Sanket Telang asked: Why doesn't India recognize Kosovo as a sovereign Country?

Alok R. Mukhopadhyay replies: The question is raised at the most opportune time. On July 22 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague has delivered a comprehensive ruling of 45 pages on this issue. By ten vote to four, the ICJ concluded, ‘declaration of independence of Kosovo adopted on 17 February 2008 did not violate international law’. But legalities apart there is still no consensus about the independence of Kosovo and its recognition. Even some European nations are not in favour of the independence of Kosovo. Parallels could also be drawn with the instances when as a fallout of the Russia-Georgia War in 2008, Russia unilaterally recognized the two Georgian provinces, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

India has been silent about this contentious issue of unilateral declarations by some break-away or renegade provinces, and prefers to wait for an international consensus to emerge. Realistically, recognising Kosovo as a sovereign country is neither a top priority nor a foreign policy challenge for India.