Kosovo Revisited

DEVELOPMENTS

On March 24th, 1999, Bill Clinton announced the bombing of Yugoslavia. By June 10th of that year the UN had approved a peace plan for Kosovo, effectively ending the bombing campaign. But nearly 9 years later, Kosovo's status is still unclear. The process of resolving Kosovo's final status has been stalled since the Ahtisaari plan was brought to the United Nations in January of 2007. The Ahtisaari plan, drafted by former Finnish president Mahti Ahtisaari, calls for Kosovo to develop its own national symbols and Constitution. The plan also advocates for Kosovo to become an independent state supervised by the United Nations. It has received the endorsement of Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. The plan has stalled due to Russian opposition which has added a new round of negotiations scheduled to last 120 days.

The current round of negotiations will end December 10 and the United States and European Union have agreed to recognize Kosovo if it declares independence. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to respond by recognizing breakaway pro-Russian states like Transdniester, South Ossetia, and Abkhazia in Moldova and Georgia.

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