Europe seeks to end divisions on Kosovo

(BRUSSELS) - The European Union hopes to finally speak with one voice on Kosovo after a UN court backed Pristina's independence claim, piling pressure on the five EU states that still refuse to recognise it.

Spain, Cyprus, Greece, Slovakia and Romania are the only countries in the 27-nation bloc to have refused to recognise Kosovo's secession from Serbia, fearing it would inspire other separatist movements.

But the International Court of Justice, in a non-binding opinion, said Thursday that Kosovo's declaration of independence in February 2008 was legal, raising hopes in Pristina that it would encourage more states to recognise it.

The ruling has "put European nations that still do not recognise Kosovo in a difficult position," a high-ranking European diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

Another diplomat said: "The debate on the recognition of Kosovo will restart with the conclusions of the court."

"There is now room for manoeuvre for a recognition (by the five EU states)," the diplomat said ahead of a meeting of foreign ministers on Monday during which Kosovo will be discussed.

The United States, one of 69 states to have recognised Kosovo, led calls for more countries to embrace Kosovo as a nation following the UN high court's ruling.

Spain, Cyprus and Romania reiterated their refusal to recognise Kosovo, but pressure is mounting.

"Kosovo has been functioning as an independent state for two-and-a-half years. I encourage other states that have not so far recognised Kosovo now to do so," British Foreign Secretary William Hague urged.

The EU's 27 states did overcome their differences to release a single statement after the UN court ruling saying the future of Serbia and Kosovo alike "lies in the European Union" and offering to broker talks.

"The clear message which comes out of that statement... is that the accession paths of both countries are linked and the EU wants to help them both move forward," another EU diplomat said.

Getting to an agreement on the wording of text "wasn't easy," he said.

"But I think the fact that in the end we got the agreement of the 27 shows that difficult though it is, the EU recognises... it needs to get its act together on Kosovo and on Serbia."

It will take time before any of the five EU stragglers will join the rest of the bloc since they are not legally-bound to follow the UN court's opinion, an analyst said.

"They still have the option. They can stay in their status quo position or they can move. It's an open question," said Michael Emerson, senior research fellow at the Center for European Policy Studies, a Brussels think tank.

The UN court's opinion could help to resolve the debate in the five countries.

"Of those countries, if some of them have internal debates for or against, this could encourage them to take a new and positive decision to recognise Kosovo," Emerson said.

"One or two of them may follow this course in a year or so," he said, arguing that Slovakia and Romania could be the first to change their minds since they do not face the same separatist pressures as the others.

Moving towards a recognition of Kosovo would be hardest for Cyprus, an island divided between a Turkish north and Greek south, and Spain, which faces its own separatist pressures in Catalonia and the Basque region, he said.

European governments sought to ease concerns that other separatist movements could seize on the UN court opinion.

"It's a unique decision in a unique situation with a unique historical background," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told reporters in Nicosia after talks with his Greek Cypriot counterpart, Markos Kyprianou.

"It has nothing to do with any other cases in the world," he said.

Foreign Affairs Council