Balkans: February 8, 2004

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Albanians in Kosovo are pushing for a vote on making Kosovo independent. But the minority population (about ten percent of all inhabitants, most of them Serbs) has so far blocked this by pointing out that Serb and Albanian populations in Kosovo are entirely separate, with their own governments. Most Albanians want to expel all of the Serbs (and non-Albanians), while the Serbs want Kosovo to be transferred back to the control of Serbia. Technically, Kosovo is still part of Serbia, but temporarily under the control of a United Nations administrator and peacekeeping force.