Crisis Group Outlines Steps for Kosovo Independence

The International Crisis Group, an independent, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that works to resolve and prevent violent conflict around the world, has published a new report on Kosovo's expected declaration of independence. The report, published December 6 and available on the Crisis Group's web site, is titled "Kosovo Countdown: A Blueprint for Transition."

According to the Crisis Group, when diplomatic endeavors to reach an agreement on Kosovo on December 10 fail, members of the international community will have to work together to provide Kosovo with conditional or supervised independence. The Crisis Group's newest report takes a look at the reasons the international community should move forward on Kosovo no later than the middle of next year, and provides interested parties recommendations on the way ahead.

Alex Anderson, the Kosovo Project Director in Pristina for the Crisis Group, says, "The longer status uncertainty lasts, the more agitated the region around Kosovo will become and the more a sense of developing security crisis will grow. To avoid instability filling the vacuum, Western capitals need to set out an orderly path for transition as soon as possible."

The report notes that Russian opposition to Kosovo's independence has made the effort much more difficult in the United Nations Security Council, but that the UN resolution on Kosovo should not serve as an obstacle to Kosovo's transition to an independent state. Gareth Evans, President of the Crisis Group, says, "The language of 1244 does not explicitly guarantee the continuation of Serbia's formal sovereignty until such time as the Security Council decides otherwise. It provides rather for a 'political process' to 'determine Kosovo's future status.' And the political process that will in fact unfold is recognition of Kosovo's sovereignty by a large number of states."