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The broad international recognition of Kosovo’s independence seen in the wake of Pristina’s Feb. 17 declaration holds dramatic implications, both within Russia and internationally.

The Kremlin has invested a great volume of its political capital in opposing Kosovar independence, believing that low-cost diplomacy alone would earn it a high-gain win against the West. In the end, it appears that the opposite has occurred: Russian intractability has backed Moscow into a corner, and now the West has simply ignored Russia’s protestations. As of the time of this writing, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States and a host of other states already have recognized Kosovar independence, and at least as many are poised to follow suit in the next two days.

Ironically, the person who best put it into context is none other than one of Russia’s few allies: Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko.

In a Feb. 18 interview with TV channel Russia Today shortly after states began recognizing Kosovar independence, Lukashenko made the case that Moscow is a decade too late in coming to Serbia’s defense and should have done so before NATO bombed Belgrade in 1999. He said:

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November 20, 2008 | 1849 GMT

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