PRISTINA, Kosovo — In a move that inflamed tensions in this volatile region, the ethnic Albanian government of Kosovo on Sunday proclaimed the province independent from Serbia, forming a new and troubled country in Europe.
The United States, the biggest sponsor of independence for Kosovo, is expected to recognize the new state quickly, as will some European nations. But Russia is adamantly opposed, along with Serbia, and the United Nations is unlikely to voice support for Kosovo’s unilateral action, setting up a thorny dispute reminiscent of the Cold War.
The declaration of independence was met with wild celebrations in Ko sovo, violent protests in Serbia and a hastily called meeting of the U.N. Security Council, which did not take action.
In the frigid, snow-dusted streets of Pristina, Kosovo’s capital, jubilant ethnic Albanians celebrated. All day long and into the night, they marched shoulder to shoulder down Mother Teresa Boulevard, many wrapped in the red and black flags of neighboring Albania as fireworks exploded across the sky.
“This is a great day, the best day in our lives,” gushed Elmi Berisha, 37, a real-estate broker.
U.S. flags were a common sight, while a few revelers fired guns in celebration.
In the Serbian capital of Belgrade, however, small but determined gangs attacked the U.S. Embassy with chunks of concrete, torched garbage bins and trashed cars and fought with police in frustrated anger over Kosovo’s declaration.
Two McDonald’s restaurants, the Slovenian Embassy (Slovenia holds the rotating presidency of the European Union) and offices of the only Serbian political party advocating recognition of a free Kosovo were ransacked.
Authorities said 12 people were arrested, and B92 television reported 65 people, including at least 30 police, were injured.
The rioters may have been inspired by Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, who used a televised address to reiterate Serbia’s fierce refusal to recognize Kosovo.
“Today … a false state of Kosovo was illegally declared on the part of Serbia that is under the military control of NATO,” Kostunica said. “A destructive, cruel and immoral policy carried out by the U.S. led to this unprecedented act of lawlessness.”
Earlier in the day, Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci made official the proclamation that had long been anticipated.
“We, the democratically elected leaders of our people,” he said in a special session of parliament, “hereby declare Kosovo to be an independent and sovereign state.”
Kosovo has been administered by the United Nations for nearly a decade, after NATO bombers drove out Serbian forces that were attacking ethnic Albanian separatists. An estimated 10,000 people were killed in that war in 1999, and many more were displaced.
Most of Kosovo’s nearly 2 million people are Muslims but are largely secular and pro-Western.
A problematic road lies ahead for the new state. Despite nine years of tutelage and billions of donated dollars, Kosovo is a long way from operating as a real country. European Union foreign ministers will meet today to decide what position to take on Kosovo’s independence bid.
Russia, a key ally of Serbia, called an emergency Security Council meeting Sunday and asked U.N. officials in Kosovo to declare the proclamation of independence “null and void.” Russia and Serbia maintain that Kosovo’s action violates international law. The U.N., however, is not expected to intervene.
