No such thing as a Kosovan

Former Czech Foreign Minister Jirí Dienstbier, who for many years served as special rapporteur for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Balkans, understands Serbia's hesitation to accept an independent Kosovo: "International mediators have never seriously sought compromise; rather, they have only tried to pressure Serbia to accept Kosovo's independence. Russia was the only one that always saw this as the worst option for stabilizing the Balkans. … Attempts to support recognition of an independent Kosovo lead to bizarre notions. The term 'Kosovan' sounds multi-ethnic. But in Kosovo itself, no one calls himself a Kosovan. Rather, they identify themselves as Albanians, Serbs, Turks or Roma."

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