The Russian President, Vladimir Putin yesterday announced that his country continues to see Kosovo’s unilateral declaration as illegitimate and unjust.

In a joint news conference with visiting Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis in Moscow, Putin said, “The Russian position has not changed. We believe that the unilateral declaration of Kosovo’s independence is unjust and illegitimate.”

The Russian president said, “We consider it unacceptable to say that it just happened to turn out that way. It did not just happen by itself, it happened with active support from some members of the international community.”

According to the Russian president, independence would not have happened if it had not been promised, and if weapons were not sent to the conflict zone. The unified approach is needed in order to confront international threats, and that the norms of international law must be respected.

Putin said, “We don’t understand, why people who fight for independence in some regions of the world are considered independence fighters, while in other regions, under the same conditions, they are called separatist while action is urged against them.”
“Only in this case both small and large states can feel safe. Anything else raises the tensions and the arms race. Therefore small countries believe that their security can be provided only through a defense capability, not through international law,” said the Russian president.