The Independent International Commission on Kosovo prepared a report on Kosovo in 2000; the link below displays the executive summary. The commission’s mission statement said,

“The Independent International Commission on Kosovo will examine key developments prior to, during and after the Kosovo war, including systematic violations of human rights in the region. The Commission will present a detailed, objective analysis of the options that were available to the international community to cope with the crisis. It will focus on the origins of the Kosovo crisis, the diplomatic efforts to end the conflict, the role of the United Nations and Nato's decision to intervene militarily. It will examine the resulting refugee crisis including the responses of the international community to resolve the crisis. The effect of the conflict on regional and other states will also be examined. Furthermore, the Commission will assess the role of humanitarian workers, NGOs and the media during the Kosovo war. Finally, the Commission will identify the norms of international law and diplomacy brought to the fore by the Kosovo war and the adequacy of present norms and institutions in preventing or responding to comparable crises in the future.”

Today's arrest of Radko Mladic, accused mastermind of the slaughter at Srebrenica, will help clear the way for Serbia's accession to the European Union and is a step forward for the region, says CFR's Charles Kupchan.

Session Two of a Council on Foreign Relations Symposium on International Law and Justice: Evolving Norms and U.S. Responses.

Russia stirs concern with gestures toward two Georgian breakaway provinces. Moscow’s moves follow Kosovo’s secession and NATO expansion promises.

Interview: CFR's Charles A. Kupchan says recognizing Kosovo as independent is the best pragmatic solution from a list of bad options.

Listen to CFR Senior Fellow Stephen Sestanovich discuss the upcoming presidential elections in Russia and the recent declaration of independence by Kosovo.

Washington’s representative to talks on Kosovo, Frank G. Wisner, says Serbia will never recognize an independent Kosovo and that Russia’s role has been “unbelievably regrettable.”

Political land mines loom beyond Kosovo’s declaration of independence from Serbia.

Two policy experts discuss potential scenarios that could play out if Kosovo declares independence and the United States honors its national sovereignty.

Charles A. Kupchan, CFR’s top Europe expert, says with Kosovo on the cusp of announcing independence, he finds the continued Russian opposition “perplexing.”

Four speakers discuss the consequences of an independent Kosovo.

CFR Senior Fellow Charles Kupchan discusses implications of Kosovo's anticipated declaration of independence despite Russia's opposition.

Kosovo is expected to declare independence within the next month. Russia says this could trigger instability in other nearby breakaway regions.

Richard C. Holbrooke, the architect of the Dayton Accords that ended the Bosnia war, says Russia’s uncooperative attitude in Kosovo combined with western inaction could spark renewed conflict.

Speech

Two weeks ago, UN special envoy Martii Ahtisaari met with the Security Council to discuss his proposal for Kosovar independence. Ahtisaari’s plan is the basis for a resolution considered last week in the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Undersecretary R. Nicholas Burns discusses the prospects for a sovereign Kosovo with Charles A. Kupchan, Senior Fellow and Director of Europe Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Last summer, UN Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari was tasked by the Security Council with resolving the question of Kosovo's future status, with support from U.S. and European Union envoys. As the process draws to a close, this United States Institute of Peace briefing discusses potential drivers of conflict in Kosovo during the status decision and in the period thereafter.

A top U.S. State Department official on Balkan policy says Serbia must begin participating in final talks over the conditional independence of Kosovo or face increased isolation from Europe.

A UN envoy is proposing phased independence for Kosovo, nearly eight years after Belgrade’s dominion over the province ended.

Nationalists won Serbia’s general elections but may not have pulled in enough votes to form a government. Kosovo's final status and the stability of a beleaguered corner of southeastern Europe remain at stake.