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13 Feb, 2008 14:28

Emergency UN meeting to address Kosovo future

An urgent session of the UN Security Council is getting together on Thursday to discuss the future of Kosovo. Serbia has worked out an action plan to be put in force if Kosovo declares unilateral independence, including a declaration that it is an illegal

Reuters news agency quotes a Foreign Ministry source as saying the plan does not include such steps as cutting diplomatic ties with countries which recognise Kosovo.

It is reported that electricity supplies to the breakaway province will not be cut off, and military intervention has been ruled out.

Instead, Serbia intends to declare Kosovo's independence annulled in advance as an illegal act, according to the country's Prime Minister.

The province of Kosovo is set to declare sovereignty within days.

According to Serbia, such a move would break the Security Council's previous rulings and would threaten security worldwide.

Serbia, with Russia's support, has called for an extraordinary session of the United Nations Security Council.

Russia strongly opposes independence for the province, believing it would set a dangerous precedent for other separatist regions.

“I do not think why the West would want to see an independent Albania that much, i.e. Muslim Kosovo in the heart of Europe. This looks very strange and very wrong direction of the foreign policy of some Western countries and the EU in particular,” observed political analyst and editor-in-chief of the 'Slovo' newspaper Viktor Linnik.

Aleksandr Khramchikhin from the Institute for Political and Military Analysis says allowing Kosovo to go may set a dangerous precedent.

“It's evident that the situation of each unrecognised state has its own nuances and differences. But there are no crucial factors that distinguish Kosovo from the situation elsewhere. It's just one of many unrecognised states. And it's a pure absurdity when the Western politicians say Kosovo is unique and will not set a precedent for others. It will become a precedent, and the consequences are absolutely unpredictable,” Khramchikhin said.

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