Washington: Under congressional challenge, a senior State Department official has said that US support for the independence of Kosovo was a "unique situation and an exception to a general rule of discouraging secession." "Kosovo in our view does not constitute a precedent," assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The move, which granted Kosovo independence from Serbia and touched off a lively debate among European countries, was challenged by Rep.

Ted Poe, a Republican who questioned the Bush Administration s authority to choose whether or not a group is entitled to a country of its own. Fried, defending the decision, granted that "supporting separatism is generally not a good idea. This is very much an exception." The Administration was backed by Rep Eliot L. Engel, a Democrat who said there were no good alternatives, including maintaining Serbia s control of its former territory.

Neither UN nor Serbian control was a workable alternative, he said. Fried agreed, saying Serbia lost control of Kosovo in 1999 and the question now is whether Belgrade casts its lot with Europe or pursues self-isolation. "Our efforts in the Balkans are based on one overarching objective: the integration of the region into Euro-Atlantic institutions," he said.

Fried said, "Many things can go wrong and some things probably will, but leaving Kosovo in limbo under UN administration could not continue indefinitely." "Since independence, the Kosovars have moved swiftly to respect and above all protect minorities, especially the Serbs," he said.

Source : PTI