albanian flags in jubilation at the birth of the world's newest country.
Sunday's declaration was carefully orchestrated with the U.S. and key European powers, and Kosovo was counting on swift international recognition that could come as early as Monday, when EU foreign ministers meet in Brussels, Belgium.
But by sidestepping the U.N. and appealing directly to the U.S. and other nations for recognition, Kosovo set up a showdown with Serbia — outraged at the imminent loss of its territory — and Russia, which warned that it would set a dangerous precedent for separatist groups worldwide.
Ninety percent of Kosovo's 2 million people are ethnic Albanian — most of them secular Muslims — and they see no reason to stay joined to the rest of Christian Orthodox Serbia.
Krasniqi, Prime Minister Hashim Thaci and President Fatmir Sejdiu signed the declaration, which was scripted on parchment, before the unveiling of a new national crest and a flag: a bright blue banner featuring a golden map of Kosovo and six stars, one for each of its main ethnic groups.
"From today onwards, Kosovo is proud, independent and free," said Thaci, a former leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army, which battled Serbian troops in a 1998-99 separatist war that claimed 10,000 lives. "We never lost faith in the dream that one day we would stand among the free nations of the world, and today we do."
"Our hopes have never been higher," he told the assembly. "Dreams are infinite, our challenges loom large, but nothing can deter us from moving forward to the greatness that history has reserved for us."


Thaci pledged the new nation would be "a democratic, multiethnic state" — an attempt to reach out to Serbs who consider Kosovo the cradle of their medieval culture and religion.
But he also had stern words for the Serbian government, which last week declared secession illegal and invalid, saying in the Serbian language: "Kosovo will never be ruled by Belgrade again."
Thaci on Sunday signed 192 separate letters to nations around the world — including Serbia — asking them to recognize Kosovo as a state.
Serbian President Boris Tadic rejected the independence bid immediately, declaring Sunday's proclamation "unilateral and illegal." Kosovo's 10 minority Serb lawmakers boycotted the parliamentary session in protest.
And Serbia's government minister for Kosovo, Slobodan Samardzic, said Sunday that Serbia would increase its presence in the roughly 15 percent of Kosovo that is Serb-controlled — an apparent attempt to divide the province.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has argued that independence without U.N. approval would set a dangerous precedent for "frozen conflicts" across the former Soviet Union, where separatists in Chechnya and Georgia are agitating for independence. Serbia's government ruled out a military response as part of a secret "action plan" drafted earlier this week, but warned that it would downgrade relations with any foreign government that recognizes Kosovo's independence. Meanwhile, Serbia's government minister for Kosovo, Slobodan Samardzic, said Serbia would increase its presence in the roughly 15 percent of Kosovo that is Serb-controlled in an apparent attempt to partition the province. Kosovo President Fatmir Sejdiu sought to allay Serbs' concerns, telling them: "I understand today is a fearful day for you all, but your rights and your property will be protected today as it will be always." At a special session of parliament boycotted by 10 minority Serb lawmakers and televised live nationwide, sustained applause erupted after the rest of the chamber unanimously adopted the declaration of independence, which was scripted on parchment. They also unveiled a new national crest and a flag: a bright blue banner featuring a golden map of Kosovo and six stars, one for each of its main ethnic groups. Few of the new flags were seen Sunday on Kosovo's streets, where the old Albanian banner still dominated. "We, the democratically elected leaders of our people, hereby declare Kosovo to be an independent and sovereign state," the proclamation read.

From today onwards, Kosovo is proud, independent and free," said Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, a former KLA leader. "We never lost faith in the dream that one day we would stand among the free nations of the world, and today we do." "Our hopes have never been higher," he said. "Dreams are infinite, our challenges loom large, but nothing can deter us from moving forward to the greatness that history has reserved for us." Like Sejdiu, Thaci reached out to ordinary Serbs, but he had stern words for the Serbian government. "Kosovo will never be ruled by Belgrade again," he warned.

Thaci also signed 192 separate letters to nations around the world — including Serbia — asking them to recognize Kosovo as a state. Kosovo's leaders signed their names on a giant iron sculpture spelling out "NEWBORN" before heading to a sports hall for a performance of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" by the Kosovo Philharmonic Orchestra. International officials warned their staff to stay indoors and avoid "happy fire" as some revelers shot handguns into the air. "I feel stronger," said Ymer Govori, 36, carrying his daughter on his shoulders to celebrations downtown. "I have my own state and my own post code," he said, "and it won't say Serbia any longer."