Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-02-20-Speech-3-323"
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"en.20080220.14.3-323"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to bid Kosovo a heartfelt welcome as one of the countries of Europe. The declaration of independence was a brave act on Kosovo’s part. Now the country and its people need to show the same courage and self-assurance as they start to build their own multicultural society.
It has been obvious for a long time now that the struggle for Kosovo’s independence was a one-way street. It was only a question of time. The deadline for independence would have been Serbia’s accession to the European Union. Fortunately, they did not need to wait that long. Kosovo has been under UN administration now for 10 years. The situation is completely different from what it has been in other separatist regions.
The years to come will require far-sightedness and wisdom on the part of Kosovo’s leaders. I believe they will show those qualities. War, ethnic hatred and an administration run by the international community are experiences from which lessons have to be learnt. The most important thing now is to focus on building a stable civil society. Independence also removes the uncertainty which has kept both domestic and foreign investments away.
Mr Ahtisaari’s plan provides an excellent framework for the initial stages in the country’s independence. Success will only be possible if the leaders and the people perceive the building of their country as their very own project, and not as a set of rules and regulations dictated to them from abroad. The international community also needs to be able to keep a distance and let the country’s Kosovan and Serb populations build their own model of coexistence. There are almost as many examples of multicultural countries as there are European states. Kosovo is no exception where this is concerned.
Once again I offer my congratulations to the Kosovans and welcome them as a newly independent country."@en1
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