# Kosovo: legal or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 18, 2008, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096 "2008-02-18T13:40:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Asympotically\_fat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47c2d/32.png) [@Asympotically\_fat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asympotically_fat)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/21 "2008-02-18T20:47:32Z")
In the inetrnational arena it is the defacto status that wins out eventually… ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/22 "2008-02-18T20:53:04Z")
[QUOTE=Giles] Doesn’t admission to UN membership get decided by the General Assembly, where Russia does not have a veto? [/QUOTE] That’s interesting, I didn’t know that. How on earth did the UN manage to keep Red China out for so long? One might have expected a majority of the smaller nations to side with China. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/23 "2008-02-18T21:01:07Z")
[QUOTE=aldiboronti] That’s interesting, I didn’t know that. How on earth did the UN manage to keep Red China out for so long? One might have expected a majority of the smaller nations to side with China. [/QUOTE] Cold War politics. US allies supported letting the ROC keep the seat, Soviet block and the nonaligned generally supported the PRC. As more and more newly independent former colonies joined the UN, it became inevitable that the seat was going to be transfered to Beijing, which it was in 1971. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/24 "2008-02-18T21:02:56Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] It’s not like international law sprang into being fully-formed as Athena from the brow of Zeus with the establishment of the LoN or the UN. Nation-states dealt with each other for, well, the entire history of nation-states that happened before those two bodies. [/QUOTE] But that does not answer Canadjun’s question. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/25 "2008-02-18T21:10:49Z")
[QUOTE=anson2995] Spain shares the same concern, and I think there are others who simply fear this move will destabilize an already shaky region. [/QUOTE] What’s the Canadian government’s reaction to this? I imagine Quebec seperatists would be delighted if the federal government recognized Kosovo (granted Quebec is neither oppresed nor a colony). ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/26 "2008-02-18T21:31:49Z")
[QUOTE=alphaboi867] What’s the Canadian government’s reaction to this? I imagine Quebec seperatists would be delighted if the federal government recognized Kosovo (granted Quebec is neither oppresed nor a colony). [/QUOTE] Although there is a strong independence movement in Quebec, when presented with a referendum on the topic, the citizens of Quebec have (narrowly) voted against it, so it’s not as if they are being kept in the confederation against their will. ---
**Author:** ![T\_SQUARE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@T\_SQUARE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T_SQUARE)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/27 "2008-02-18T21:56:38Z")
slight hijack: I see that the US has recognized Kosovo today. Who decides this? Can the executive branch do this alone, or does congress need to be involved? ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/28 "2008-02-18T22:00:39Z")
[QUOTE=T\_SQUARE] slight hijack: I see that the US has recognized Kosovo today. Who decides this? Can the executive branch do this alone, or does congress need to be involved? [/QUOTE] The President can do it. [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/article02/15.html#10](http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/article02/15.html#10) ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2008, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/29 "2008-02-19T00:53:21Z")
[QUOTE=alphaboi867] What’s the Canadian government’s reaction to this? I imagine Quebec seperatists would be delighted if the federal government recognized Kosovo (granted Quebec is neither oppresed nor a colony). [/QUOTE] Officially, they are “assessing” the situation. As you suggest, supporting Kosovo’s independence [creates an issue with repsect to Quebec](http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080219/wl_canada_afp/canadaserbiakosovodiplomacy_080219001155). ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2008, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/30 "2008-02-19T01:04:54Z")
The important question is, is it time for Cornwall to declare independence? ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2008, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/31 "2008-02-19T06:28:17Z")
[QUOTE=alphaboi867] What’s the Canadian government’s reaction to this? I imagine Quebec seperatists would be delighted if the federal government recognized Kosovo (granted Quebec is neither oppresed nor a colony). [/QUOTE] Canada will presumably recognize Kosovo soon enough, and there aren’t many parallels to be made between Kosovo and Quebec. On the one hand Quebec is an autonomous state with an international presence, which we couldn’t really say of Kosovo; on the other hand Kosovo has been outside of Serbia’s control for the last nine years, before which there was a war in which both Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo committed crimes against the other community, while Quebec has continually been a Canadian province since 1867 and has lived in peace. Also the political cultures of both countries are very different, and if the majority of Quebecers ever decide to vote for independence, it’s unlikely to lead to an unilateral declaration of independence, at least not right away. ---
**Author:** ![dqa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dqa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dqa)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/32 "2008-02-26T17:46:04Z")
I’m curious about another aspect of this: How easy will it be for Kosovo to get its own two-letter internet country extension? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/33 "2008-02-26T17:57:06Z")
[QUOTE=Wildfire\*\*MM] The serbian anexion of Kosovo in 1913 was illegal. This is a little fact that most serbs arent aware of [/QUOTE] Serbia got Kosovo as a result of the Treaty of London and the Treaty of Bucharest. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/34 "2008-02-26T19:12:10Z")
According to a CNN programme Kosovo is the religious heart of Serbia that gradually became Albanised by immigrants who eventually outnumbered the locals ,which could be a worry for some other countries in the future. But the main point that struck me was that the Kosovo administration is absoloutly riddled with corruption and has no natural resources so as a country it just isn’t viable. It sounds like yet another of those newly independant countries who’s first action on gaining their freedom is to expect everyone else to give them money(none of which of course is trousered by the politicians of the infant nation)build up their infrastructure,defend them and be expected to allow them to live and work in the countries supplying the cash all of course without giving anything in return ever. So whats the point? It sounds like a gigantic benefits scam,go solo and then just wait for all the countries who actually work for a living to bring their cash along. You want to go it alone well fine but pay for it yourselves. I hold no brief for the Serbs but just because your side lost it doesn’t mean that you’re anymore innocent then the winners and the winners aren’t necessarily anymore evil then the losers quite often there is very little moral difference between the two,just a difference between success and failure. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/35 "2008-02-26T19:24:12Z")
[QUOTE=Lust4Life] So whats the point? [/QUOTE] The point is that nobody wants to be in the same country as the Serbs. Just ask the people in Montenegro. Given the rather icy relationship that Serbia maintains with the west, and the fact that Kosovo has been administered by the UN, not the Serbian government, for more than a decade, that’s just fine by a lot of other countries. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2008, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/36 "2008-02-27T11:32:59Z")
[QUOTE=dqa] I’m curious about another aspect of this: How easy will it be for Kosovo to get its own two-letter internet country extension? [/QUOTE] .ko? ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2008, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/37 "2008-02-27T12:52:38Z")
[QUOTE=Lust4Life] But the main point that struck me was that the Kosovo administration is absoloutly riddled with corruption and has no natural resources so as a country it just isn’t viable. It sounds like yet another of those newly independant countries who’s first action on gaining their freedom is to expect everyone else to give them money(none of which of course is trousered by the politicians of the infant nation)build up their infrastructure,defend them and be expected to allow them to live and work in the countries supplying the cash all of course without giving anything in return ever. [/QUOTE] When I was in Kosovo in 2004 or so, I believe something like a third of the economy was based on external transfers. As in, foreign aid. So that bridge was passed long ago. And as far as natural resources, Kosovo has an incredible abundance of stolen cars. I think they grow there. Like corn. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2008, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/38 "2008-02-27T15:04:53Z")
I saw a couple of days ago that the EU commissioner taking over will have the power to veto or overturn any Kosovan legislation he doesn’t like. Independence? Yeah, sure. They’ve just swapped one overlord for another. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2008, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/39 "2008-02-27T15:10:18Z")
[QUOTE=aldiboronti] I saw a couple of days ago that the EU commissioner taking over will have the power to veto or overturn any Kosovan legislation he doesn’t like. Independence? Yeah, sure. They’ve just swapped one overlord for another. [/QUOTE] Saw where? Kosovo is not a EU member, and neither is Serbia, though they have begun the process to join. Kosovo is currently administered by the UN, with security provided by NATO. ---
**Author:** ![Sri\_Theo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f04885/32.png) [@Sri\_Theo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sri_Theo)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096/40 "2008-02-27T17:02:51Z")
[QUOTE=friedo] Saw where? Kosovo is not a EU member, and neither is Serbia, though they have begun the process to join. Kosovo is currently administered by the UN, with security provided by NATO. [/QUOTE] Right, but the UN mission is coming to an end and the European Union is in effect taking control- which is why a lot of people are claiming that Kosovo is simply swapping one master for another. I happen to think that the European union is less likely to commit genocide. Which is a pretty important difference. In addition it’s in the EU’s interests to make Kosovo as economically strong as possible as there seems to a general assumption within the EU that the Balkan’s destiny lies within the Union, and arguably the process of enlargement has been one of Europe’s most effective methods for creating and ensuring peace since the end of WWII. The EU commissioner is Pieter Feith, a Dutch diplomat who has already stated that he wants to take a as hands of role as possible, whether you believe him or not is up to you. As to why the EU should support and fund Kosovo? Because its in their interests of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kosovo-legal-or-not/438096.md?page=3)