ONE YEAR AFTER THE END OF SUPERVISED INDEPENDENCE: KOSOVO’S DEADLOCK
More than five years after the declaration of independence, and a year after its supervised independence ended, Kosovo faces two distinct realities regarding its statehood and foreign relations: that of an independent entity and the one of a sovereign and independent state. It is treated as an independent entity in its relations with Euro-Atlantic institutions and majority of states which have not recognized Kosovo, while Serbia treats it as both a separate territory governed by UNSC Resolution 1244 a part of itself. On the other hand, Kosovo is treated as a sovereign state only at bilateral level by the states which have recognized its independence. But, there is a disbalance between the scope and intensity of bilateral and multilateral relations that reflect the weakness of the current international legitimacy of Kosovo and the Western accommodation to “status neutral” policy.