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| Countries recognizing the Republic of Kosovo in green, with the five most recent additions to the list labelled. Kosovo in magenta. Map by Evan Centanni, modified from public domain graphic (source). |
Country Name: • Kosovo (English, Serbian) • Kosova (Albanian) Official Name: • Republic of Kosovo (English) • Republika e Kosovës (Albanian) • Republika Kosovo (Serbian) Capital: Pristina/Prishtina |
Since our last report on recognition of the Republic of Kosovo, five more U.N. members have endorsed independence for the disputed country in southeastern Europe. This brings the list of member countries recognizing Kosovo to 97, or just over 50% of the U.N. (there are currently 193 sovereign states in the U.N.).
One country, the Southeast Asian island state of East Timor, actually recognized Kosovo back in September, before our last report. However, we didn't know that at the time, so it didn't make it into that update.
The other four U.N. member countries which have granted recognition to Kosovo since last time are Burundi in West Africa, Fiji in the South Pacific, and two small Caribbean island states, Dominica and St. Kitts and Nevis. A full list of countries recognizing Kosovo, including references and dates of recognition, is available on Wikipedia.
The Republic of Kosovo seceded from Serbia in 2008, but has been blocked from U.N. membership by objections from Serbia, Russia, and other countries which see its secession as invalid. In addition to the 97 U.N. members who individually recognize Kosovo, its independence is also acknowledged by one non-U.N. member, Taiwan. For more on Kosovo's special situation, see our first Kosovo recognition report from earlier this year.
Stay Up to Date: Check for further updates to this story by viewing all Kosovo articles on Political Geography Now.
Flag graphic by Cradel (source). License: CC BY-SA