July 19, 2007: Will
resolving Kosovo's "final status" spark the regional war the U.S. tried to
avoid in the 1990s? Ethnic Albanians in Macedonia have said they would go to
Kosovo to fight for Kosovar independence should the UN decide to deny Kosovo
independence, or even delay it. The head of a Macedonian "Albanian veterans"
group recently said that if the UN decision "continues to be delayed," then Macedonian
Albanians should be prepared to help Kosovo. This could be the trigger for a
scenario that has concerned almost everyone ? a new Balkan war pitting
Albanians against Serbs and Montenegrins.
July 14, 2007: UN
officials are openly criticizing Russia for opposing the independence
resolution. Russia can cause real
problems for the UN. The biggest concern was that putting off a decision on
Kosovo's final status would simply increase unrest in Kosovo.
July 10, 2007: Greece
fired its ambassador to Macedonia. The ambassador got in trouble by saying that
Greece must accept that the country of Macedonia has been recognized "under its
constitutional name" by around half of the members of the UN. The
constitutional name? Macedonia. Greece, however insists on calling Macedonia
"The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (FYROM). That's because Greece
fears that Macedonia may ultimately try to claim the Greek province of
Macedonia.
