By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected Thursday arguments by European powers that Kosovo is a “special case” in seeking independence, and accused the countries of employing double standards on the issue.
Putin was addressing his last annual press conference as president before he steps down March 2 after the presidential elections.
The separatist Albanian-dominated province in southern Serbia is expected to unilaterally declare independence by Monday, a move backed by the US and most European Union (EU) countries.
Serbia, Russia and some European states oppose the plans, considering these a violation of international law.
Putin said: “I don’t want to offend anyone, but Northern Cyprus has been a de facto independent republic for 40 years. Why then don’t you recognize it? Aren’t you, Europeans, ashamed of applying double standards in solving identical problems in different parts of the world?”
Russia has repeatedly said that granting Kosovo sovereignty could serve as a precedent and trigger a chain reaction for secessionist regions throughout the world, including in Greece, Spain, Georgia, Moldova and Cyprus.
But countries supporting Kosovo’s independence insist that the case is unique, and that there is no threat of weakening international law.
Putin said: “There is nothing unique about this problem and everyone knows this. It is all the same: an interethnic conflict, crime on both sides and a complete de facto independence.”
The president called for uniform rules for solving such problems, and warned that international law and order would otherwise be undermined.
A plan for Kosovo’s independence failed in UN Security Council discussions. Russia, a veto-wielding member of the council, maintains that a solution should be based on a compromise between Serbia and Kosovo and calls for security and humanitarian problems to be rectified in the province.