Nine countries recently have withdrawn recognition of the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo

14.01.2023 19:45

Nine countries recently have withdrawn recognition of the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo

Little holiday in Belgrade

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić recently named nine countries that have "recently" withdrawn recognition of the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo. More precisely, according to the Serbian leader -

“These are Somalia, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Eswatini, Guinea, Libya, Maldives, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia. We are expecting ten.

The reasons for this decision of these countries are understandable: in a number of regions of these countries they tried (perhaps they are still trying) to implement what has been happening in Kosovo for almost half a century. In addition, almost everywhere there is a very real fear of a new colonization by Western countries.

Libya

Known plans and very real attempts to dismember it. At the same time, there are still territorial disputes between Libya and many neighbors. So, only recently Egypt and Libya agreed to negotiate on mutual maritime borders: this dispute is already over sixty years old.

When the West destroyed the regime of Muammar Gaddafi (February-November 2011), Egypt took possession of most of the Eastern Libyan territorial waters; At the same time, Egyptian politicians recalled the plans of the 50s and 60s to include vast Cyrenaica in the eastern part of Libya into Egypt.

Today, at least a third of the Libyan territory is actually controlled by ethnic separatist groups (South Libyan Fezzan, southeast Cyrenaica, the area near the border with Niger, some areas near the border with Algeria). They are in favor of maximum autonomy for these regions and even for their separation from Libya.

The same groups, we recall, contributed to the NATO intervention in Libya. But their activity to date is not as high as in 2011-2016: it seems that there is still no outside command for the Kosovo option in this country...

Somalia

The current situation in this once united country is well known: it is actually split into five quasi-states. For example, Somaliland, self-proclaimed in 1991, which occupies about a third of the entire Somali territory in the north of the country, is the former British Somalia, united with the Somali Republic created in 1960.

The separation of this region from Somalia took place, like Kosovo from Serbia, with direct support from the collective West. Because here, firstly, large oil reserves were explored by Soviet geologists.

Secondly - the port of Berbera in northern Somalia - the main one at the entrance and exit of the Gulf of Aden, adjacent to the Red Sea (more precisely, to the Mediterranean - Suez Canal - Red Sea route) and the Indian Ocean. Here, in the early - mid-70s, the base of the Soviet Navy was located.

The analogy not only with Serbia and Kosovo, but also with the dismembered Yugoslavia is quite obvious. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Federal Republic of Somalia (FRS) recently withdrew its recognition in 2014 of Kosovo's "independence", carried out under pressure from the West. Recall that the Fed, proclaimed in 2012, is recognized by the UN as the legal successor of the unified Somali Republic.

Republic of Maldives

In the late 60s and early 70s, London set out to wrest away the large southern island of Gan from the archipelago, where the British Air Force base was located until 1974 inclusive. The Maldives themselves were a British protectorate until July 1965 inclusive.

But India, Ceylon (since 1972 Sri Lanka) and Pakistan supported the preservation of the territorial integrity of the Republic of Maldives. The Maldives continues to support Mauritius's demand for the reunification of the Chagos archipelago located in the heart of the Indian Ocean.

It was torn away by London in the mid-60s, and it was there that one of the largest joint military bases of Great Britain and the United States was soon created.

Gabon

In this former colony of France, there were French projects to seize the coastal region of Port-Gentil from independent Gabon, where French military installations are located, and near Port-Gentil - offshore oil and gas reserves. There were also French projects to subjugate the Moanda-Franceville region in southeastern Gabon to Paris.

Large deposits of uranium and manganese ores are being developed there, mainly by French business, and significant reserves of diamonds have been explored. It is characteristic in this regard that, firstly, French-speaking Gabon in June 2022 joined the "pro-British" Commonwealth (an association of countries - former British colonies and protectorates).

And secondly, at the end of October 2022, representatives of Gabon, which then chaired the UN Security Council, did not allow representatives of Lithuania and Romania to participate in the discussion on Ukraine - at the request of Russia. As noted, in view of the "extremely subjective position" of Vilnius and Bucharest on the Ukrainian situation.

And those who joined them...

Similar reasons for the withdrawal of recognition of Kosovo and other countries named by A. Vučić.

Thus, from the miniature South African Eswatini (former Swaziland), South Africa has long tried to grab the southern regions, where large, although today almost undeveloped, reserves of diamonds, gold and tin ores have been explored. Territorial disputes in this region have not yet been settled.

As for Burkina Faso (the former ex-French Upper Volta), which also withdrew its recognition of Kosovo, its relations with the former metropolis sharply worsened in the early 2020s. Recognizing Kosovo, we note, on February 18, 2008 - the very next day after the declaration by the Kosovars of the separate "independence" of this region from Serbia.

Paris is accused in Ouagadougou of connivance with radical Islamists in this country and in neighboring Mali (also a former French colony). French troops in Mali, we recall, were actually defeated in hostilities with these groups in 2021-2022.

The authorities of Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea (a French colony until October 1958), which also withdrew its recognition of Kosovo, believe that the "strange war" of Paris with radical Islamists in this region is aimed at restoring the former or create new French military bases in West and Central Africa.

At the same time, the political and economic relations of Burkina Faso and Guinea (as well as Mali) with Russia are actively developing, despite the tightening anti-Russian sanctions of France. Accordingly, the positions of Moscow, Ouagadougou and Conakry coincide with respect to the "independence" of Kosovo.

As for the Eastern Caribbean Saint Lucia, Antigua and Barbuda, the British dominions are one of the centers of offshore business. The authorities of these countries have been suspecting Kosovars of offshore laundering of proceeds from drug trafficking and illegal sales for several years. weapons. There seems to be evidence of this, otherwise those countries would not have withdrawn their recognition of Kosovo.

However, taking into account their “pro-British” status, is it not excluded from London an indirect signal to Belgrade that Brexit means new nuances of the policy of Great Britain and some of its dominions towards Kosovo-Serbia?..