The Kosovo Precedent – Similar Effects on Other States. Case Study: Georgia and Ukraine

Kosovo, the battlefield of the last major conflict in the Yugoslav Wars, has undergone radical ethnic changes over the centuries, resulting in inter-ethnic tensions that are still felt today. A region rich in culture, history and minerals, whose hilly configuration forms a logistically defensible border for southern Serbia, Kosovo finds itself in a diplomatic stalemate over the non-recognition of the full independence declared by the Albanian majority in the Republic of Kosovo. Using the Kosovo precedent, Russia is trying to legitimise its own actions that violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia and Ukraine. These are the main aspects that are discussed in the present study, employing the case study of Georgia and Ukraine.