Russian MP cautions Kosovo against unilateral secession from Serbia

Russian MP cautions Kosovo against unilateral secession from Serbia
RIA Novosti - November 30, 2006

MOSCOW, November 30 (RIA Novosti) - A senior Russian lawmaker on Thursday cautioned Serbia's predominantly Albanian province of Kosovo against unilaterally declaring its independence.

Konstantin Kosachev, the head of the international affairs committee in Russia's lower house of parliament, said, "The determination of Kosovo's status, as long as the province does not commit itself to human rights standards and is seeking sovereignty unilaterally rather than through negotiations, creates a highly dangerous precedent and runs counter to Europe's postwar order."

Speaking after a meeting with Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku in Moscow, the Russian MP said the underlying principle of the European order established after WWII is the inadmissibility of changing state borders unless all involved parties give their consent.