The FINANCIAL — On February 17 the United States recognized the independence of Kosovo. The United States has long held that each separatist conflict anywhere in the world is unique. Indeed, the situation in Kosovo is a special case and does not serve as a precedent for other regions, including the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions of Georgia.
"The unusual combination of factors involved in Kosovo includes a specific U.N. Security Council Resolution envisioning a status process and an extended period of transitional U.N. administration. UNSC Resolution 1244 was intended to help determine Kosovo’s future status through a political process that contemplated the possibility of independence. This makes the Kosovo case fundamentally different from all other existing cases." Embassy of U.S. in Georgia reports.
In sharp contrast, U.N. Security Council Resolutions on Georgia that have been issued on a regular basis since 1993, including most recently UNSCR 1781 of October 2007, reaffirm the commitment of the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, and all Security Council members to the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders. The United States reasserts the importance of resolving the Abkhazia and South Ossetia conflicts through peaceful negotiations and within a unified Georgia in accordance with the above principles.
In the wake of these latest developments in Kosovo, we call on all members of the international community to avoid any public statements that could undermine the chances for peaceful, negotiated settlements of the Abkhazia and South Ossetia conflicts. Any attempt to resolve these conflicts other than through a negotiated compromise risks undermining peace and stability throughout the Caucasus. Instead, we urge all states to reaffirm their support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders, consistent with the repeated resolutions of the U.N. Security Council.
Discussion about this post