The Balkans' Underbelly

Prishtina, Kosovo-For nearly two years Kosovo, the world's newest nation, has struggled to be recognized as a sovereign state. On July 22, 2010, the International Court of Justice [IJC] removed uncertainty about Kosovo's status since its declaration of independence from Serbia on February 17, 2008-concluding that the declaration did not violate international law. But Kosovar Albanians knew long before the court's opinion that their freedom from Serbia was, and remains, in-revocable. They would never stand for the return to Serbian control. Adapted from the source document.