Kosovo

Serbia president refuses to rule out partitioning Kosovo

Serbian President Boris Tadic refused to rule out partitioning parts of Kosovo, should other options regarding the resolution of a dispute between Serbia and the newly independent state fail. In an interview with Serbian television channel RTS, Tadic said that the option is "not off the table." Alexander Ivanko, the Director of Public Information for the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), responded to Tadic's comments at a press conference on Wednesday:

Our position has always been very, very clear, and it is not only our position, it is the Contact Group position, and as far as we are concerned, there should not be partition of Kosovo, period. I do not see anything else to discuss about this issue.

Tadic's comments regarding the possible partitioning of Kosovo came as a number of European countries, including Germany, consider possible support for Serbia's request for an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on the legality of Kosovo's independence.

Kosovo's constitution went into effect this summer despite Serbia's argument that the charter of the breakaway province was legally void. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo's declaration of independence, and thus cannot recognize the country's constitution as a legal fact. Serbia's official stance is that Kosovo is in violation of the UN Charter and UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which reaffirms the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Serbian state. The new state of Kosovo has been recognized by the US and most European states, but not by Russia, Serbia's closest ally.

(Published by Jurist - October 2, 2008)