The reason for this was the agreement on the normalization of relations with Kosovo, which was forced by Brussels and approved by the government of Serbia. This Act opens the door for starting the Belgrade's negotiations regarding the accession to the European Union. The date of the start of discussions will be set in June by Brussels. International politics and diplomacy often require concessions and compromises, but is the current Serbian government not making a mistake now? It seems like in the name of the membership of the European Union, Serbia gives a silent consent to an act of partition of its country that we saw in 2008? After all, the issue of independence of Kosovo is not finished yet.
I remember the atmosphere of disputes and debates on the independence of Kosovo, which were held in the European Parliament in 2008. Although everything, that was going on then, should be better called the decomposition of Serbia carried out in front of the whole of Europe. Accomplished facts in international relations were created. New borders without a regard to the cardinal principle of territorial integrity of states were drafted. It was kind of an unofficial court over Serbia, the state that was refused to be heard. At that time most of the speeches in the Parliament were full of judgments against the country, which was assigned to be responsible for the wars in the Balkans. The decision was easy to predict - the vast majority of Members of the European Parliament voted for an independent Kosovo. The partition of Serbia was made once again, this time only in the political way, not on the battlefield. Willingly or not, the analogy to Yalta or the Versailles Conference is obvious. The European Parliament accepted something that was already accepted by the majority of the member States. 22 member States have recognized Kosovo as an independent state entity.
Was the decision too hasty? After all, Kosovo is not the same as Croatia or Slovenia. Kosovo was and still is regarded as the ethnic - religious cradle of Serbs. The statehood of Serbs was born there. Emotional approach of Serbs to this land is not surprising. It would be the same if Gniezno, the cradle of Polish culture, was taken away from Poland. It is true that the majority of today's inhabitants of Kosovo are Albanians, but it is because of Ottoman aggressive colonization, of which victims were Serbs. And this aggression is still ongoing. In 2011 a special EU mission EULEX was created in order to look for the evidence of crimes of the Kosovo Liberation Army. Moreover, several former soldiers and politicians were arrested. But this did not stop persecutions. Despite everything, Kosovo, as the quasi-state, feels good with the support of European elite.
The role of the European Union is the most questionable in this issue. The fast recognition of the independence of Kosovo created a dangerous precedent for the future. The question is whether every unilateral declaration of independence declared by temporary institutions of a region (the case of Temporary Government of Kosovo) will be always considered by the UE as compatible with international law? Allowing the decomposition of Serbia, based on questionable legal grounds, may be the beginning of the decomposition of many EU member States, while the precedent of Kosovo, created with the strong support of the European Union, can turn against its members. There may be some crucial changes in 2014 as namely then the referendum on the independence of Catalonia will take place; and the idea of independence is supported by 75 per cent of Catalans. And this is not the end of Spain's problems, as the Basque people are waiting in the queue to get their independence too. Scotland is another example. These challenges will soon be faced by Europe, but what about the separatists in other parts of the world, e.g. Palestine? The most common cause of separations is insufficient respect of the rights of national and ethnic minorities by the central authorities of these countries.
All in all, the European Union will have a future full of surprises. Pandora's Box of Kosovo has been opened. The future will show what crawls out of it.
Dr. Bogusław Rogalski, political scientist,
ECR Adviser for International Affairs in the European Parliament
