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Kosovo leader Kurtesh Devaja, speaking as a private individual, affirms his support for PMR's international recognition

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - Speaking as a private citizen, and not on behalf of his government, international election observer Kurtesh Devaja said: "Recognize Pridnestrovie internationally." In Kosovo, he has been the spokesman for Kosovo's Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications and a leading political figure among Kosovo's Albanians.

Kurtesh Devaja heads one a teams of international election observers arriving from the war-torn Serbian province. Having seen first-hand what a separatist war can do, he is now a firm believer in democratic solutions to solve the right of a people to selfdetermination. This weekend he let his voice be heard at a press conference in Tiraspol, the capital of Pridnestrovie.

" - People should choose by themselves how they will live. And the international community should respect this decision," he said.

He also brought a message of hope with him from Kosovo:
" - In spite of the refusal of the West to democratically recognize the results of the referendum, Pridnestrovie must not stop in the fight to get its status settled."

Statements of politicians are not hard and fast decisions which are written in stone and can never be changed. As history shows, change is a constant, and sooner or later the international community will adopt the most realistic approach to any given conflict settlement. In 1999, the West categorically ruled out any talk of independence for Kosovo. But with the persistence of Kosovo's Albanian majority, who never gave up the hope of one day living in a free and sovereign nation, the world has now realized that this is the best solution for the people who live there.

Observer from Kosovo: Situations in Kosovo and Pridnestrovie are practically identical

Radio Kosova Editor-in-Chief and political leader Kurtesh Devaja noted in an interview that the main difference between Kosovo and Pridnestrovie is in mono-ethnic nature of the former and multi-ethnic nature of the latter. Apart from that, he sees clear similarities: both Kosovo and Pridnestrovie are economically independent territories; and both people have achieved an effective level of clear political independence.

While Kosovo and Pridnestrovie are different, they also share a fundamental similarity: two minority peoples felt imprisoned inside a newly independent state against their will, after the break-up of a communist-era multi-ethnic federation.

The main difference between Kosovo and Pridnestrovie is historical. Kosovo has at various times in its history been part of an independent Serbia, but this is not the case in Pridnestrovie. At no time in history has Pridnestrovie ever been a formal part of an independent, sovereign Moldova. This is the reason why, says Devaja, his country supports PMR's international recognition.

“ - Regardless of how the international community treats the referendum in Pridnestrovie, after the people have their say, everybody will have to take it into account. The international community should respect the people’s will,” the Kosovo journalist and politician believes.
With his group of international observers, he will monitor the referendum to ensure that it is held to democratic standards, with a free and fair vote and the utmost transparent conditions.

The Kosovo status talks have given rise to hopes that other unrecognized countries will also soon be formalize their inclusion into the international community, said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin in an interview to Izvestia daily, when asked if the Kosovo precedent can be applied to Pridnestrovie.

" - Those speaking about the ‘uniqueness’ of the Kosovo case either forget or deliberately neglect that, in fact, the question is about inconsistency in approaching different conflicts, in other words, about ‘double standards.’ Such an approach undermines confidence in the international community and leads to chaos and selectivity in international relations. Of course, this is unacceptable. That’s why our position is that, even though each specific conflict is different, there should be some universal settlement rules based on the generally accepted norms of the international law," says Karasin, leaving it understood that the best settlement rule is one which is based on democracy and respecting the will of the people in a free and fair vote.

Democracy is the answer, not more war

A staunch defender of democracy, the Kosovo political leader has now made it his mission to work for peaceful, democratic change and conflict resolution. War, he says, is "never the answer," while he emphasized that any friend of democracy must absolutely respect the supreme will of the people and give it preference over any other rule or condition.

Applying this principle to his own country, he has consistently held that every meeting between Albanians and Serbs regarding the solution of the Kosovo status issue should have as basis the will of the majority in Kosovo. Only with democracy as the basis can a solution be secured which will lead towards the overall stabilization in postwar Kosovo.

In what appears to be a parallel to the problems which Pridnestrovie is facing with Moldova, Devaja earlier commented on his home country and said: "Serbs have never kept the promises they made to the international community", adding that he wants them to "become aware and understand that Kosovo can no longer be directed by Belgrade, but decisions will be made in Pristina".

Kurtesh Devaja, an ethnic Albanian, has served as the advisor and spokesman for Kosovo's Ministry of Transport and Telecommunication. He is a leading politician and member of the presidency of the Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo, PSHDK. In addition to his government- and political influence, Devaja is also a well-known talk show host in his native Pristina where he holds the job of editor-in-chief of the Albanian Radio / Radio Kosova Network (Radio Shqip).

Pridnestrovie declared independence in 1990, one year before the Republic of Moldova was founded. Although it meets all of the requirements for statehood under international law, it has not yet received formal recognition.

UPDATE: The head of the International Election Monitoring Institute of Poland, Robert Smolyanskya, who organized the visit of the delegation which Kurtesh Devaja was leading, wants to clarify that the statements made by Mr Devaja in spite of his official position in Kosovo did not represent and could not represent the government of Kosovo, and Tiraspol Times would urge its readers to not make this conclusion.

See also:
» Echoes from Kosovo reach Pridnestrovie, bringing new hope to status talks [1]