West focus costs Kosovo with barriers to Islamic world

The last predominantly Muslim country to recognise Kosovo as a state was Bangladesh in 2017.

Its independence, declared in 2008, recognises little more than half of the 57 member states of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, which describes itself as the joint “sis of the Muslim world”. Among them are Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

However, many others like Indonesia, with over 275 million people or Iran, do not know him.

Free Europe Radio contacted the foreign ministries of these two countries, as well as that of Tunisia, Iraq and Syria, to ask whether they are considering the position for Kosovo, but received no answers.

Similarly, neither the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora responded to REL's interest in its lobbying activities in these countries.

In an interview given to the Arab News newspaper in 2022, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti has said it is “that is the biggest error” that some majority Muslim countries refuse to recognise Kosovo as a state.

“I think they are ill-formed by Serbia. Some of them take that stance even because of close ties with the Russian Federation. I call on all countries in the world that for the sake of long-term peace, lasting security and recognition of people's rights for freedom and self-determination to recognise Kosovo's independence”, Kurti said of Arab News.

Kosovo has over 1.5 million Muslims, but with the Constitution it is a secular state.

Despite the support of some of the largest and most influential states in the world, Kosovo is not yet part of the United Nations Organisation and is recognised only by a little over 100 of the 193 UN member states.

Gezim Visoka, professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at Dublin City University, says the reluctance of many majority Muslim countries to recognise Kosovo stems from a complex combination of geopolitical influences and historical alliances.

Among them, he specifically mentions Iran, which he says has close ties with Serbia and Russia, and is keen to pursue anti-Western rrugation. As such, it also has influence in countries such as Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.

“Then, there are countries like Morocco and Palestine, which have special ties to Serbia, due to internal problems that have with specific regions and historical ties that the former Yugoslavia has established with to”, says Visoka.

So, we have little to do with the perception of Kosovo as a Western or American project, and in part with Yugoslavia's heritage in the Middle East and North Africa”, he says of the Free Europe Radio Expos programme.

Michael Bishku, professor of History at Augusta University, says the attitude of some non-recognising Kosovo states is also linked to their fears that her independence could create precedents, but also with pressure from Russia's main ally of Serbia on the international stage.

I don't think Iran will recognise Kosovo because it goes in step with Russia. Those two countries are pretty close. Iran helps Russia in its war in Ukraine. Several other countries may consider their position on Kosovo in the future, but Iran is not”, Bishku says.

For Visoka, good signals to many majority Muslim countries have not sent even some Kosovo actions, including its decision to establish diplomatic relations with Israel and open the embassy in Jerusalem.

“Jerusalem's status is controversial and there is an international consensus that its status quo will not change until a solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians is found. Kosovo has gone a step further and has taken sides in this dispute and is thus perceived as a non-friendly act by Arab countries”, Visoka says.

Kosovo opened the embassy in Jerusalem in 2021, following an agreement with Serbia reached at the White House. The ruling was then rejected by the Arab League, but also by the European Union, which named it a bad “”.

Visoka says Kosovo, out of fear of stigmatisation or perception as an Islamic country, has overlooked the need to have good relations with many non-Western countries.

“According to Jerusalem and Palestine, Kosovo has room to be more extensive, take the EU's stance on developments in Gaza, Lebanon and do nothing more”.

However, Kosovo has been almost unilateral so far it has condemned last October 7th [in Israel] attacks and has been largely silent against crimes and violence against Palestinian civilians”, says Visoka.

According to him, Kosovo should create a more principled and balanced foreign policy that would send signals to countries that have not recognised it, that it is not against the Arab world or their interests.

The Palestinian authority, which has been battling Israel's invasion for decades, does not recognise Kosovo, and former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has been criticised for close ties with former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic.

Bishku doubts that many majority Muslim countries are well informed about Kosovo and the historical context of its independence.

“Pales are angry and asked why Western countries do not care much about the recognition of the Palestinian state, as much as they do of Kosovo”, Bishku says of Expose.

With the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East over the past year, Kosovo, in some cases, has voiced support for Israel.

When Iran attacked the Israeli state on October 1st, Prime Minister Kurti wrote on X that Kosovo supports Israel's right to defend itself, as well as all efforts to achieve an immediate ceasefire.

For analysts, Kosovo does not have the luxury to take sides or be regional in foreign policy until it ensures more universal recognition.

Visoka acknowledges that interactions with countries like Syria, which have authoritarian or semi-authorial regimes, could cost Kosovo in its western image, but says that with a silent and concentrated lobe, non-recognitional countries could change positions.

In that case, the benefits for Kosovo would be great, according to him.

Besides deepening economic, political, cultural and military co-operation, these countries have UN votes and would be key to advancing Kosovo as a sovereign state within the UN. Membership in the majority of international organisations requires two-thirds of the votes of their members, and the Arab or Muslim bloc is powerful”, Visoka says.

The Beast agrees. In the event of a greater solidification of the majority Muslim countries, Kosovo could also become a member of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, he says.

“Albania has long been a member. In the event of membership, Kosovo could receive financial assistance, which would be beneficial. But as long as there is no solidarity in this organisation, it is difficult to say when this can happen”, Bishku says.

Turkey, which itself has recognised Kosovo just one day after declaring independence, has repeatedly called on majority Muslim countries to follow suit.

Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan himself has pledged three years ago that he will work to increase the number of Kosovo recognitions.

Free Radio Europe asked the Turkish Embassy in Pristina about Ankara's lobbying activities, but received no answers.

The latest recognition, Kosovo received it from Israel in February 2021.

In an interview with the Kalxo media late last year, Kosovo Chief of Diploma, Donika Grovall, has said she is working for new recognitions but cannot impose her will on other states.

Whatever the case, in a world where alliances and partnerships matter, Kosovo should have realized that accepting it requires more than, simply, a good will maybe a more serious diplomacy and a financial particle more. /REL