Summary

NAME: KOS PM 20080218I TAPE: EF08/0194 IN_TIME: 11:09:09:10 DURATION: 00:02:20:21 SOURCES: AP TELEVISION DATELINE: Pristina - 18 Feb 2008 RESTRICTIONS: SHOTLIST: 1 Wide of Hashim Thaci, Kosovo's Prime Minister, walking into news conference 2 SOUNDBITE: (Albanian) Hashim Thaci, Kosovo's Prime Minister: Today the republic of Kosovo is receiving recognition of Kosovo's independence from the strongest countries Today, the new Kosovo state slowly is getting it's right to international recognition from the decision making countries 3 Wide of news conference 4 SOUNDBITE: (Albanian) Hashim Thaci, Kosovo's Prime Minister: In Kosovo and in the region there will be only peace and stability The region has to work closely together towards global security, and tonight Serbia's reaction (from the parliament) towards declaration of Kosovo's independence understandably, was expected But very soon we will send them and a letter of invitation for recognition of Kosovo's independence But I need to state as well, that apart from what Serbia's state is declaring towards Kosovo - I'm stating as Serbia's prime minister stated, to ask the people of Serbia to stay out of streets and to go back to their normality And this is what we need Slowly Belgrade will understand the reality of new Kosovo 5 Wide of news conference 6 Mid of Thaci and delegates walking out STORYLINE Kosovo's Prime Minister, Hashim Thaci on Monday welcomed swift recognition of Kosovo as a newly declared independent state, from the United States and major European powers Today the republic of Kosovo is receiving recognition of Kosovo's independence from the strongest countries, Thaci said during a news conference in Pristina The new Kosovo state slowly is getting it's right to international recognition, Thaci added But US recognition of Kosovo's independence provoked anger from Serbia, who recalled its ambassador to the US on Monday Serbia's reaction towards declaration of Kosovo's independence understandably, was expected, Thaci said The Kosovo Prime Minister explained that very soon Kosovo would send Serbia a letter of invitation for recognition of Kosovo's independence Slowly Belgrade will understand the reality of new Kosovo, he said Recognition from the US, Britain, Germany and France came hours after Kosovo's leaders sent letters to 192 countries seeking formal recognition Britain has upgraded its office in Kosovo to an embassy Spain led a group of five against the move fearing it could set a dangerous precedent encouraging separatist minorities elsewhere to seek statehood Russia and China also oppose The rift deepened a stalemate at an emergency UN Security Council meeting on Monday on the international response to Kosovo's unilateral declaration Kosovo had formally remained a part of Serbia even though it has been administered by the UN and NATO since 1999, when NATO airstrikes ended former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic's crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists, which killed 10-thousand people