Russian FM: Kosovo is example of interpretation of international law
Russia never interprets international law, but abides by it, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday, giving the case of the unilateral independence of Kosovo as an example that others make interpretations of international law
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Wednesday, September 10, 2008
"Russia is not the one that began interpreting international law", he said.
One of the recent examples of such interpretations is the case of Kosovo, Lavrov pointed out.
Decisions of the United Nations (UN) Security Council have repeatedly confirmed the territorial integrity of Serbia. The latest decision was carried just weeks before the negotiations were unilaterally suspended and the independence recognition process was launched, Lavrov said.
Meanwhile, in Pristina, former US envoy for the Balkans Richard Holbrooke said Tuesday that the Kosovo government is not to blame for the fact that the process of recognizing Kosovo's independence did not proceed as expected.
"Russia's unexpected and unnecessary aggressive campaign resulted in recognition of Kosovo's independence by one fourth of UN member-states", he said.
"What Russia has done is very serious and a great shame", he added.
He also expressed his belief that the Islamic Conference countries, not only Arab ones, are making a mistake when they slow down the process, and added these states should recognize Kosovo.
"I hope they will recognize. Still, they have been under great pressure from Russia not to do so. The United States is in favor, but Russia is trying to at every step create problems for the U.S. policies. However, I think this will be overcome. It will take more time, but I wouldn't worry if I lived in Kosovo," Holbrooke reassured his hosts.
