2008 Kosovo declaration of independence

[4] As a result of the ICJ decision, a joint Serbia–EU resolution was passed in the United Nations General Assembly which called for an EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina to "promote cooperation, achieve progress on the path to the European Union and improve the lives of the people.

In January 1999, NATO warned that it would intervene militarily against Yugoslavia if it did not agree to the introduction of an international peacekeeping force and the establishment of local government in Kosovo.

Subsequent peace talks failed and from 24 March to 11 June 1999, NATO carried out an extensive bombing campaign against FR Yugoslavia including targets in Kosovo itself.

[13] The war ended with Milošević agreeing to allow NATO peacekeepers into Kosovo and withdrawing all security forces so as to transfer governance to the United Nations.

Many left along with the withdrawing security forces, expressing fears that they would be targeted by returning Albanian refugees and KLA fighters who blamed them for wartime acts of violence.

[19] In 2005 the Swiss Federal Councillor responsible for Foreign Affairs, Micheline Calmy-Rey, was the first official of a country to publicly express support for the independence of Kosovo.

[23] Under the plan, Kosovo would gain self-governance under the supervision of the European Union, and become obligated to expressly protect its minorities' rights by means of a constitution and a representative government.

Faced with no progress on negotiations in sight, the Kosovars decided to unilaterally proclaim the Republic of Kosovo, obligating themselves in the process to follow the Ahtisaari plan's provisions in full.

[23] As of mid-April 2008, this has largely been the case, with the new Republic adopting a constitution written by local and international scholars protecting minority rights and providing for a representative government with guaranteed ethnic representation, which law is to take effect on 15 June 2008.

It has also engaged, albeit with a delay, in the border demarcation talks with North Macedonia, initially insisting on being recognised first but dropping this condition later on.

The International Steering Group, in its final meeting with the authorities in Pristina, declared that the Comprehensive Proposal for the Kosovo Status Settlement, known as the Ahtisaari plan after its Finnish UN creator, had been substantially implemented.

[26] Nonetheless, as of November 2015, United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo still functions, albeit at a greatly reduced capacity.

[27] Russia, which holds a veto in the Security Council as one of five permanent members, stated that it would not support any resolution which was not acceptable to both Serbia and the Kosovo Albanians.

[citation needed] This came at the time when the ten-year anniversary of the Kosovo War was looming (with the five-year anniversary being marked by violent unrest); the U.S. President George W. Bush was in his last year in power and not able to seek re-election; and two nations which had previously seceded from Yugoslavia were in important political positions (Slovenia presiding over the EU and Croatia an elected member of the UN Security Council).

This declaration reflects the will of our people and it is in full accordance with the recommendations of UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari and his Comprehensive Proposal for the Kosovo Status Settlement.

We declare Kosovo to be a democratic, secular and multi-ethnic republic, guided by the principles of non-discrimination and equal protection under the law.

A number of countries fear that it is a precedent, affecting other contested territories in Europe and non-European parts of the former Soviet Union, such as Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

"[50] In North Kosovo, a UN building housing a courthouse and jail was attacked by a hand grenade, causing slight damage but no casualties.

[63] Late in March the government disclosed its intent to litigate the issue at the International Court of Justice and seek support at the United Nations General Assembly in September 2008.

[67] On 17 February, about 2,000 Serbs protested at the United States Embassy in Belgrade, with some throwing stones and firecrackers at the building before being driven back by riot police.

[70] The Crown Council of House of Karadjordjevic, a former royal family of Serbia and Yugoslavia, rejected Kosovo's declaration of independence, saying that: "Europe had diminished its own morale, embarrassed its own history and shown that it carries within its organism the virus of its own downfall", and that "it is a defeat of the idea of democracy... a defeat of the universally accepted rules of international law", and that a "part of the project of Mussolini and Hitler has finally been accomplished, in the territory of Serbia".

[74] Hundreds of Bosnian Serb demonstrators broke away from a peaceful rally in Banja Luka on 26 February 2008 and headed for the United States Embassy's office there, clashing with police along the way.

[77] Serbia, however, maintains embassies in many countries which recognise Kosovo, including Albania, Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, Turkey, the UAE, the UK, and the US.

[78] On 18 February 2008 the EU presidency announced after a day of intense talks between foreign ministers that member countries were free to decide individually whether to recognise Kosovo's independence.

[85] The Republic of China's (commonly known as Taiwan; non-UN member) Foreign Ministry stated "We congratulate the Kosovo people on their winning independence and hope they enjoy the fruits of democracy and freedom.

[92] Malaysia, which headed the Organisation of the Islamic Conference at the time, formally recognized Kosovo's sovereignty three days after its independence.

"[98] Speaking on behalf of six countries—Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy and the United States—the Belgian ambassador expressed regret "that the Security Council cannot agree on the way forward, but this impasse has been clear for many months.

"[99] On 22 July 2010, the International Court of Justice ruled that the declaration did not violate international law, holding that the authors were acting in their capacity as representatives of the people of Kosovo outside the framework of the interim administration (the Assembly of Kosovo and the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government), and were therefore not bound by the Constitutional Framework (promulgated by UNMIK) or by UNSCR1244 that is addressed only to United Nations Member States and organs of the United Nations.

[1] Prior to the announcement Hashim Thaçi said there would be no "winners or losers" and that "I expect this to be a correct decision, according to the will of Kosovo's citizens.

For his part, Boris Tadić, the Serbian president, warned that "If the International Court of Justice sets a new principle, it would trigger a process that would create several new countries and destabilise numerous regions in the world.