UNITED NATIONS, July 29 -- Kosovo's Foreign Affairs Minister Skender Hyseni, at the UN on Thursday, was asked if he saw Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence, and its upholding by the International Court of Justice, as a precedent for others seeking independence.
“No one should tie this to any other situation in the world,” Hyseni replied. He is in New York lobbying non-recognizing states, including five in the European Union, to now recognize Kosovo.
Inner City Press asked Hyseni, given his arguments about what Kosovars suffered from Serbia, if Kosovo is in solidarity with other peoples which feel they have a historical right to their own state.
“I'm getting your point,” Hyseni cut in. “I'm not going to mix my actions as Foreign Affairs Minister with my feelings and emotions.”
If the response means that Hyseni personally feels such solidarity for other suffering peoples, but the Kosovo's foreign policy includes no such solidarity, it is problematic.
Inner City Press asked Hyseni about Ukraine and Spain, which have said post-ICJ that they will not recognize Kosovo, and beyond Spain about four other EU members: the Slovak Republic, Romania, Greece and Cyprus.
Hyseni said “I am not aware of Spain saying it will not recognize... I am not aware of the statement on the part of Ukraine.” Both statements are on the record, as a Spanish journalist later pointed out.
Hyseni said he “discusses recognition” with his Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos, but not in Spain, and as to the other four EU non - recognizers that “we do get encouraging signals from those countries.” He said he did not want to say more, to make Serbia's foreign minister Vuk Jeremic's lobbying job easier.
Footnote: Inner City Press asked for an update on the violence in Mitrovica in early July, which Hyseni previously blamed on ethnic Serbs. Nearly a month later, does he have the evidence? “The investigation is going in precisely that direction,” Hyseni said. We'll see.
