18 February 2008, 16:28
UN SC does not support Kosovo's independence as expected by Abkhazia and South Ossetia
The participants of an extraordinary sitting of the UN Security Council failed to make a decision on recognition of independence of Kosovo, the precedent of which is hunted by Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
The extraordinary sitting of the Security Council was initiated by Russia and took place on February 17, the BBC reports. The Russian Federation insists on illegality of the unilateral declaration of the independence of the territory and treats these actions as separatism.
Vitaly Churkin, Russian representative at the United Nations, has noted that the unilateral declaration of independence on February 17 contradicts to the UN Security Council's resolution on Kosovo.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon spoke at the end of the extraordinary sitting of the Security Council and appealed Serbs and Albanians to refrain from collisions and sharp statements, which can provoke aggravation of the situation.
A statement was promulgated after the sitting of the Security Council running that the parties who took part in the sitting failed to make a decision on the status of the territory, and the order there should be further ensured by the forces of the EU and NATO.
In their turn, Russia and Serbia have demanded to hold another open Council sitting on February 18, the NEWSru.ua reports.
Earlier, the declaration of independence of the territory was condemned by Russian State Duma. Sergey Mironov, Speaker of the Federation Council, has expressed confidence that after appearance of the state of Kosovo, Russia has the right to reconsider its relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which are also standing for their independence.
Mikhail Margelov, head of the committee for international matters of the Federation Council, sticks to the same opinion and thinks that Kosovo's precedent "will inspire separatists not only in Europe, but also in the Middle East."
"It's impossible to foresee the consequences for the world as a whole, and also all the implications of indulgence by the USA and some EU countries of this 'Eastern Timor' in the centre of Europe," Mr Margelov has emphasized.
Vasily Likhachov, head of the Duma's committee for international matters, supports a similar opinion.
In his opinion, the declaration of Kosovo will have "awful political consequences." "It's not just a single explosion; it's a detonator, which will operate in different corners of Europe and in different corners of the Globe. Declaration of Kosovo independence is a detonator that will blow up at the will of those forces, who are guided by the principles of national egoism," Mr Likhachov is convinced.
Abkhazian leader Sergey Bagapsh finds this position of the West to be a demonstration of double standard policy, Radio Liberty informs with reference to Russian and western media.
President of South Ossetia Eduard Kokoity is convinced that the non-recognized Caucasian republics in conflict with Georgia have more political and legal grounds to hope for recognizing them to be independent states than Kosovo.
Quite expectedly, Georgia sticks to another point of view; it has already stated its non-recognition of Kosovo's independence, the ITAR-TASS reports.