Posted on 02/18/2008 3:05:49 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
YEREVAN (Reuters) - Kosovo's independence will strengthen a bid by the Armenian-backed breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh to be recognized as a state, Armenia's prime minister Serzh Sarksyan told Reuters in an interview.
Sarksyan drew a link between the Serbian province which will declare independence on Sunday and Nagorno-Karabakh, where ethnic Armenian separatists broke away from Azerbaijan in a war in the 1990s but have failed to win international recognition.
"We are getting a rather favorable position," said Sarksyan, front-runner in the February 19 Armenian presidential election. "Recognition of Kosovo's independence can be welcomed by us.
"If countries recognize the independence of Kosovo and then don't recognize the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh, we'll think of double standards," he said late on Saturday.
But Sarksyan, a native of Nagorno-Karabakh, said international recognition for Kosovo "does not mean ... Armenia will immediately recognize the independence of Karabakh."
Armenia is the breakaway region's closest ally.
Armenia and neighbor Azerbaijan are still technically at war over Nagorno-Karabakh, a source of instability close to the route of a pipeline that pumps Caspian Sea oil to world markets.
Armenia's relations with its other neighbor Turkey are fraught, in part because Ankara refuses to recognize as genocide the killings of ethnic Armenians by Ottoman Turkey.
Efforts to resolve both disputes are stalled. If elected, Sarksyan is expected to leave Armenia's approach largely unchanged.
But he said: "We need to add some flexibility to our foreign policy ... I think one of the most important issues is establishing good relationships with our neighbors."
Speaking about the fiercely-contested election, 53-year-old Sarksyan said: "I assess my chances as very good. If in the coming days nothing extraordinary happens, the election will end in just one round."
Armenia has suffered bouts of political turmoil and previous elections have been followed by mass opposition protests alleging vote-rigging.
On the possibility of protests, he said: "We have state bodies to defend law and order in our country."
Sarksyan is a close ally of President Robert Kocharyan, who is barred by the constitution from seeking re-election.
Sarksyan said if he wins Tuesday's vote Kocharyan, also 53, will continue to play a role in government, though he said he did not yet know what that would be.
"We have been collaborating for more than 27 years, so why should we not use Mr. Kocharyan's knowledge and experience in the future?" said Sarksyan.
Azerbaijan says not recognizing Kosovo independence - BAKU (Reuters) - Ex-Soviet Azerbaijan said on Monday it did not recognize Kosovo's declaration of independence.
"We view this illegal act as being in contradiction with international law," said Khazar Ibrahim, head of the press service at Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry.
"Proceeding from this, Azerbaijan's position is clear: it does not recognize (Kosovo's) independence."
What!!? But that’s impossible right? Only muslims and dhimmis support Kosovo independence, and Christians all oppose it, right? That’s what FR’s Serbophile contingent told me anyway. Could it be that they are full of crap?
I remember when Nagorno Karabakh was in the news some years ago—I thought the idea was to be united with Armenia, not to be a separate country. Ironically many of the conflicts in the former USSR and the former Yugoslavia revolve around decisions made by Stalin or Tito over whether a particular region would have the status of “republic” (when that was almost meaningless—everything being under the control of the Communists) or some lower status such as “autonomous region.” Those which were “republics” gained international recognition fairly quickly.
This Kosovo “adventure” will create MANY new and strange bedfellows!
“Sarksyan drew a link between the Serbian province which will declare independence on Sunday and Nagorno-Karabakh, where ethnic Armenian separatists broke away from Azerbaijan in a war in the 1990s but have failed to win international recognition.”
Time for the Basques to raise hell in Spain and any other ethnic group not satisfied with their political position within the country.
(If they asked me to vote for Texas’ independence from the Union, I’d sign the ballot in an Austin heartbeat.)
And South Sudan?
If anyone needs to declare independence, it is South Sudan.
And, ok, Somaliland.
And while we’re at it, Taiwan.
Tibet.
The Kosovo land grab is a model for illegal immigrants to steal the territory of another nation.
Remember this when Aztlan falls under a UN Protectorate.
How many Christian Churches do the Albanians have to burn before you give a crap?
Christian Armenians in muslim Azerbaijan are “illegal immigrants?”
The headlines in the Seattle paper were that the Kosovars were mostly unemployed young people, totally dependent on the largesse of foreign nations.
Someone needs to tell them that freedom isn’t free.
The Albanian Jihadists in Kosovo are illegal immigrants. Their most recent encroachment began in the 1980’s as Albania’s economy began to collapse. They began a campaign of terror, using rape and murder, against the Serb, Roma, and Jewish populations there.
And some folks are stupid enough to think they should be rewarded for this by being given someone else’s territory.
What about Taiwan? Are we wrong there too?
Yes. Watch for The Basques to now try seceding from Spain, South Ossetia from Georgia, The Sudetenland from the Czech Republic and the American Southwest to secede and join with Mexico to create greater Azatlan.
Taiwan used to be ethnically quite different from China. It has also been independent from mainland china for almost 60 years.
And I would immigrate to Texas.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.